Getting close to a shakedown cruise in my bus. What’s I. Your road trip survival kit?
Tools?
Fan Belt(s)
Etc etc

------------------------------------------
1970 VW Bus- converted to a 110hp w/a PG. Now with electronic ignition!
Kansas City, Mo

Here you go! [corvaircenter.com]

MODERATOR
Sea Mountain, between Charleston Harbor and Coos Bay! SW Oregon Coast
Click HERE for My Website...Click HERE for My TechPages!
...............110-PG.................................................Webered-Turbo

My local daily driving kit is different than my cross country kit. But I prefer to just
maintain my vehicles very well and bring pretty minimum. I always carry my Corsa Roster though.

A link which has Smitty's list.

[corvaircenter.com]

Here's Smitty Smith's "Road Survival list" (I have cleaned it up from the copy & paste changes the computer made. My list is about 3/4s of this. Al)

==========================================================
The following is a list of the things I carry in my car for cross country trips. They have always got me home through engine pulls and disassembly and transmission rebuilds.. Not ALL are necessary but have been found to be nice to have when the need arose. Smitty

CONSUMABLES
Work pants, T shirt, Sweat shirt.
28 x 36 in roll of old clean carpet.
Brake fluid.
Hand wipes/rags.
Small container of wheel bearing grease.
Brake clean or parts cleaner
Tranny fluid
Engine Oil
Tire plug repair kit.
Hi Temp Ultra Silicone sealant.
#1156, 1157, 90 light bulbs.
25 ft spool of #14 auto electric wire.
Roll of electric tape.
Roll of 1" masking tape.
18" each of 1/8, 3/16, & 1/4 gas/vac hose.
Roll of .032 S/S safety wire.
C-1 Straightened & rolled up coat hanger wire..
C-2 Old hand cleaner can of Misc nuts, bolts, screws, washers, fuses.

SPECIAL TOOLS
S-1 13/16" box end with 2 ½" handle.
S-2 Home made 3/16" thick 1" open end wrench.
S-3 Cut off 9/16" open end (2 ½" handle)
S-4 5/16" ratcheting box end wrench.
S-5 12 volt soldering iron with flux and solder.
S-6 Short harmonic damper puller.
S-7 Fan bearing puller.
S-8 Early rear axle yoke puller.
S-9 15 ft drop light. With alligator clip ends. Uses 1156 or 1157 bulbs.

CONVENTIONAL TOOLS
1/4" dr socket set. Includes speeder, 3/8 to 1/4 and 1/4 to 3/8 adapters.
3/8 dr socket set, 38 to 7/8
Deep sockets, 3/8 to 11/16
Universal socket set, 3/8 to 3/4 includes in-line universal joint.
Short and long handle ratchet handles
1", 2", 3", 6", 8" extensions.
Oil press sender socket.
Spark plug socket.
6" & 10" adjustable wrenches
Combination wrench set. 3/8 to 3/4.
Flare nut wrench set.
Ignition tools kit.

MORE
GM cantilever jack and Corvair jack with handles.
Multi meter
Small dwell/tach meter
Timing light
Tube flare kit & 1 ea, tubing 18" long, 3/16", 1/4, 5/16.
Probe type test light.
24" jumper wire with alligator clip ends.
K D 1/2" plug thread insert kit.
3/4 lb ball peen hammer.
Series of screwdrivers including straight & Phillips, stubbys & 90 degree offsets.
5" & 10" vise grips.
10" channel locks
8" gas pliers.
Needle nose pliers.
5" side cutters.
1/16, 1/8, 3/16, 1/4 tapered drift punches.
Small wire brush and old tooth brush.
Inspection mirror.
Stick magnet.
Utility knife.
Gasket scraper.
8" smooth & coarse files.
8" tape measure.

Spare Parts
Fan belt.
Road tested fuel pump.
Fan hub with new bearing.
Idler with new bearing.
Rear axle with freshly lubed new bearing installed.
Spare module for GM HEI distributor. Substitute points and condenser for standard distributor.
Pair of new plugs.
Emergency Equipment
Fire extinguisher.
Small air compressor with red strobe light.
50 Ft Nylon tow strap.

Special tools S-1 through S5
S-1. You can get replacement alternators from any FLAPS but removing the nuts to convert to Corvair requires an impact wrench which is hard to find on the road. Short handle wrench can be struck with a hammer to break nuts loose.
S-2. Slim 1" wrench is for carb inlet fittings & for PG transmission modulator valve. I made mine from plate stock.
S-3. Cut off 9/16 open end wrench for back idler bolt & distributor nut. Box end can be slipped over handle for extra leverage and work at 90 degrees.
S-4. 5/16 ratchet nice for Wagon side engine seal strips.
S-5. Some tools are so unusual I don't know where I would find a replacement. The little soldering iron has been wonderful to have a couple of times.
No Flashlight??? The batteries are always dead or dying when you need them. I much prefer the 15 ft drop light for night work.
3/4 lb hammer??? I use a half lb for most things at home but I have larger hammers for backup. A 3/4 lb compromise seems about right on the road.
C-1 for muffler hanger repair and hose clamps and other uses.
C-2 You never know what you will need so just throw in some of these and some of those. You may be lucky.


Smitty

Al
Georgia

Fanbelt and tools to change it is all I carry. I like to live dangerously

David Clamp


1965 Corsa convertible - 140 4spd/3.55/AM-FM

2009 Porsche 911 Carrera


"Victory is mine!" - SG

Yukon, OK

Smitty's list is very comprehensive. But remember he and Helen would drive their Corvair to Alaska while towing a travel trailer.

