So my daughter is heading off to college...

[rookie7]

Looking for thoughts/opinions/experiences on what I need to compile for her in an emergency kit to keep in her car.

The drive will be 2 hours, and a great deal of it will be through the countryside. Cell service is good the entire way. She will never be too far away for me to drop what I'm doing and go, but it is still up to a 2 hour drive.

So far I'm looking at getting her the Cabela's gear bag and fill it with the following:

Edit: Jumper Cables are already in the car

1. Basic ratchet and socket set - sae and metric
2. Flashlight - battery operated - not rechargeable
3. Whistle -
4. Road flare
5. Reflective safety cone or triangle?
6. Duck tape
7. Electrical tape
8. Screws drivers or a driver handle with a box of different bits
9. Gloves
10. Pepper Spray in bag
11. Knife or utility knife
12. Paracord
13. Alcohol wipes
14. Bandaids
15. Glue?
16. Pliers - maybe channel locks

My wife also wants her to have some sort of personal protection weapon to keep on her. I will check into the school's policys, but she wants to go with an telescoping baton. I already understand if someone takes a weapon from you it can be used on you. Just looking for thoughts or what you may have done for your child, or if you are a college student what do you have?

Thank you in advance.

 

[hlee]

1. Does she know when/where/why/how to use the stuff in the gear bag?

2. How unreliable is her car?

3. Everything on the list and no jumper cables? 30 years at automobile ownership and the only piece of gear (that stays in a vehicle) that I’ve used for a vehicle issue more than 2 times is a set of jumper cables.

The most useful single piece of emergency gear for someone in an urban/semi-urban setting is likely a cell phone charger. If you expect things may really go sideways, maybe add a water bottle and a protein bar.

As far as personal protection, get her classes on Muay tai and Brazilian jiu jitsu. She’ll be able to fight from her feet and her back.

 

[748rpilot]

Jumper cables and one of those air compressors that plug into the cigarette lighter. Depending on your local climate, warm blanket.

 

[rookie7]

@hlee and @748rpilot - jumper cables have been in the car since she started driving. That was just a "given" to me thinking that each vehicle should have cables.

Like any car things can break, but it's a Honda Accord.

I don't expect things to go sideways for her, but if anything ever does I want her to have items at her disposal.
If there is anything in her kit that she is unfamiliar with I do plan on showing her and have her practice with the items.

 

[hino895]

I was able to provide a highly reliable car for my daughter when she went off to school.
I taught her how to change a tire, check her oil as well as keep track of oil changes.
She also had AAA if there was a problem.
Her mother put together a bag of stuff in case she broke down and needed food, water a change of clothes that kinda stuff.
Don’t over think it they’ll be OK.

 

[powdahound76]

You forgot a good 9mm with 4 spare mags and an AR with 6 spare mags.
A good knife, fixed and folder.
Bolt cutters.
Small axe.


Ornery response aside, I would worry about an IFAK and knowledge over alcohol wipes and bandaids.
Those are for minor things to be dealt with later, not emergencies.
Gauze and duct tape for stuff that doesnt require a TQ or QuickClot.
Make sure she knows stop the bleed (at least basic principles) and basic bystander CPR (really can save a strangers life, have 3 cases at work in last couple months that were exactly this with one of the above 2).


I will trust you have armed her with common sense and warnings about morally corrupt humans who will try to destroy her moral compass.

 

[BillOH]

Battery jumper pack instead of jumper cables.


You can jump start a car with one of these in less time than it takes you to untangle your jumper cables plus you don't need another car.

 

[Srgt. Hulka]

 

[IronSkillet]

Seems like you have a good list going already, maybe add a orange safety vest, one of the mesh type you can roll up nice and tight and store in the driver door cubby.

 

[Maggot]

A lot of the stuff you mentioned is overkill. she's not headed alone for Africa or the Outback.

Make sure she has a good cell phone, and a AAA membership. They get priority when calls come in and usually reach the caller in less than an hour. Add in a good compact pistol and a gallon of water and she should be good to go.

