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Focus Mk2 1.8Tdci 2005 - Finding The Right Tools For The Right Job?!


lucky162k
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Hi,

Looking for some help here. Well I had a problem on my car last Friday while I was at work in the office the car seemed to come to life on it's own in the car park was a weird feeling. Basically the wipers and the lights started to work and dimmed as well without the key in the car. Anyway took it the garage and sorted all out because I needed it quickly fixed and found it was a lose connection in the fuse box and cleaned it and resealed the box and this quick fix costed me around £100 which quite frankly I could have done it in the weekend.

So I have decided that jobs like these rather than giving the money to the garage I do it myself and with the spare money I treat my car with more accessories instead. So wondering what special tools I would require to work on my car, like torque screws etc. those tools that will not find in any standard tool kit and also looking to buy a farily good (not so epensive) diagnostic kit, maybe this one is any good?! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/120940619744?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

Thanks for reading and please help me from this rip off...

Kind regards.

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F Super is a good bit of kit but may not find all codes, garage diagnostics can go deeper.

My toolkit consists of insulating/loom tape, multi head screwdriver with Torx bits, pliers, socket set, WD40 and 3 sizes of hammer (:p)

A torque wrench and an electrical tester can be useful for more in-depth work.

Always a good idea to have a big bag of fuses, bulbs and a crimping set as guaranteed as soon as you start swapping bulbs out you'll nack some fuses.

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Torx bits are a must on fords these days, don't bother wasting your time buying the tamper type though (with the hole in the middle) as they are not as strong.

A good range of 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 sockets, ratchets and extensions is also a must of you intend to take this up seriously. Stick with 6 point or hex sockets, with 12 point or bi hex you will be destroying bolt heads and creating more problems. You will be unlikely to need any 12 point on your car anyway.

To tackle any work with tight bolts you will need a breaker bar, I use 400mm and 600mm 1/2 inch breakers bars most weekends and have to dig out the 1000mm 3/4 inch bar on rare occasions.

As Clive has said, bulbs and fuses.

Good hand tools such as drivers, pliers, snips, spanners etc are all things you can pick up relatively cheap but you will need them at some point.

And when you really want to get stuck in you might want to invest in a good multimeter and torque wrench (angle gauge wouldn't go a miss either for the sake of less than a tenner as they are coming into play more and more)

Another thing you need to think about is a good jack and axle stands

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All of the above. But start of buying bits.

My tool kit started off as a set of spanners I got cheap at work in multibuy deal, some pliers, screw drivers etc. Get a nice tool box to keep them all in to. After a while a new job will envolve a new tool, add it to the collection etc.

Nothing beats that feeling of accomplishment when you complete a job yourself, or when you reach for a tool in your tool kit to do a job and its just there.

If you do get a socket set the advice above about 6 corner sockets is so very true. Much more liable to rounding off nuts with 12 points and there is no need.

My next purchase is a set of rachet spanners, having seen the last weekend how !Removed! brilliant they are for tight situations.

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Don't forget the 'BFH' for those bits that don't fit :lol:

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you will also need a magnetic tray and a magnetic pick up tool for the times you drop a screw in the engine bay and cant reach it

work gloves, barrier cream, cream cleanser and other safety equipment too - oh and a decent jack/axle stands

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I personally have a cheap mechanics tool kit from b&q...has all the spanners, rachets and sockets and screw drivers.

Also best to have radio removal tools and radio code.

Cloths and wd40

Oh and diagnostic wise, i use a dealership tool, well clone of one. you can buy from:

http://www.obd2tools.co.uk/wholesale/new-ford-vcm-metal-box-ids-jlr.html

i now never need to go to dealers...just diagnose my car at their level, buy the parts and fit also allows you to program if necessary.

Other things you may need to consider:

- ramps, trolley jack, axel stands

- brake wind back tool

- big hammer

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one major thing to have is....a dirty calender on the wall!

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one major thing to have is....a dirty calender on the wall!

haha, indeed. Sort the men from the boys :lol:

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A kettle...always the first tool used when tackling anything car related. Mug with extra flavour (or as the wimmin folk would call it: filthy) is optional!

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I use a tool chest purchased from Argos for 100 pounds

Its red so I purchased a silver Snap On decal kit on eBay for 3 pounds lol makes the whole tool kit look like it cost over 500 pounds lol

Has all the bits I require for the car and easy to spot a tool missing because they all have designated slots.

Other tools are:

Dremil style rotarey tool for modification (kindly donated to me from a forum member)

Drill 18 pounds from Argos

Half a plastic coke bottle for storing screws while working on somthing, (much cheaper than a magnetic tray)

PVC electrical tape

Latex gloves

Safety glasses (changing reverse bulb got dirt in my eye... NEVER AGAIN!!)

Hayness Manual (looks the part)

Multi pocket work jacket, ideal for screw drivers because if you stick it in your jeans pocket when working in the engine bay it will scratch the body of the car badly,

Cable ties

Mini blade fuses

Most important tool of all is a plan prior to starting.

Designate a safe storage place to store every part removed and place it there as soon as you remove it from the car.

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And a pack of smokes for when you need a moments pause to think. ;)

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And a pack of smokes for when you need a moments pause to think. ;)

Or your trusty e-cig for those of us who are trying to kick the habbit lol.

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Or your trusty e-cig for those of us who are trying to kick the habbit lol.

A good dose of man flu is a good time to go cold turkey and quit smoking,

I'm off them 8 years this year guys. Wouldn't have the focus the way it is if I smoked 8.50gbp per pack over here. (In the shops)

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you definately need some duck tape - to shut the other half up everytime you tinker with your car - they always have a moan!

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Half a plastic coke bottle for storing screws while working on somthing, (much cheaper than a magnetic tray).

And the other half for turning into a fog or reversing light whilst changing your bumper! :D

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