Homemade Emergency Car Kit

My Car Survival Kit

When I wrote my original post back in 2014 I had a list of only 10 things.  Now, however, I have put together what I feel is a pretty good Emergency Kit for my car.  Now, this is not focused on repairing the car, it is focused on its occupants and dealing with any emergencies they may have.  I am not a mechanic so I will not be fixing my car.  This emergency kit is for those emergencies that can happen along the way as I drive around.

Not everything in the kit is for an emergency, some of the items are just nice to have when you are traveling.  Many of the items in my car survival kit, you may already have around the house and it just may be a matter of collecting them up into an emergency kit and putting them in the car.  The purpose of this is to have these items with you when you travel.  If you need them around the house you can always get them out of the car.  By keeping them in the car, you will always have them with you when traveling.

My Emergency Car Kit has two parts.

Console or Glove Box Kit

This emergency kit is normally in my center console and consists of the following list of emergency items.  From left to right and top to bottom.

• A multitool with pliers, knife, file and other tools.  These are so handy I have thee of them, one in each car, and one in my camping kit.  I gave one to my son as a stocking stuffer one year for Christmas.
• A screwdriver that breaks down into a little kit like the pocket screwdriver I linked to.
• A note pad with 3 pens (not shown)
• 3 flashlights. A pen light, a LED  light and an Electromagnetic flashlight that needs no batteries.  All you do is shake the light and then you have power.
• 2 koozies.  A warm beer can be an emergency but these prevent that from occurring.
• A bottle and can opener.
• A small bottle of hand disinfectant.
• A tire air pressure gauge.
• An old pill bottle with some Aleve in it for those driving headaches.
• A small pair of binoculars.

All of these emergency kit items go in the plastic the bag to keep them dry and easy to grab if necessary.  I have also found it easier to take the bag out when looking for something rather than rooting through the console or glove box.

This is my small kit of day to day things that I like to have handy in my car.

Trunk Emergency Survival Kit

This kit has the larger items that I like to have along especially on long road trips.  I just keep it in my car all the time even when I am just running around town.  After all, on a day to day basis I don't use my trunk that much for anything else.  Well here is my Trunk Car Emergency Kit List:

From Left to right and top to bottom here what is in the photo and the car survival kit.

• A backpack which will be loaded with a few items as I will explain later.
• An emergency radio.  The green thing leaning on the backpack is a solar-crank-battery emergency radio.  It really is a neat little radio as I discussed at this link,  Emergency Radio Review.
• A BIC Flame Disk.  These are really neat because you can use them instead of charcoal for cooking.  I have 4 more in my camping kit.  I have this one here because it can provide heat if I need it.
• The flame kit is leaning on one of two hoodies that I have in the emergency kit.
• Next are two blue ponchos for those rainy days.
• Under the ponchos is a wool sports blanket.  I may get space blankets to add to my emergency kit as they take up very little room.
• On top of the blanket are my jumper cables.  They don't get packed inside the kit but are in the trunk for those times when a jump is needed.
• Starting over the left side again is another pair of binoculars, a bigger pair than in the console emergency kit.
• Below the binoculars is a bag of $5 to $10 of loose change and $20 in small bills.  You never know when you could use a little cash.
• To the right of the money are 3 bottles of water and 4 power bars that are placed in a gallon plastic bag just in the case the water leaks.
• Next is a first aid kit that you can get a drug store, or Amazon for that matter.
• Below the first aid kit is a deck of playing cards and container of wet ones.
• Next is a bathroom towel and couple of hand towels.
• On top of the towel are 2 trash bags and to their left is a small sewing kit and a couple of packages of eyeglass cleaners.
• Continuing to move to the left is a collapsible umbrella and a barbecue lighter.
• Next is a bottle of sun tan lotion and Off insect spray and finally 20 feet of paracord and 50 feet of string.

All of those items except for the jumper cables are packed into a plastic container that is then placed inside my trunk.  Some of the items are packed in additional plastic bags in case of leakage or to keep them dry like the first aid kit and emergency radio.