 

[sharac]

LOL where are the condoms? I thought the title of the thread is "daughter -> college" not "trip to no mans land in Mad Max IV".

Really dude No1 should be condoms and if from Alabama you can safely try them inside family first so its use is natural as in "muscle memory" natural...


Seriously though its nice to have kids grow up...

 

[Kfive73]

I think pepper spray would have better stopping power than a baton. And there shouldn’t be any issues with the school to keep it in a dorm.

Also, make sure she can change a tire by herself… if she doesn’t have to rely on AAA for a tire change, she can get going a lot faster.

A portable phone charger that doesn’t need to be plugged into the car. In my college days, I’ve had to use one a few times (I had an old blazer with no way to charge a phone)

 

[sharac]

There old Maggot almost beat me to it but he forgot condoms -> must be age thing...

 

[Maggot]

There old Maggot almost beat me to it but he forgot condoms -> must be age thing...

Are you calling me an old geezer?????

You're right.

 

[Missalot]

A reliable car, a reliable phone (charging cables), reliable air pump, heavy gauge battery cables, a reliable 4 D cell flashlight or equivalent that doubles as a baseball bat, a reliable back up flashlight, roadside service plan and a blessing from the Pope. She will be much more vulnerable on campus than commuting to home and back in her car.

 

[Redmanss]

Roadside assistance is best. In my work truck I've used it several times because water pumps and radiator hoses blow at the worst times.

A good going-over of the entire vehicle, all fluids changed if not done in last 20K miles, don't forget diff and transmission as well as fuel filter. New drive belt as well, and put the old one tucked away as a spare in case an animal crawls up in the engine compartment and shreds it when started, BTDT. $100 cash tucked under the carpet with explicit instructions for emergencies only, and out of wine is not an emergency.

Narcan and condoms because it's college in 2023, maybe for her or her friends, but that's probably the two largest threats of a life ruined or lost.

Pepper spray, fuck the baton. Even bears are thwarted faster with the shit than a 10mm G20.

A breaker bar with lug nut socket for the wheels because shops are lazy and like to impact lug nuts on at >300 ft/lbs instead of torquing them on properly.

It's a Honda, absolutely no SAE sockets needed at all, those will only result in rounded off bolts. Even my '97 Ford has 100% metric on it.

 

[J-Ham]

Yeah I cannot stress enough, scrap the jumper cables & get her a decent jump pack... That way she's completely self sufficient & doesn't need to flag down some weirdo in the event her car won't start. Also, if she's helping one of her friends who's dad didn't set her up for success as well, she doesn't have to link her car to the suspect car... I saw this picture & immediately purchased NOCO's for myself & my girlfriend.

 

[fpgt72]

@hlee and @748rpilot - jumper cables have been in the car since she started driving. That was just a "given" to me thinking that each vehicle should have cables.

Like any car things can break, but it's a Honda Accord.

I don't expect things to go sideways for her, but if anything ever does I want her to have items at her disposal.
If there is anything in her kit that she is unfamiliar with I do plan on showing her and have her practice with the items.

That answer does not answer the question, does she know how to use them. Does she know how to change a tire? If the answer to that is no AAA is good.

The small lipo "jump box" is a good idea, as is the "fix a flat" kit. My wife had a green slime kit, and had everything you need to take care of the tire, but she did not know she had to take out the valve. She has done it before she was just not ready for it. Moral of that story is if you give them the tools to get back on the road but not the know how it really is pointless.

 

[rookie7]

That answer does not answer the question, does she know how to use them. Does she know how to change a tire? If the answer to that is no AAA is good.

The small lipo "jump box" is a good idea, as is the "fix a flat" kit. My wife had a green slime kit, and had everything you need to take care of the tire, but she did not know she had to take out the valve. She has done it before she was just not ready for it. Moral of that story is if you give them the tools to get back on the road but not the know how it really is pointless.

Fair enough - jumper cables yes, change a flat tire yes. I will review all things with her before she leaves in August.

