Automotive Hand Tools
There are many types of automotive hand tools used to repair car equipment. Some hand tools are used for various repairs, such as tightening bolts, tightening screws, or clamping certain things together. Having a tool kit with various sizes and shapes of wrenches and ratchets is useful when stranded or simply for everyday use around the car garage.
What kinds of automotive hand tools are there?
There are all types of automotive tools available. The different tools all do different things when fixing your car. A few different types of automotive tools include the following:
- Wrenches: These are used for loosening or tightening rotary tighteners, bolts, or nuts. These are usually advantageous in turning things that are difficult to grasp or require more torque than your bare fingers can apply. They circle the outside of the nut or bolt and then tighten to have proper fit.
- Ratchets: Ratchets are useful for tightening of fasteners. They rest inside the fastener and only turn in one direction, providing force in the other direction for faster, more efficient tightening of fasteners.
- Pliers: These are used for a variety of functions such as bending something, stripping the rubber coating off of wires, or pinching something together.
- Screwdriver: These are used for tightening screws and most commonly have two different tips--Phillips head and flat head. Both types of screw are very common, so it is generally wise to invest in both of these.
What's the difference between a hand tool and automotive equipment?
Automotive hand tools are generally nonelectric tools designed with simple machine mechanics that can be held in the hand as opposed to heavy, complex electrical devices needing a stand or something of the like. Automotive tools generally require little to no training to use, whereas other automotive equipment requires a fair bit of training to avoid injury. Hand tools can also be carried easily in a case or toted almost anywhere while taking up a relatively small portion of the car's interior.
What is the difference between metric tools and US tools?
Metric tools go by a different system of measurement that is standard in European car brands. US tools, while useful for US car brands, go by a different measurement system than many brands of cars produced or designed outside the US. For example, the metric system uses various increments of meters for length and grams for weight while US measurements use fractions of an inch and ounces. It is important to figure out which measurement system your car goes by to ensure you have the right tools for your needs.