The basics, all year
Keep these together in one bag or box, and keep the bag where you can reach it without unloading the car. A kit buried under luggage isn't much help at midnight:
- A portable jump pack, or jumper cables if you'd rather. A pack doesn't need a second car.
- A tire pressure gauge.
- A flashlight with fresh batteries, or a headlamp that leaves both hands free.
- Reflective triangles or LED flares, so other drivers see you from far away.
- A first-aid kit, with the dates checked.
- A phone charging cable and a power bank.
- Work gloves and a few rags or paper towels.
For the summer
Water is the item that matters most, and the one that gets forgotten. Keep several bottles, and swap them out as the season goes on, because a hot trunk is hard on them. A hat and a snack that won't melt help if you end up waiting in the sun.
Don't leave things in the car that don't like heat, such as medications, a phone or a power bank on the dash.
A cheap windshield sunshade keeps the steering wheel and the seat belt buckle from burning your hands, and it keeps the cabin cooler for the wait. A towel over the driver's seat helps too.
For the cold snaps and ice
A blanket or an old coat, gloves, a hat and an ice scraper are enough for most North Texas winter days. If a freeze is forecast, keep the tank at least half full, since a car that's stuck in a traffic jam on an icy road needs fuel for the heater.
Check what the car already carries
The best kit includes the equipment that came with your car. Check that the spare is there and inflated, that the jack and lug wrench are in place, and that you know where the locking lug nut key is. Keep the owner's manual in the glove box, along with a paper copy of your insurance card and registration.
Twice a year, go through it. Replace the water, test the flashlight, and look at the dates on anything that expires. Put the number of a roadside service in your phone and on a card in the glove box, in case the phone dies.
When the kit isn't enough
A jump pack handles a dead battery if the battery will take a charge. For anything else, TRA can help around the clock across Dallas–Fort Worth. A jump start is $49–$75, a flat tire change is from $75 and a lockout is from $50, each plus a $19 dispatch fee charged once per job.
Common questions
Reflective triangles are enough for most drivers, and LED flares are a good alternative that doesn't burn. Either gives other drivers warning from a distance.
Twice a year, and before a long trip. A spare that has sat for years is often low on air.
Most drivers are better off without one, since fuel and fumes in a hot trunk are a hazard. TRA doesn't deliver fuel either, so the better plan is to refuel before the gauge gets low.