I had a '78 Caprice with a weak TH350 years ago that I was taking on a 14 hour trip pulling a motorcycle trailer. I took a transmission jack tools and a rebuild kit in case I needed to fix it. I didn't have to.

Joel
Northlake, TX
5 Ultravans, 145 Corvairs and counting...

I did a 4 speed in a '71 ElCamino at a Motel, while the 2 girls laid around the pool and kept me in cool sodas and hot burgers. Those days you carried ALL of your tools in a small box. 3 drawer and top tray.

MODERATOR
Sea Mountain, between Charleston Harbor and Coos Bay! SW Oregon Coast
Click HERE for My Website...Click HERE for My TechPages!
...............110-PG.................................................Webered-Turbo

This is a list of recommended things to bring on a long trip compiled by Steven Serenska in the year 2000. I got my copy of it about 12 years ago, and now I include on my Corvair Kit CD-ROM.

I like it because it's pretty comprehensive, and yet simple enough to carry around without feeling like you're bringing your whole garage with you.


Corvair Parts

Points/condenser (even better: a point plate with points installed and gapped)
Fanbelt
Fuel pump
Fuse assortment
Three quarts of motor oil
Brake fluid
Transmission fluid (if Powerglide)

Toolkit

Wrench and socket sets
Note: Make sure you have 1/2 and 9/16 sockets in both shallow-
and deep-well as well as 8 inch and 12 inch extensions.
Crescent wrench that goes to at least 1 inch (for fuel filters in the carbs)
3/8 and 7/16 flare wrench (for fuel lines at carbs)
Universal swivel wrench
Gap tool
Flat and phillips head screwdrivers
Vise grips
Needle-nose pliers
Roll of duct tape
Can of Fix-a-Flat

Miscellaneous Personal Comfort/Safety

Flashlight
Emergency flares
Roll of paper towels
Waterless hand cleaner
Cell phone/charger
Radar detector
Roadmaps from AAA
Sunglasses

Eric C. Player
Fargo, North Dakota
MEMBER: CORSA National, Central Coast CORSA, South Coast CORSA, Vintage CORSA, Sfba CORSA, and Great Plains Corvair Club.
THEN: 1965 Monza 110, Canary Yellow - 1965 Corsa 180 Turbo, Red - 1966 Monza 110, Purple - 1967 Monza 140, Red - 1966 500 110, Black; nicknamed "Shadow" - 1965 Monza 110, Camaro Yellow; nicknamed "Silver"
NOW: 1966 Corsa 180 Turbo, Blue; nicknamed "Bluvair"
---------------------------------------
"He cautioned me not to take notes. It would not have helped if I had, as he would start a paragraph with, 'It is therefore obvious. . .'
and go on from there to matters which may have been obvious to him and God but to no one else."
-- Robert A. Heinlein, character of Daniel B. Davis, 'The Door Into Summer.'

Terminology?
With these lists I realized how names of things can be confusing at least for me.
What is a "Universal swivel wrench"?
I had never heard of a 12V soldering iron. Interesting.

Joel
Northlake, TX
5 Ultravans, 145 Corvairs and counting...

My list was cut and pasted from Steve's. I've always interpreted Universal Swivel Wrench to mean a plain old socket wrench with all the trimmings.

But now I see that he already had a socket wrench on there.. the last time I loaded my car up I went by his list, not sure why I missed that or what I understood it to mean.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/24/2020 01:39PM by playerpage.

Lots of good items shown here. Concentrate on items that can't be bought locally.

However my most important item is a AAA membership that covers at least a 100 mile tow!

Have only needed it "once" in the last 40 years for an emergency tow. But it also saved me several hundred transporting restoration project vehicles to and from the paint shop.

Corventure Dave

A socket wrench is an open end wrench on one end and a socket that swivels on the other. More flips than swivels. Good for some uses.

Al
Georgia

In addition to basic tools and maybe a fan belt, all I carry on trips involving less than a day's travel would be a wad of cash and a credit card.
IF I were to break down and need specific parts, I can always call one of the reliable vendors and have parts sent out.

1962 95 F.C. Van
1964 Greenbrier Deluxe
1965 Monza Coupe
1965 Monza Convertible
Westminster, Maryland

MID ENG enthusiast &
prior Kelmark owner.

A wad of cash always goes with me but it should be on the list. I carry it to buy things (more Corvairs)

Joel
Northlake, TX
5 Ultravans, 145 Corvairs and counting...

You could also just tow a second car, either a screwdriver to change the plates.

corventure Dave Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Lots of good items shown here. Concentrate on items that can't be bought locally.
>
> However my most important item is a AAA membership that covers at least a 100 mile tow!
>
> Have only needed it "once" in the last 40 years for an emergency tow. But it also saved me several hundred transporting restoration project vehicles to and from the paint shop.
>
> Corventure Dave


DING DING DING ! ! !
WE HAVE A WINNER ! ! !
I was wondering how long it would take someone to mention this ALL IMPORTANT item.
Definitely a "Roadside Assistance" plan is a good idea!

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
WA. state, 1 mile south of the Canadian border, I am not at the end of the world, but you can see it from here.

I only tow half of a second car.

RJ tools
Salem,Oregon

One thing to consider is making sure your bus is in tip-top shape before hitting the road.