My truck tool and recovery kit.

Over the years I’ve had the pleasure of owning some less than reliable vehicles, so I’ve always had some sort of tool kit with me. It’s changed wildly over the years but the principle has stayed the same, carry the tools that cover every single nut and bolt on my vehicle along with some other stuff to assist others having a bad day. In my old Ranger I carried TONS of stuff including some spare parts even, in the Honda I only felt the need to carry extra fluids(as I always have), but with the Taco being so new I feel confident carrying a simple jug of coolant and some tools. With the massive amount of traveling I do I typically carry a full fluid change and will likely add that to the Taco in the near future, I’ve changed my oil in more than a few rest stops. In the Ranger I travelled roughly 55,000 miles in one year, all in the name of camping and fishing! 

This list only covers what I carry to fix or recover vehicles, eventually I’ll post a list of everything else I carry in the truck, and being a bit of a prepper it’s a lot! The only tool not pictured below is a hammer, I broke mine last week and have yet to replace it, also forgot to pull out the GoTreads traction boards. The Tacoma has a remarkable amount of storage under and behind the back seats, which is where all of this stuff lives, so without further adieu, here’s the list:

• Combination wrenches, SAE ¼” -1 ¼” Metric 5mm - 21mm

• 2 adjustable wrenches

• ⅜” drive sockets metric 5mm - 19mm SAE ¼” - 1”

• ½” drive sockets, just the standard lug nut sizes

• 2 ⅜” drive ratchets and 1 ½” drive ratchet

• 12” pry bar

• Tire gauge and inflator

• Allen wrenches

• Curved pick

• Precision screwdriver kit

• Small funnel

• Butane torch

• Utility knife and pockets knives

• Hitch combo wrench

• Bolt cutters

• Tape measure

• Strap wrench

• Various pliers

• Wire strippers and crimpers

• Vise grips

• 28” Axe

• Folding limb saw with extra blade

• 20’ recovery strap and 2 shackles

• A bunch of gloves

• Zip ties

• Small can of pb blaster

• Gorilla tape

• Bailing wire

• A random hose clamp

• A bag with a bunch of random bolts/screws/electrical connectors

• Jumper cables

• And lastly a fire extinguisher, I’ll never leave home without one

Almost everything listed above fits into a few small tool bags for quick and easy access. The most important piece is easily the fire extinguisher, I’ve used mine on more than one occasion including preventing a wildfire while exploring offroad in the Arizona desert and a vehicle fire after a guy rolled his truck over in front of me in a remote part of Colorado. I tend to prefer the standard extinguishers over the automotive ones(though I do have one of those in the camper) because I’m far more likely to run into a wildfire type scenario than a vehicle fire. 

Processing this fire wood I stumbled upon wouldn’t have been possible without the handy axe in my truck.

Next is that bag of bolts, that has saved the day for so many people I’ve met on the road. Everything from a trailer axle that came loose on a fifth wheel near King of the Hammers, to a guy who was losing his rooftop tent on a trail in Sedona, to my auxiliary lights cutting out on a trail in Montana, that bag has been awesome! There really isn’t a method to the madness with the stuff in there, just a wide variety of some fairly hefty bolts, some super small bolts, a whole slew of self tappers, the electrical connectors I use most, and some U-bolts/eye bolts to help hold random things together. 

Stopped for the night between Jerome and Williams Arizona.

On top of all those tools is the knowledge to effectively use them, I’m no mechanic but I’m comfortable in my ability to fix most issues I’ll likely run into. There’s no use in carrying a bunch of electrical connectors if you don’t know how vehicle wiring works, that’s just a recipe for disaster! 

In addition to all that, I have extras of the more popular stuff so if I run into someone who needs say a ½” wrench but I don’t want to wait around with them, I have an extra cheapy one to leave with them. Overall I love gear and being prepared, and a thorough tool kit is just another part of that. Most people probably don’t carry anywhere near this much stuff, if anything at all, but I like knowing I have everything I could possibly need. Peace of mind goes a long way when you’re debating on taking that extra trail at the end of a long day, and having the proper equipment to keep me safe and mobile is essential.