 

[D1gger]

Zip ties and a cordless drill with screw driver bits and few small drill bits. These will come in handy in the car and the dorm room

 

[tk427]

Unless Iisted italready - Gas can, min 5 gallons......my kids think their fuel gauge is advisatory not an actual level!!!

Also, some food, water, jacket, change of shoes....again my kids think flip flops are all terrain!!!!!

Dependant on area a cell.phone signal booster - "WeBoost" is a good option.

Some training on all equipment she carries, stressing self awareness as not all people stop to help

 

[vinniedelpino]

I think pepper spray would have better stopping power than a baton. And there shouldn’t be any issues with the school to keep it in a dorm.

Also, make sure she can change a tire by herself… if she doesn’t have to rely on AAA for a tire change, she can get going a lot faster.

A portable phone charger that doesn’t need to be plugged into the car. In my college days, I’ve had to use one a few times (I had an old blazer with no way to charge a phone)

2nd on good pepper spray. Something that sprays a big ole' cloud of hurt.

When I got tagged I was totally useless for the better part of a half hour. I couldn't open my eyes, my nose leaked firey snot like a faucet and I was in complete agony for what seemed like forever. That shit gets everywhere and it's absolutely brutal.

Pepper spray is waaaay underrated. Batons and *most* tasers are gimmicks in comparison. For a college girl, I'd take (good) pepper spray over a handgun nine times out of ten.

 

[Shooter McGavin]

Battery jumper pack instead of jumper cables.


You can jump start a car with one of these in less time than it takes you to untangle your jumper cables plus you don't need another car.

She would need to take it out of the car when it's hot and every so often to charge it up. I got one for my wife because jumper cables in the car don't help when no one is around, there are jumper cables in the car though. She left it in the car all the time, even though I would remind her to take it out and charge it, and when she needed it the battery pack was dead.

Edit: I use this one in my truck

 

[Baron23]

LOL

 

[lonegunman762x51]

Lube. Like an extra quart of oil.


A good blanket and pair of old tennies that she can walk a mile in, maybe a sweatshirt. Bad weather can be an issue, if she might get stuck on the highway, then a few snacks and bottles of water might be handy.

 

[FWoo45]

You forgot a good 1911 in .45 ACP with 4 spare mags and an AR with 6 spare mags.
A good knife, fixed and folder.
Bolt cutters.
Small axe.


Ornery response aside, I would worry about an IFAK and knowledge over alcohol wipes and bandaids.
Those are for minor things to be dealt with later, not emergencies.
Gauze and duct tape for stuff that doesnt require a TQ or QuickClot.
Make sure she knows stop the bleed (at least basic principles) and basic bystander CPR (really can save a strangers life, have 3 cases at work in last couple months that were exactly this with one of the above 2).


I will trust you have armed her with common sense and warnings about morally corrupt humans who will try to destroy her moral compass.

 

[alamo5000]

Edit: Jumper Cables are already in the car

Forget the jumper cables. Instead get a jump box instead and show her how to use it.

If she gets stuck she won't have to wait for other people to show up to help her. Also if she's boxed in a parking spot where another car can't get access to the battery it's still no problem.

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[alamo5000]

A couple of other things to add to the list:

A Surefire Titan Plus flashlight for her key ring.

A few rolls of those blue shop towels.

 

[alamo5000]

Also depending on what kind of car and all that, you will probably want to install or make sure she has a tow eye in/on the car. Include in that something to pull HER car with such as a tow strap or kinetic rope. I personally have a kinetic rope and some towing bridals so I can get pulled out if needed and without breaking anything on my car.

Inevitably her and her friends will go camping/swimming at the beach/to a bonfire down by the river or any other number of things that can take her off the immediate pavement.

With the tow eye or something equivalent her friends can pull her out without damaging the car and without having to call a tow truck.

 

[Sirshredalot]

Ratchet straps and bungee cord....
shes gonna go to ikea and buy somthing that doesnt fit in the trunk.

 

[armorpl8chikn]

What goes on inside the university, is far more dangerous than anything that goes on outside.
What goes on outside can only destroy the body, what goes on inside can kill her soul.

