At the end of May, we are off to Laon with the Sylva Club and and I am preparing a list of things to take that will be useful in the event of a breakdown. Tools tow rope hoses water etc etc.

In contrast, next week we are taking the tintop down to South-West France and apart from spare bulbs and a foot pump I'm taking nothing in the way of tools and spares and I do not expect to have any mechanical problems at all.

It seems absurd that I do not have the same confidence in a car that I built myself, know like the back of my hand and has been put together with great care with either new or reconditioned parts.

I just wondered if I am alone in this or whether others load their cars up with spares, expecting the worst.

John

I allways work on the theory that if you will allways need what you havnt got - and so far its worked
My `long distance` fury toolkit includes duct tape and cable ties , araldite , plenty of spanners and some radseal ............

I'm always paranoid on a long trip. What's that noise where's that knock coming from etc etc. I have rac relay but it seems to be that I worry about everything
Basically Sh!t happens and all the worry in the world won't stop it. I suppose the only variable in the kit car is the amount of vibration/suspension hardness etc that can cause failures at times. IMHO

If your traveling in a group it maybe make sense to each take something different ?

My tool kit comprises of a Swiss army knife, a aerosol spare wheel, a few cable ties, a few fuses and a "shifter".

On the two occasions I have had problems I have robbed Peter to pay Paul, choke cable for a throttle cable and knicked a bolt to replace a missing one from the gear linkage, the fact you built the car can help loads when wondering where you can borrow something from.

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On the two occasions I have had problems I have robbed Peter to pay Paul, choke cable for a throttle cable and knicked a bolt to replace a missing one from the gear linkage, the fact you built the car can help loads when wondering where you can borrow something from.

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I've only broken down twice, once the clutch slave bolts came undone, which I couldn't fix, as I'd left my tools at home that day. The second time, the engine blew up. No amount of spanners and gaffer tape were going to fix that. So know I have a little tool kit that folds up into a small carry case and a mobile to ring folk to tow me home. Never broken down since, but since it's about to go back on the road, I may invest in RAC/AA cover.
PS, having a bike engine removes some of the main troubles such as belts.

thing with the tin top is that if it breaks down, its not aways easy to diagnose a problem and its not going to be easy to fix, so there's no point in having loads of tools! Whereas with the kit, you will always know roughly whats gone wrong and exactly how to fix or bodge it!

It's always the stuff you haven't got that you need.....

I carry around a small tool kit but I've broken down twice and neither times had what I needed

My most frequently used items in my tool box are a mobile phone and my RAC card

Ive done both, the bottom line is I have now had aa relay in 3 reliable family cars that I have done no work on!

By contrast, I have only ever had on breakdown in any of the cars ive rebuilt myself,and that was an alternator failure!

So I decided it wasnt worth it, on a long journey I take spare fluids, and aa card and my phone

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Originally posted by omega 24 v6
I'm always paranoid on a long trip. What's that noise where's that knock coming from etc etc. I have rac relay but it seems to be that I worry about everything
Basically Sh!t happens and all the worry in the world won't stop it. I suppose the only variable in the kit car is the amount of vibration/suspension hardness etc that can cause failures at times. IMHO

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I never worry, that is what I pay the AA for.

Another thing worth taking is an A-Z of your local area and a map of UK, so you can tell RAC exactly where you are
get away from the rubber neckers quicker as well

I've broken down 4 times now

1. Burnt out starter motor.
2. Split oil line.
3. Big end failure.
4. Snapped gear change cable.

Each time my tool kit has got more comprehensive, and each time it's been something different that I didn't have the ability to fix at the roadside.

That's why I have both AA cover and breakdown through my insurer (Sureterm).

TBH I think I'm going to seriously rationalise the spares / toolkit I carry around with me. You never know, but the weight saving might make the car more reliable!

Cheers

Mike