[T3] Emergency Supplies Checklist
Max Welton
max_welton_2k at yahoo.com
Sun Feb 16 11:41:50 PST 2014
Not a big believer in bringing along every part and every tool I
own. I'd much rather bring a car I know well and that is not likely
to need things out on the road.
My approach has been to first put plenty of miles on your car
ahead of time. Include driving that is more like what you
would expect on a long trip, i.e. highway driving. The idea is to
expose any weak areas of your car before you are far from home.
Find out how much oil and transmission fluid your car uses on
the highway. Bring what you will need.
Once you have addressed the cars week areas, your travel kit
can be more like when these cars were young and in daily-driver
use.
I have a gallon zip-lock bag full of general purpose wire, connectors,
stuff to solder with by the roadside, shrink wrap, tools to cut strip
and crimp. Fuses. This pretty much covers general wiring gremlins.
I have another zip-lock with 25' of 1/16" wire rope and some little
1/16 ferrules that can be used to create a throttle cable for almost
any ACVW. You'll need a wire cutter and something to crimp with.
Make sure your wire cutter is up to the task of cutting that 1/16"
steel cable. My little Letterman was not.
For actual tools I have a tool roll in which I carry the common (10mm,
13mm, 15mm and 17mm) open and closed end spanners, a little
nut-driver set (for things like hose-clamps and windshield wiper nuts),
screw-drivers, feeler gauge (for checking / setting the valves). Couple
of fresh valve cover gaskets.
Spare tire. Jack. Lug wrench. An LED light that straps to your head.
I actually don't carry a spare belt. If it breaks (and it really shouldn't)
you can just keep driving. On a type-3 all you've lost is the charging
system. And you can drive for hours on a healthy battery. Maybe less
at night.
I've saved the most important for last. As you prepare the car, do
your own work. Know your car and your tools. That way when you
need to replace the throttle cable in the rain after dark with traffic
passing three feet from your right elbow ... it will at least not also
be the first time you've ever replaced a throttle cable.
Max Welton
http://www.maxwelton2k.net/
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