 

[Kein Mitleid]

Chiming in to double up on the aforementioned breaker bar recommendation. Preferably a longer 1/2” drive with the specific socket and/or extension needed for lug nuts.

Technically most 90T ratchets are strong enough that the drive itself is the typical point of failure, but it’s much easier to spin the lugs off by straightening the breaker bar than by turning the ratchet.

 

[UKDslayer]

I think pepper spray would have better stopping power than a baton. And there shouldn’t be any issues with the school to keep it in a dorm.

Also, make sure she can change a tire by herself… if she doesn’t have to rely on AAA for a tire change, she can get going a lot faster.

A portable phone charger that doesn’t need to be plugged into the car. In my college days, I’ve had to use one a few times (I had an old blazer with no way to charge a phone)

Good for her to know how,but let AAA do it.

Charger - - yes. The kind that starts your battery.

 

[UKDslayer]

A couple of other things to add to the list:

A Surefire Titan Plus flashlight for her key ring.

A few rolls of those blue shop towels.

Every key ring could use a seat belt cutter/glass break.

 

[hlee]

Emergency gear should be useful when you need it and invisible/unobtrusive/mindless when you don’t. This, unfortunately, disqualifies anything that needs regular maintenance or pro-active replacement. The jump box sounds great, except that it needs to be recharged.

And, we’re talking about a college aged female thriving an accord. These are not the hallmarks of a car person or a survivalist. She’s not going to be taking the jump box to her dorm room to charge it. And, if she does, that is where it will stay until the end of the semester when it gets dug out from under a pile of clothes.

Meds will expire. They’re out.

Wet wipes and alcohol swabs will dry out in the summer heat, where the interior of a vehicle can surpass 140F. Hell, tape can be rendered a gooey mess of left for long periods in a vehicle.

My list would be (in addition to standard Jack/tire iron/spare and roadside assistance)…

1. Phone charger (passenger compartment)
2. Jumper cables
3. 2 quarts oil
4. 1 gal pre-mixed coolant
5. 2 funnels of appropriate design
6. Dish gloves (she’s not going to want to get her hands dirty)
7. Roll of blue shop towels.
8. Plastic milk crate to contain gear in trunk of car. Keeps everything together. One place to look for everything. Easily moved out of the way.

Make sure she knows how/when/where to check fluid levels, and where/how/when to add fluids.

(The mesh orange vest is a good idea too. As is an orange cone or 2, though they can take up a lot of space.)

I also keep a blanket in all vehicles. A travel umbrella stashed somewhere in the cab is nice too.

 

[Californio]

4 dcell Maglite it has may uses besides light.

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[chopit]

Please keep in contact with her, talk as much as you can because they might put alot of things you dont like in her head. My son was raised in a conservative home and came back from college a full blown liberial. I dont think myself or life can change his fucked up views of the world now.

 

[GUN NUT in IA]

Cool!

A thread about Bug-Out-Bags . . . only with cars.

 

[LawnMM]

Meds will expire. They’re out.

They don't expire, only the guaranteed dose expires.

The pills work for decades.

 

[armorpl8chikn]

Please keep in contact with her, talk as much as you can because they might put alot of things you dont like in her head. My son was raised in a conservative home and came back from college a full blown liberial. I dont think myself or life can change his fucked up views of the world now.

^^^^^^^^^THIS!

 

[hlee]

They don't expire, only the guaranteed dose expires.

The pills work for decades.

Well, while empirically dosing pharmaceuticals until the desired effect is reached certainly SOUNDS like college, my biochemistry degree did not prepare me to calculate dosage while accounting for the effects of age and heat exposure over a myriad pharmaceuticals that might be needed in an emergency situation. I will, however, defer to the superior knowledge of the pharmacologists in attendance. And, a vehicle gets HOT in the summer- at least around here it does. This, to my mind, excludes meds from the realm of vehicle borne emergency gear. This doesn't mean that I am saying that you shouldn't have meds on you- especially if you need them. Nor am I saying that you should only have those meds that you currently need. Only, that meds are not appropriate- to my mind- in a kit that neglectedly sits in the trunk of a hot car until needed.