The backpack is preloaded with the water and power bars, the cash, one hoodie, the two ponchos, and the binoculars.  I find that I get a lot of use out of the binoculars, hoodie and ponchos so it is real easy to just grab the backpack and then I have them with me.

I also have two more umbrellas that I keep behind the front seat for those rainy days around town.

This is what the entire car emergency kit or car survival kit looks like.

I'm sure over time I will think of a few more things to include in my emergency car kit.

I do have a power inverter that I take along on road trips for A/C power if I need it.

Well, that is my car emergency kit list.  I think I have covered everything.  Can you think of anything I have missed?

10 things To Carry In Your Car

The must-have things in your car.

Well you may not be broken down like that rusty hulk in the picture but it never hurts to be prepared.

Yes I was a Boy Scout at one time in life and I'm a firm believer in being prepared.

There's nothing worse than being stuck somewhere and having no resources on hand to deal with the situation.

So based on the premise of being prepared here are the 10 things to carry in your car.

Photo Credit: Paleontour

#1 Tire Gauge
You need to know what your pressure is.

Before you say it, I know most gas station air pressure systems have pressure gauges, but they are often wrong.

It's very important to keep your tires at the correct air pressure. Here's a few reasons: - Under-inflated tires will wear your tires faster. - Under-inflated tires will lower your fuel miles per gallon costing you more in fuel. - Over-inflated tires will increase your chances of blow out.

If you don't know the correct pressure for your particular car, look it up in your owner's manual or check the data plate on the door sill of the driver's side door.

A quick point. Don't forget to check the air pressure in your spare tire every now and then. A flat spare tire is useless if you need it.

Photo Credit: Amazon

#2 A Good Flashlight
I helps when seeing in the dark.

Having a reliable flashlight is a must.

That's why I prefer having a crank flashlight. A crank flashlight requires that you crank a dynamo thereby building up a charge in a rechargeable battery.

You do have to crank it every now and then to keep the light on but it's a 100% better than turning on a battery flashlight and finding out that the batteries are dead. Because you seldom use a car flashlight chances are you don't check the batteries very often.

Some people will use their cell phone as a flashlight and that's okay unless you want to make a call and use the light at the same time or if your phone battery is getting low.

How about a crank flashlight that will charge your phone? That's right, and there's another benefit to the crank flashlight I recommend.

Photo Credit: Amazon

#3 Multitool
It performs a lot of functions.

Many do not know what a multifunction tool is. To put it simply it is a tool that has a number of different tools incorporated into it.

For example, the tool pictured at right has these tools: - Needle nose pliers - 2 knife blades, one flat, one serrated - Tweezers - Phillips head screwdriver - 2 flat head screwdrivers - Wire cutters - A bottle opener

These are not full sized tools, but are smaller versions. The purpose of this tool is to provide a useful tool in emergency situations that can provide assistance.

This was one of the first tools I bought and put in each of my cars. At this point I have used these tools dozens of times over the years and I am so thankful that I have them.

Photo Credit: Amazon

My First 3 Selections

Accutire MS-4021B Digital Tire Gauge

Et?n American Red Cross CLIPRAY ARCCR100R_SNG

Gerber 31-000750 Bear Grylls Compact Multi-Tool

#4 Battery Booster Cables
A dead battery can ruin your day.

I've had a set of battery booster/jumper cables as long as I can remember, and they have been used many, many times not only on my cars but friend's cars as well.

Many people don't have jumper cables because they are afraid to use them. They don't know how to use them and the thought of electricity and hooking things up under the hood of their car is frightening.

Their concerns are somewhat justified. You do need to learn how to properly and safely use the cables. But this is not such a monumental task. There a number of videos on Youtube that show how to properly use them. Besides that I'm sure everyone knows someone who can teach them how to safely use booster/jumper cables. So there is really no excuse.

Recommendation: Do not buy a cheap set of cables. These cables will be with you a lifetime, so get a good set.

Photo Credit: Amazon

#5 First Aid Kit
Even if just for those cuts and scrapes

You're at the park with the kids and one of them falls and gets a small cut. So being prepared you go to your car get a bottle of water to rinse off the cut, open the first aid kit and put some antiseptic ointment on the cut and cover with a bandaid.

