Overland Sourcebook 2018 EAST

Overland Sourcebook ~ Your guide to adventure TM ~ THE ESSENTIAL OVERLANDER TOOL KIT
TOP 10 ESSENTIALS IN THE OVERLANDER’S
TOOL KIT
by Jonathan Hanson, Overland Tech & Travel & co-owner, Overland Expo
It’s popular among a certain segment of the overlanding community to complain
about how complex modern vehicles are, with their computer-controlled engines,
transmissions, and even suspensions, and plethora of electronic gadgets. These
guys (it’s virtually all men, and mostly 40-ish plus) will regale you with stories of how
they used to set the points gap in their Jeep’s distributor with a matchbook cover, how
they once rebuilt the carburetor on their Series III Land Rover on the side of the road
in Tanzania, or how they once replaced the clogged fuel filter on their Land Cruiser
in the middle of nowhere in Mexico, with the engine running because the battery had
died and they wouldn’t have been able to restart. (In case you’re scoffing, that last one
is mine and it’s absolutely true.)
So, they ask, could you do that on your new
Wrangler or Tacoma or Frontier?
No, you couldn’t—but that’s beside the point.
You’ll never have to.
Modern ignition systems require virtually
zero maintenance, with a matchbook cover
or otherwise. Fuel injection systems are
astoundingly reliable, and the central computer
has several backup systems. You’ll sell that
truck before it needs a new fuel filter. The
simple fact is, modern vehicles are far more
reliable and maintenance-free than those
legendary easy-to-work-on vehicles of yore.
So—why this introduction to an article about
tools? Because there are still lots of things
that can and do go wrong on modern vehicles.
No one has yet invented a fan or serpentine
belt guaranteed never to break or go out of
adjustment, a radiator hose that will never split, a
shock absorber that will never fail, a bolt that will
never loosen. Especially when subjected to the extra
stress of long off-highway routes, washboard roads,
dirt and mud, even the most reliable four-wheeldrive
vehicle is going to require some tinkering now
and then—not to mention essential maintenance.
Thus a carefully curated tool kit should be
considered mandatory equipment if you venture
beyond the reach of AAA.
I’ve had people protest, “But I don’t know the
first thing about how to use tools.” Three things:
First, it’s easy to learn basic maintenance and tool
use through such avenues as, ahem, the Overland
Expo; second, you might be surprised at what you’d
accomplish if the alternative was a long walk;
and third, even if you’re mechanically hopeless,
someone might stop to help you, and if so it would
be polite to have your own tools to contribute.
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