Best car tools of 2011
We look back at some of the best tools we’ve reviewed in the past 12 months
Vacuum cleaner: GarageVac
Price: £279
Contact: 01244 409102, www.garagevac.co.uk
As with so many of our 2011 stand-outs, the GarageVac has been in frequent use ever since we tested it at the beginning of the year. Okay, so it’s not the cheapest workshop vacuum cleaner on the market, but it is the most convenient. There are no leads to unwind and plug in, or hose to connect – simply hit the button and it’s ready to go. ts slender casing provides storage for all the tools apart from the hose extension, and it really packs a punch – certainly more than other workshop vacuums we have tried. It takes the aggravation out of sucking up dirt and dust, and makes maintaining a clean workshop easy.
Best pressure washer: Karcher K6.610
Price: £499.99
Contact: 01295 752200, www.karcher.co.uk
Look no further than this monster pressure washer – which Karcher refers to as ‘The Beast’ – for all your car and home cleaning needs. The 2,500-Watt water-cooled motor delivers a powerful 150-Bar jet, which makes light work of blasting away bugs or brake dust baked on to your car. We found the K6.610 good to use when we tested it in July, with on-board storage and a free-running reel for the nine-metre hose. The only drawback is the price – to justify the outlay, you need to use the excellent patio cleaner and dirt-blaster lance. But it’s a superb piece of kit.
Best impact wrench: Clarke CIR24 Impact Wrench
Price: £107.98
Contact: 0844 880 1250, www.machinemart.co.uk
Used with a good trolley jack, this punchy impact wrench takes the hassle out of wheel changing. The CIR24 won our test in September as it undoes bolts much more effectively than more sophisticated and costly rivals, and it has been pressed into use ever since. It’s not the lightest or most compact product of its type, but for bolt-shifting grunt it’s the one we turn to.
Best garage hose: Hozelock Auto Reel review
Price: £129 (40-metre)
Contact: 0121 313 1122, www.hozelock.com
You know something is good when it’s still in use months after it was tested – and that’s the case with this hose, which has been a garage favourite ever since we first tried it in May. The revised wall-mounted Auto Reel makes cleaning your car so much easier, and its 40-metre hose means you could do your neighbours’ vehicles as well. It needs a firm pull to unwind, but the release and automatic rewinding work a treat. It rapidly stashes everything away, leaving no piles of wet and gritty hose to untangle.
Best torque wrench: Halfords 200139 Professional Torque Wrench
Price: £69.99
Contact: 0845 762 6625, www.halfords.com
When we tested this wrench in July, it really stood out. It features a comfortable plastic handle, a neat viewing window to adjust the torque, plus a fine 72-tooth ratchet with push-through, half-inch drive. The neat storage tube includes a calibration certificate, and it proved highly accurate in our tests.
Best socket set: AmPro T45231 Socket Set
Price: £38.99
Contact: 020 8956 5175, www.eurocarparts.com
The fine-toothed ratchet with its dual-compound handle has a quality feel. The mix of short and long sockets proved impressively strong in our test in April, and there is a good choice of extensions. Covers the basics without breaking the bank.