 

[hlee]

Please keep in contact with her, talk as much as you can because they might put alot of things you dont like in her head. My son was raised in a conservative home and came back from college a full blown liberial. I dont think myself or life can change his fucked up views of the world now.

University feeds that which was already there. I attended The University of Texas at Austin and emerged from that bastion of liberal-mindedness more conservative than I entered.

 

[mrdrar]

1) Common sense.
2) Awareness.
3) Knife, pepper spray, and whistle all on-person, not in bag somewhere.

 

[kenny1773]

I agree with those that say jump battery instead of jumper cables. My girls both have these in their cars (and it doubles as a phone charger, I put cables for their phones in the carry bag)



If you do not use it, they need charged once a year, charge it at Christmas time when she comes home.

My older child has used the jump battery twice already. Jumper cables rely on creepy strangers.

This is good to have in the tool bag as well with aging hoses in the car

 

[UKDslayer]

Emergency gear should be useful when you need it and invisible/unobtrusive/mindless when you don’t. This, unfortunately, disqualifies anything that needs regular maintenance or pro-active replacement. The jump box sounds great, except that it needs to be recharged.

And, we’re talking about a college aged female thriving an accord. These are not the hallmarks of a car person or a survivalist. She’s not going to be taking the jump box to her dorm room to charge it. And, if she does, that is where it will stay until the end of the semester when it gets dug out from under a pile of clothes.

Meds will expire. They’re out.

Wet wipes and alcohol swabs will dry out in the summer heat, where the interior

of a vehicle can surpass 140F. Hell, tape can be rendered a gooey mess of left for long periods in a vehicle.

My list would be (in addition to standard Jack/tire iron/spare and roadside assistance)…

1. Phone charger (passenger compartment)
2. Jumper cables
3. 2 quarts oil
4. 1 gal pre-mixed coolant
5. 2 funnels of appropriate design
6. Dish gloves (she’s not going to want to get her hands dirty)
7. Roll of blue shop towels.
8. Plastic milk crate to contain gear in trunk of car. Keeps everything together. One place to look for everything. Easily moved out of the way.

Make sure she knows how/when/where to check fluid levels, and where/how/when to add fluids.

(The mesh orange vest is a good idea too. As is an orange cone or 2, though they can take up a lot of space.)

I also keep a blanket in all vehicles. A travel umbrella stashed somewhere in the cab is nice too.

Seriously?? Is she heading to the Alaska tundra? Do you not plan on seeing her or her car for four years?? How many college guys change fluids and will/can change a tire? Good to have the knowledge, sure, if she has the desire to learn it, but do NOT expect her to do this, and do not waste cargo volume with all this junk. Do you think she will have the time to do this stuff? Even if she has the time to do it, does she even have the desire??? Y'all are thinking like guys, not like a college freshman. Stop it. Ask her.. "Honey, if you are broken down in a (blizzard at -10 wind chill and you only have a light jacket and no gloves/ heat wave 110 degrees with no water) and your car breaks down, are you gonna pop your hood, get out daddy's crate and think about all the things that could be the source or would you rather call AAA?" Think about which is more likely to put her life at risk too...

Work through danger scenarios with her, that's worth more than 2 quarts of oil and a ratchet set..

Premier AAA is 100% worth it, I don't care about auto plan (they have a tendency to void themselves just when you need them), not just for battery jumps, tire changes, but also for car lock outs, towing in case of accident. Don't put anything in there you wouldn't expect her to use readily. Plenty of threads on bug-out-bags.

Zip ties and a cordless drill with screw driver bits and few small drill bits. These will come in handy in the car and the dorm room

Sure. Load up her car with stuff that her she will never, ever use at least and at most will get her car will get broken into for. First time she needs extra space for a weekend get-away, or for an extra person, or she is short on cash, and that stuff is GONE and its not making its way back in. If anything, its a liability.