Can you do this if you had to? Do you have the water and first aid kit in your car?

First aid kits are another item that I swear by. The biggest problem I have is keeping them fully stocked because they are being used so much. And that by itself tells me just how valuable a good first aid kit is.

It's simple, I don't leave home without one.

If you don't know basic first aid you'd better learn some. I'm not saying this because you may need to use it on some injured person. I'm saying this because you may need to use on your child, spouse, or even yourself.

Photo Credit: Amazon

#6 Food and Water
Just in case.

This is not for snacking on the road. This Food & Water is for emergencies only.

Why have food and water?

I've already shown you one use for the water in cleaning a minor cut.

You should keep a few bottles of water and some food like protein bars in your car. Select food items that will store well, and not degrade with temperature extremes.

If you live in a cold environment, drain some of the water out of the water bottles to allow for freezing.

Another point on the water. Most bottled water has a fairly long shelve life, but I recommend you change it out on a regular basis to keep it fresh.

#7 Power Inverter
More power for you phone and laptop.

Very few people even know what a power inverter is yet otherwise have one.

A power inverter is device which will take the power stored in your 12 volt car battery and convert it to the type of power needed by your cell phone, laptop, or other electrical device.

I bought my first power inverter over 20 years ago to power a household 13" television and vcr so we could play them in a van we had on long road trips.

I've always had a working power inverter since and over that time they have only gotten better. Today's power inverter will not only provide power for laptop but they also have USB jacks for you cell phone and they simply plug into your regular accessory port in your car.

Photo Credit: Amazon

My Next 3 Recommendations

Coleman Cable 08760 20-Feet Heavy-Duty Auto Battery Booster Cables with Parrot Jaw Clamps, 4-Gauge

Medique 40061 First Aid Kit, 61-Piece

BESTEK Dual 110V AC outlets and Dual USB 3.1A 300w power inverter car dc 12v to 110v ac inverter dc adapter laptop charger notebook adapter dc charger ac adapter usb charger MRI3011BU

#8 Portable Radio
Yes, a portable radio.

I know, you have a radio in your car but in an emergency on the road you may have to abandon your car, which would then put you out of contact with current events.

The radio I recommend is a magnificent piece of equipment that is powered by solar and crank power which means you'll have power for it.

I own this radio and like it so much I wrote a review article about it.

You can read that article at: Solar Radio Review.

Photo Credit: Amazon

#8 A Blanket
It's good to be warm.

You never know a blanket will come in handy. It could be just a cool at the soccer field or football game where you'll appreciate having a blanket.

As minimum I believe you should have some emergency blankets in your car. The blankets that I am referring to are what you used to be called "space blankets".

They are mylar blankets and they are designed to hold your natural body warmth. This then allows your own body warmth to keep you warm.

The mylar blankets are great for emergency use but you may also want a regular blanket for the park or ball game. For that purpose I have a wool picnic blanket that works very nicely.

Photo Credit: Amazon

#10 Binoculars
Not just for fun.

Binoculars may seem to be a bit excessive until you look at how thy can be used.

In an emergency they can be used as a signal mirror.

They can be used to help you orient yourself in an unknown area.

They can be used to see what's ahead on your route thereby preparing you for what's ahead.

On the fun side, they'll be useful for sightseeing, bird watching , or watching the big game.

Photo Credit: Amazon

My Final 3 Recommendations

Kaito Voyager KA500 AM/FM/SW NOAA Weather Radio, Camouflage

Emergency Mylar Thermal Blankets (Pack of 10)

Tasco Essentials 10x50 WA, Zip Focus Binocular

Conclusion

The 10 items listed in this article should be in your car.

If you don't have these items in your car I encourage you to start collecting them. Keep in mind that when you have these items you just transfer them from vehicle to vehicle as you go through life.

You'll be very glad you have these the first time your battery goes dead, your child gets a cut, or it gets cold at the Saturday soccer game.

For just a few dollars you can better equip yourself for emergencies. It's well worth the investment. So just skip a few lattes and start getting equipped.

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