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John Ducker: Road-trip season is coming — are you ready for a vehicle emergency?

Being prepared means having more than a hairbrush or a pen in your car and it’s not just for emergencies. The right tools work in everyday situations, where fixing a small problem can have you back on your way in no time.
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The dreaded flat tire. It doesn’t always come on a sunny day on a flat surface close to home. Be prepared for the worst: Broken down in the dark in the pouring rain in the middle of nowhere. TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

Breaking down on the road today is most often remedied through a simple cellphone call. Most insurance providers, road-safety organizations and even credit-card companies offer a hotline that will send out rescue services within hours and sometimes within minutes.

That’s good, because as COVID seems to be finally loosening its grip on all of us, the urge to get out on the wide open road and return to motoring normalcy will be huge.

So it’s probably a good time to think about what you might need out there when you’re suddenly beyond the reach of road-side assistance. In other words, what kinds of things should you be carrying in your vehicle?

Being prepared means having more than a hairbrush or a pen in your car and it’s not just for emergencies. The right tools work in everyday situations, where fixing a small problem can have you back on your way in no time.

Let’s start with the basics. When was the last time you checked to see if you even had a lug wrench in your vehicle? It’s impossible to change a tire without one.

Many manufacturers’ wrenches, however, are weird contraptions, designed more for ease of storage than for actually loosening wheel nuts. You may want to consider an after-market product that is both sturdy and easy to use.

While we’re on this one, you should find out where the tire-changing gear in your car is actually stored. Everyone should take a crack at actually trying to change a tire on their car. Your age or physical condition might make this too difficult just for the sake of practice, but at least have someone who knows how to simply talk and walk you through the procedure.

Tires don’t just go flat in a nice, dry, level and well-lit parking area. They go flat on the darkest night of the year, in the pouring rain, 20 kilometres from nowhere.

Keep your car’s owner’s manual handy. They produce these books for a reason. Once upon a time, fuse boxes and battery connection terminals all used to be in the same spot in every car made.

Not so any more. Cars today are incredibly complicated pieces of technology. Your guide through any number of potential problems, especially in an emergency, is the owner’s manual.

A flashlight is a lifesaver. Not only can it signal for help, it’s essential for lighting up dark spaces under the hood or in the trunk. In fact, carry two of them — one with the batteries in it for immediate use, another with batteries stored separately so they don’t leak out, as batteries often do over time.

There are also two miracle cures to all mechanical problems: duct tape and WD-40 oil.

Red Green showed us that duct tape is one of life’s cure-alls. It can temporarily repair a split hose or broken wiring, or act as a third hand to hold something in place while your own two hands are busy.

WD-40 is the wonder oil that not only loosens jammed door locks and wheel nuts but is also great for removing that layer of dead bugs or can even help to restore fogged-over headlights.

A pair of gloves is also essential. You can apply much more force to a tool when your hand is protected. Exposed fingers also freeze up quickly when you’re fiddling with parts or equipment, even when it’s not that cold.

If you’re going all out on this project, then also consider an emergency escape tool. This device is designed to easily shatter a car window because, unlike on TV, your fist can’t. There’s usually a seatbelt cutter on the end of them as well.

The list of emergency items could go on forever, but other important items include: an ice scraper, matches, a back-up battery for cellphones, a map, some energy snacks, water and, of course, a first aid kit.

Once you’ve acquired all this gear, it’s a good idea to carry it all securely and discreetly inside your vehicle. A trove of small tools and electronic bits on open display is Treasure Island for a car prowler.

Most times, you’ll never need to use any of this stuff. But simple tools like these can be lifesavers in the right moment.

Glove Box: The state of Alabama adopted an anti-road-rage law in the past few years. Their law now says that you can only drive in the left lane if you’re passing a vehicle and once you’ve passed, you can only drive for a mile and half in the left lane before you need to move back over. I can think of a few highway stretches around here where that rule needs to be applied.

johntcdriving@gmail.com