Motorhome tool kit, spares & lubricants
It’s a good idea to carry a tool kit in your campervan or motorhome in case you need to carry out any repairs. I do a lot of my own servicing and repair work so have a fairly comprehensive tool kit. It’s also a good idea to carry some spares plus lubricants & fluids i.e. engine oil, coolant, silicone spray, grease etc.
Tools are heavy so ideally aim for lightweight, compact, multi-use tools. My tools are predominantly Wera which are high-quality, lightweight, compact tools with a lifetime guarantee. That comes at a cost as my tool kit was over £600, however, the range of tools in my kit is good so I’ve also listed a budget alternative below, swapping the Wera tools for Draper.
Bucket Boss Super tool roll
A high quality, hard wearing, large capacity tool roll to hold everything together.
Wera Zyklop 8100 3/8" socket set
A compact metal ratchet with 8mm - 19mm colour coded sockets (minus the 9mm), extension bar and wobble extension for angled access. I got rid of the case and moved them into the tool roll.
Wera hex plus 3/8" socket set
3mm - 10mm 3/8” hex (allen key) socket set on a lightweight textile belt. Hex plus has a small ball bearing to grip the head of the hex bolt.
Wera torx 3/8” socket set
T10 - T50 3/8” torx (star) socket set on a lightweight textile belt.
Wera socket adapter set
To use 3/8” sockets on a 1/2” ratchet and vice versa, you need adapters. This saves you buying double of each size of socket.
Buy on Amazon (3/8” to 1/2”) | Buy on Amazon (1/2” to 3/8”)
Wera drill adapters
Adapters that allow sockets to be used with your cordless drill to speed up removing and tightening nuts & bolts.
Wera Combination ratchet spanner set
8mm - 19mm colour coded ratchet spanners (minus the 9mm). I keep them in the roll so they’re easier to access.
Sealey extra long 1/2” flexi-head ratchet
The best piece of kit I’ve ever used when working with large, high torque nuts & bolts. I ditched the wheel change tools included with my van and use this and a 21mm impact socket instead.
Sealey 1/2” impact sockets
For any socket above 20mm, I buy 1/2” impact ones as they’re hardier sockets. I tend to buy individual Sealey ones as required.
Clarke torque adapter / wrench
Using this compact digital adapter, you can turn your long 1/2” ratchet into a torque wrench.
Wera hex key set
Basically and allen keys set. I bought these to do maintenance on a bicycle but they come in handy in restricted access situations.
Wera Rapidaptor 817 multi screwdriver
This is a great, compact, multi-use screwdriver. It just uses normal drill screwdriver bits so you don’t need to carry multiple screwdrivers. It can be any size of screwdriver you want and even hold hex / torx bits. The only downside is that the head is chunky so it can’t always fit into tight spaces. The bit can be removed and used in a drill as a locking bit holder.
Wera 334 Kraftform flat screwdriver
Even though the Rapidaptor can be a flat screwdriver, you need a thin flat screwdriver for jobs like prying things or adjusting drum brakes.
Irwin Visegrip plyers set
A compact set of three plyers: normal, needle nose & wire snips. I don’t carry the wire snips in the van as the plyers have wire snips.
Stanley locking mole grips
Used for gripping things tightly.
Facom adjustable spanner
For any job with a large nut. Sockets sets tend to only go up to 20mm or so, unless you buy extra sockets. Used rarely so one you can skip on if you have mole grips.
ODB2 tool
When your warning light comes on, it’s good to be able to diagnose it yourself. Garages charge a fortune just to plug in to the diagnostics computer. Some breakdown policies don’t cover diagnostics.
The tool plugs into your vans ODB2 port and connects to an app on your phone via wireless or Bluetooth to get error codes and info.
Budget tools alternative
It’s the Wera sockets & spanners that make my kit so expensive. The rest of the tools are inexpensive but compact, lightweight and good quality. For many years I worked on cars & bikes with Draper & Halfords tools and they do the job. Below is direct Draper swaps for my Wera tools:
Draper 3/8” socket set
8-22mm socket set and 3/8” ratchet. A short & long extension bar plus a universal joint. Keep everything in the box or get a tool roll to hold everything. It’s always easier to keep sockets together on a socket rail. You can chop them down if needs be.
Draper 3/8” hex socket set
3mm-10mm 3/8” hex / allen sockets on a metal socket rail.
Draper 3/8” torx socket set
T10-T50 3/8” torx sockets on a metal socket rail.
Draper socket converters
Set of 3 socket adapters to convert 3/8” to 1/2” and vice versa.
Draper drill adapters
Adapters that allow sockets to be used with your cordless drill to speed up removing and tightening nuts & bolts.
Draper 14 combination spanner set
14 spanner set in a tool roll. 8-17mm, 19mm, 21-22mm & 24mm
Motorhome spare fluids & lubricants
It’s a good idea to carry spare fluids like engine oil, coolant, screen wash and lubricants like silicone spray & grease.
Spare engine oil
Carry a 1 litre top up bottle in case the level drops and you’re far from home. Check your handbook for the specific oil for your vehicle. If you get your vehicle serviced, ask them for a 1L top up bottle at your next service.
Prestone coolant
Unless the coolant for your vehicle is mainstream and easy to get, I’d advise swapping out your coolant for Prestone universal coolant.
Prestone screenwash
I carry a 2.5L bottle of concentrated, all season, Prestone screen wash.
GT85 silicone lubricant
A silicone lubricant can be used on metal, plastic & rubber. Contrary to popular belief, WD40 is not a lubricant. It’s handy to get sticky things moving again though.
Funnel, grease & rags
It's a good idea to carry a small funnel, a small tube of grease or some in a small tub, and some old rags.
Motorhome / campervan repairs box
On top of my tools, I carry a small spares / repairs box in the van. It has different tapes, tie wraps, fuses, a multi-meter, spare van light, spare water pipe, elbow joins, bungee etc.
