5 Milwaukee Tools To Keep In Your Car In Case Of An Emergency

You never know when an emergency will happen when you're on the road. For most trips, you'll probably be fine. But then there's that one-off outing where it seems like anything that could go wrong does. Whether you're dealing with a flat tire, an overheating engine, a failed headlight, or something a little messier, like a backseat vomiting incident or a diaper blowout, you'll be glad to have thought ahead with a few handy gadgets.

Granted, you'll rarely be fully prepared for every possible thing that could happen to you when you're away from home. The goal is to minimize discomfort and inconvenience as much as possible while still leaving space to live your life. Some gadgets carry more weight in this area than others, whether they're made specifically for the car or would simply come in handy if you're out and about and in distress. 

Milwaukee Tool can certainly fill some of these gaps with quality products that travel well. However, it's worth noting that any device with a battery, whether a Milwaukee Tool product or another manufacturer's, shouldn't be left in the car during extreme heat or cold. This little factor adds an extra layer of preparation, but it's well worth it if it means being less inconvenienced in an emergency.

You might think of vacuuming your car as something you do when you get home after a trip. But if you have kids or pets (or an unpredictable stomach), you might agree that a car vacuum cleaner can be a lifesaver under certain circumstances. Picture it: you're in the middle of rush hour gridlock on the highway when your kid announces he's car sick. There's no exit in sight and no way you can cut through three lanes of traffic before his breakfast is all over the backseat. It sounds like a horror story; it was also my personal experience on our last vacation.

Milwaukee Tool offers several vacuums under its brand, but its M18 brushless handheld vacuum is arguably the best for car trips. A crevice tool and flexible hose make it especially appealing for the car since so much debris can hide in hard-to-reach places. It can help you keep your car clean in between deeper details, no matter where you travel. And if you do run into a bigger mess, like a carsick crisis or your kiddos trying to bring the beach home with them, you'll have an easy way to stop it in its tracks. 

The brushless vacuum has earned an average 4.7-star rating on Milwaukee Tool's website; however, there aren't many reviews to give a full picture, so you might want to do extra research before you buy it.

Depending on when disaster strikes, you might find yourself dealing with an emergency in the dark. Or at least having to navigate dark places. While many people keep a flashlight in their glove boxes or center consoles, that's not always the most practical solution. Having a flashlight means you can do whatever work needs to be done with one hand, especially if you're traveling alone. A better solution is to include a hands-free light in your car's storage.

This rechargeable clip light from Milwaukee Tool is small enough to travel well and offers the hands-free convenience that's actually useful in an emergency. It clips to your jacket, shirt collar, hat brim, or other thin surface so you can keep both hands free. Its USB-C charging port lets you recharge your clip light with the same chargers and power cables you probably already have, so you won't need to carry a whole separate setup to charge it. Milwaukee Tool carries several variations of personal lighting similar to the clip light, including a headlamp and a stand-up task light. The clip light works well for the car since it's so small.

These days, we rely on our devices for more things than we probably realize. It's how we stay in contact with others, of course, and also how we call for help. Our devices also entertain us, keep us informed, and do any number of little tasks. So when you're stranded or in an emergency, the last thing you need is a dead battery to slow you down. Or worse, prevent you from getting assistance.

No matter how far away from home you travel, it's always a good idea to have a backup power source. One option is Milwaukee Tool's top-off charger and power supply. This portable power unit can help your phone stay juiced until help arrives. Charge the battery before you leave, then use it to charge your phone. Or, if you forget to charge the power pack in advance, you can use your car's charging ports while you're on the go. 

A full battery can charge your phone up to five times. Even better, you can charge other devices like tablets, headlamps, fans, or other items that might come in handy if you're stranded. The charger includes a battery indicator light so you can see how much juice is left before it runs out.

Flat tires can happen to anyone at any time, even if you're the most careful driver on the road. Unfortunately, they almost never happen when you're at a gas station. Removing a flat tire and replacing it with a spare is usually the next step, but for many people, this is too cumbersome a task to handle alone. It also means playing the waiting game if you need some help.

One option is to carry your own inflator and be ready for a flat at any time. Milwaukee Tool offers the M12 Compact Inflator Kit that works for car tires and more. It can deliver over 120 PSI and can inflate your tire in under a minute. The inflator will automatically shut off once your tire has enough air, preventing overfilling and keeping you safer on the road. It won't help if your tire is shredded, and it might not be a long-term fix if a nail or other sharp debris in the tire is causing it to deflate. But it might be enough to help you get to a tire shop for a replacement without having to handle the spare yourself.

No matter what type of emergency you encounter on the go, be it a flat tire, backseat disaster, or an overheating engine, chances are there will be some parts of the situation you don't want to handle. Literally. In some cases, you might need a little more grip than what your hands allow. In others, you might not want to touch something directly. Either way, a good pair of gloves goes a long way toward helping you handle emergencies swiftly.

These high-dexterity nitrile gloves from Milwaukee Tool offer multiple benefits. Unlike many sets of work gloves, these offer fluid movement. They feel more like using your hands, but with protection. You can also choose from different cut levels, which refer to how much force a glove can withstand before being cut through. Higher cut levels indicate greater strength, but they can also mean less dexterity. A dexterous, low-cut-level glove can be a good balance if you're using it in a roadside emergency. They're useful for dealing with messes, broken glass, sharp objects, or anything you don't want to touch with your bare hands.

Aside from bearing the Milwaukee Tool brand name, each tool on this list had to be small enough to store in the car, either for the long term (temperature permitting) or for a single trip. We also considered tools that had a usefulness element in the event of an emergency while on the road: think being stranded, an auto accident, or a backseat vomiting crisis (personal experience, enough said). To narrow our options further, we considered only products that had earned an average rating of 4 stars or higher, based on ratings and reviews on Milwaukee Tool's website.