Worry about things like programming phones with ICE numbers,make sure things like health insurance, car insurance/registration etc. are not only hard copied in the car but in an ICE file on her phone. If I were you, I would worry more about her getting Rufied at frat party. Stress that her actions are especially now going to be recorded for permanent posterity whether she likes it or not - even if she thinks she is "among friends" or "you raised her right" - one thing can show up later, including her own posts, that can keep her from getting her dream job or even from having that love of her life put a ring on it. Those sensitive discussions that the left is exploiting in grade school - make sure your wife has them covered, as well as what to do with stuff goes sideways. That's what matters more than...

Chiming in to double up on the aforementioned breaker bar recommendation. Preferably a longer 1/2” drive with the specific socket and/or extension needed for lug nuts.

Technically most 90T ratchets are strong enough that the drive itself is the typical point of failure, but it’s much easier to spin the lugs off by straightening the breaker bar than by turning the ratchet.

SMH.

 

[D1gger]

I don't know where you buy your zip ties, but they fit in the glove box. I just did this 2x over the last 5 years with my daughters. They both got a drill and used it more than any other item I sent with them. The car doesn't need to be equipped for armageddon either. They all have phones

 

[DocRDS]

If you live where it snows: Kitty Litter/Hat/Gloves goes in every car I own.

2 hours is a long way stuck in a snowy ditch.

 

[LawnMM]

Well, while empirically dosing pharmaceuticals until the desired effect is reached certainly SOUNDS like college, my biochemistry degree did not prepare me to calculate dosage while accounting for the effects of age and heat exposure over a myriad pharmaceuticals that might be needed in an emergency situation. I will, however, defer to the superior knowledge of the pharmacologists in attendance. And, a vehicle gets HOT in the summer- at least around here it does. This, to my mind, excludes meds from the realm of vehicle borne emergency gear. This doesn't mean that I am saying that you shouldn't have meds on you- especially if you need them. Nor am I saying that you should only have those meds that you currently need. Only, that meds are not appropriate- to my mind- in a kit that neglectedly sits in the trunk of a hot car until needed.

Spare me, man, jeez ...

We're not talking about antibiotics so she can self treat a stab wound while waging a one woman war on a band of serial rapists after an attack on her dorm like a shitty Hollywood movie

He's talking about Tylenol or some basic prescriptions. College is maybe four years, the meds will be fine.

DOD did a study using meds from fucking WW2 that were like 50-60 years old from stockpiles in Europe and they were still 85%+ effective and I doubt it was kept in climate controlled storage locations managed by people with biochemistry degrees.

 

[UKDslayer]

I don't know where you buy your zip ties, but they fit in the glove box. I just did this 2x over the last 5 years with my daughters. They both got a drill and used it more than any other item I sent with them. The car doesn't need to be equipped for armageddon either. They all have phones

There are other things that will be placed in her gloves box - those zip ties will be tossed.

Tampons, pads more likely. I had a friend with a lead foot in college who kept a magazine in her glove compartment in case she got pulled over - she would slip it under her butt and say "Officer - I was just speeding home because I just got my period".

 

[hlee]

Seriously?? Is she heading to the Alaska tundra? Do you not plan on seeing her or her car for four years?? How many college guys change fluids and will/can change a tire? Good to have the knowledge, sure, if she has the desire to learn it, but do NOT expect her to do this, and do not waste cargo volume with all this junk. Do you think she will have the time to do this stuff? Even if she has the time to do it, does she even have the desire??? Y'all are thinking like guys, not like a college freshman. Stop it. Ask her.. "Honey, if you are broken down in a (blizzard at -10 wind chill and you only have a light jacket and no gloves/ heat wave 110 degrees with no water) and your car breaks down, are you gonna pop your hood, get out daddy's crate and think about all the things that could be the source or would you rather call AAA?" Think about which is more likely to put her life at risk too...

Work through danger scenarios with her, that's worth more than 2 quarts of oil and a ratchet set..

You're right. We're talking about a girl. Her boyfriend should be driving.