At some point this fall, I'm planning on taking my '85 C4 on a road trip through the mountains in the Carolinas with my wife. As part of my preparations for this trip, I'd like to assemble what I'm calling a "Bad Day Bag"-a collection of tools that can live in the car in the rear hatches, designed to keep relatively minor issues from becoming a major problem. This isn't a kit to rebuild an engine on the side of the road-more like fixing a wire, changing a stuck thermostat, replacing spark plugs, etc. While I'm thinking about it for this particular trip, I'm actually planning on keeping it in the car at all times to keep a minor issue from stranding me. I wouldn't be taking the trip if I had serious concerns that the car wouldn't make it-I've driven it for hundreds of miles without any issues, and she's running great and reliably. I've overhauled a lot of different systems and I'm pretty comfortable with the car. This is more of a peace of mind thing.

With all that said, here's what I've got so far:

• Ratchet wrench with a full set of metric sockets
• Also have a set of star-bit sockets in various sizes (EDIT: These are Torx bits, I spaced on what they're called)
• set of 14mm, 16mm, and 17mm box wrenches
• 1 Flathead and 1 phillips head screwdriver
• RTV (orange)
• Quart of oil
• Wire stripper tool
• volt meter
• electrical tape
• a few butt wire connectors

I'm thinking of tossing a couple spark plugs in there and some fuses in various sizes too. So far it fits just fine underneath the removable boxes in the rear hatches, although there's not a ton of room left for anything bulky. Again, it's not designed to be changing head gaskets on the side of the road, just to avoid calling a tow truck for something simple. I would love to hear some suggestions going forward, for either tools or replacement parts that would be really good to have and that won't take up a ton of space.

Based on feedback here's a few more:

• Cigarette lighter powered air compressor
• pliers
• cable ties
• spare serpentine belt
• Ignition module
• gloves
• water
• battery jumper
• various fuses
• spare radiator hoses
• Duct Tape

I'm a little concerned about fitting all of this in there, but I'm going to try. My plan is to keep this kit in the car in general and not just for this trip, in order to be ready in case I get stranded. I am pretty confident in the car, but at the end of the day it's 35 years old and I think it's better to be prepared than to be sorry.

Thanks!

 

Spend $30 at Walmart, pick up a small compressor, fuse for the cig lighter, a plug kit and a reg/needlenose pliers to pull any screw out. Saved my butt a million times no need to take the wheel off just move the car where you can get to it. Can always cobble some wiring to get battery power also
Few min youre back on the road.

 

A collection of various sizes of cable ties. You can jury-rig almost anything from these...

 

Both of these are wonderful suggestions, thanks! I knew there were things I'm not thinking of...

 

I have one of those noco jump boxes in mine. Comes in handy in an emergency.

 

How big are they? could they fit under the tray in the rear hatches? How do you keep it charged? I've never had one.

 

AAA card ,this card may save your rear .. One never knows ... A tow cost big money .

 

Its lithium so once its charged its good.

4x2x7 inches? It actually slides under the passenger seat.

 

Spare belt and hose repair kit multi-size or spare upper and lower

 

A bag of hand tools, a couple gallons of water, a couple quarts of oil, an old spare belt, tire plug kit, foot pump and a large can of fix-a-flat (even if you have a spare); because you might breakdown on a really skinny stretch of road and will need to move somewhere else to put the spare on safely. Other than that, AAA as mentioned.

 

Several people have mentioned the spare tire-I'm not sure I'd trust it because at this point it's 35 years old and probably dry-rotted. Can you get a replacement these days that isn't astronomically expensive?

Also, I have free towing as part of my car insurance so covered there.

 

Ignition module - not a cheap one but OEM.

 

Good call I've already replaced one before and when they go it's not fun.

 

I would add to that kit a few torx head sockets, as the valve covers and intake + distributor cover are all torx bolts. (Proabbly just 2 or 3 sizes, i can't remember off hand what they are).

Also, bring an extra serpintine belt, extra upper and lower rad hose, 2 quarts of oil and a couple bottles of water, some zap straps and some mechanics gloves. Also make sure your spare tires is inflated or bring liter operated air compressor (if the spare is toast).

I think with those things plus what was on your list you should be able to deal with a lot of unexpected situations, that could come up.

Enjoy the trip!

 

Also:
Duct tape and some electrical wire

 

Good additional recommendations.

A couple of wire nuts could be of use for a quick fix to get you off the side of the road.

I have not heard of the side-step bleed method.
Could you enlighten me ?
Thanks

 

I deal with spare parts inventory on a regular basis and this is always a hard call. See, something as simple as a broken switch can keep a machine down. You can inventory a full spare (Piece of equipment, car, ac parts - etc.), but that gets ridiculously expensive. Once nice thing is there is 30 years of data to really look at what fails on these cars and what will allow you to limp versus actually being stranded.

Obviously before you go you should make sure you have no leaks and all fluids are in good condition and topped off.
General road trip items: A clean gallon of potable water can be used to drink or fill your car's radiator up depending on the situation.You can get to safety on water and get antifreeze. You mentioned taking some oil, but might want to toss in some trans fluid, power steering fluid and gear oil as well. They won't go bad, you can use them later. I like the fluid fill in a can for tires as it seals and inflates in one can, but a patch kit is OK with a portable compressor. Duct tape, electrical tape, and wire ties are always good in a pinch to doctor something until you can get to a place to safely fix it correctly.

What I see common fails:
Injecotrs/MAF/ICM/ECM/CTS/TPS/O2 Sensor/Fuel Pump. It's fine if you want to carry some spare parts, but how often do they actually fail? Most of those conditions allow for some kind of limp mode to get to where you can actually get it fixed. Tough call here, I wouldn't say not to take a belt, hose, spark plug and what not with you, but you should have confidence in those items before taking off on your trip. We also don't see a lot of sudden failure of those items. Again, the focus has to be on limping to where you can fix. The biggest one I think I would be worried about is the Fuel Pump, well maybe the ECM. There is not a lot you can do to inspect their condition or predict their failure.

General tools: Regular pliers, Needle nose pliers, and one I didn't see mentioned is a set of locking pliers. Never know when you need to clamp something and hold it together. There has already been mention of most other tools, but what about diagnostic tools to help identify a problem? Fuel pressure gage, data logger/scanner, noid light? Some things to consider in addition to the hand tools.

Here is a bigger thing to consider. How is your cell phone reception along you planned route? I would plan a back up with a radio, CB, something else to call for help if you are stranded and can't get a call out.

 

Thank you. Good info to know.

 

If you have fresh plug wires, just make sure they wont contact the smog rail, or anything hot to burn up. These are generally pretty reliable when sorted out but it seems its something small that gets ya stranded. Wtih me its always a flat tire .

 

Yeah I really don’t expect any trouble at all. I’ve done extensive work on this car and so a lot of failure points have been addressed. The injectors are new, the TPS is new, the fuel pump is new, u-joints are new, shocks are new, new clutch and flywheel, master and slave clutch cylinders and replaced 4+3 OD, etc.

it stranded me the week I bought it when the thermostat stuck open. Only time that’s happened. The socket set I actually bought at the time to get it home. Rtv was necessary to seal the tstat housing back up. This was nearly three years ago and not been stranded since. I keep up with my fluids etc. too the point that I change them out once per year whether necessary or not.

It’s amazing how many things you can do with some simple tools on these cars. I figure this kit can just live in the car even after taking a trip as a safety net. I don’t want to carry too many spare parts.