It's wonderful that you guys are willing to help me put together my toys^H^H^H^Hemergency car kit. I went out today and this is what I got:

• 16' 6 gauge 500 amp jumper cable
• 30 yards of duct tape
• 60' of electrical tape
• 40" bungee cord x 2
• 60 second epoxy (w/ mixing spout so it's not all messy), 1250 psi - is this too little?
• WD-40 "pen"
• work gloves with leather palm
• tea candles
• 11' cable ties
• rags

I will add:

• handheld flashlight
• headlamp
• standalone torch - am I overdoing the lights?
• batteries
• tire gauge
• mini air compressor - recommendation?
• first aid kit
• blanket
• poncho
• baby wipes
• one of those triangle caution signs
• orange vest with reflector strips
• knife
• ice scraper
• help sign
• food & water
• power inverter (how many watts? I might have to power a laptop)
• fuses (once I figure out what I need)
• tow strap -- will 5,000 lbs do or will I need 10,000 lbs for a small SUV?
• Glock e-trench tool
• rescue tool -- probably that hammer thing, and I'll tape it under the seat
• ice scraper
• bag (1800 cubic inches). Not sure whether I can fit everything in. May have to split into stuff I need and stuff the car needs.

Now, I'm not sure of the following things

• Road flares vs. magnetic strobe that you can mount on top of the car. Do I need both?
• Tools. I home-improve and repair my computers, which often results in repairing both the home and the computers some more, but I have no experience fixing cars. What sort of tools will I need? I found the standard list of screw drivers, plier, wrench, etc. But these guys vary a bit.
• An even bigger question is how I can gain the knowledge to use them. As Eric points out, some of these items are useless without that knowledge. Are there manuals, or "automotive first aid" classes?

I'm trying not to have too much stuff in the kit, but the list just grows by itself...

Thanks again for your input!

Da Bing