Specialty tools for a given engine family drive me nuts. Is it really that difficult to design something which works with thousands of preexisting tools? Unfortunately, General Motors didn’t do that with their Ecotec engines’ oil filter caps, which are so common that nearly every mechanic is going to run into one at some point. Ecotecs have an unusual cartridge-style filter design. Instead of a paper filter element contained in a disposable metal casing, there’s an aluminum housing cast into the block which accepts a standalone paper filter, and it’s covered by a plastic cap with unusual artillery-pattern threads and a 32mm male hex on top.

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If you ever need work done on your brakes, it’s best to avoid brake shops for a variety of reasons — not the least of which is that they’ll often use a Jesus wrench (the biggest Channel Locks in their box) to compress the pistons, a procedure capable of cracking cheap calipers, and almost guaranteed to mar the piston. The right way is a brake caliper compressor, a sort of high-powered caulk gun designed to slip into the pad recess. Lisle’s model 25750 is a perfect example, and pretty inexpensive at just over $32 before shipping from Amazon.

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While it may look like some prop key out of a bad treasure movie, this $12 cube-shaped tool from Lisle is actually for rotating the piston back into the caliper when replacing rear disc brake pads.

The tool features a different pin configuration on each of its six faces to fit most domestic vehicles and some imports.  Fit a 3/8″ ratchet with an extension into one of the cube’s square drive holes, then simply push and turn the tool to rotate the piston into the caliper.

Disc Brake Piston Tool [Lisle]
Street Pricing [Google]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

ToolDiscounter.com is selling these Lisle 22850 Hose Pinchers for $4.17.  With this set of two screw-actuated clamps you can pinch hoses so fluids or vacuum can’t pass/suck when you’re making repairs.

Lisle Hose Pinchers [ToolDiscounter.com]
Street Pricing [Google]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Mechanics Tool Supply is selling this Lisle Pipe End Shaper for $21.  It certainly looks like a problem-solver on exhaust work, and we can think of other handy uses around the shop for a big steel cone!

Lisle Pipe End Shaper [Mechanics Tool Supply]
Street Pricing [Google]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

ToolDiscounter.com is selling the Lisle 30050 belt tool for $12.85 — it’s a handy folding set of five body-trim tools in one fold-up tool.

Lisle Belt Tool [ToolDiscounter.com]
Street Pricing [Google]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

ToolDiscounter.com is selling the Lisle 31500 Exhaust/Strut Cutoff Tool for $20.  Basically a four-wheel version of the old tubing cutter, it’ll cut completely through thin exhaust tubing, and you only need to rotate it slightly over 90 degrees, compared to the full 360 a tubing cutter requires — great for tight spaces.

Lisle 31500 Exhaust/Strut Cutoff Tool [ToolDiscounter.com]
Street Pricing [Google]
Via Amazon [What’s This?]

Most everybody agreed that nitrile gloves were a hot item — now here’s a great way to keep them in sight and available when you need them.  US General and Lisle sell competing magnetic glove dispensers that you can attach to any metal surface.

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Raise your hand if you actually re-pack your trailer’s wheel bearings once a year as recommended. Yeah, repacking bearings by hand can be a greasy mess — who really wants to put globs of grease in their hands, except my three-year-old?  Do yourself a favor and pick up a bearing packer like this one from Lisle for $8. A bearing packer evenly injects new grease into the bearing, which forces out the old grease and flushes out any other contaminants.

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Tired of lying on a cold concrete floor while wrenching on your ride, but don’t have room (in the garage or under the car) for a standard creeper?  Check out Lisle’s fold-up creeper.  It doesn’t have wheels — and it isn’t pretty – but it does offer some padding and mobility down under. 

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Rotating the flex plate or flywheel on a Detroit V8 can whip you in a hurry.  Any who have been under the hood a few times to do this will tell you that it takes some arm power to move that bad boy.  A flywheel turner tool is the ticket.

The turner tool has an arm that hooks in the teeth on the flexplate or flywheel and cranks the wheel around via a fulcrum on the other end — that hooks into teeth at that end — and applies leveraged force to move the stubborn wheel.

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Toolaremia writes: “If any of you have ever changed the exhaust pipes on a car made in the last 20 years, you’ve dealt with the rubber exhaust hanger supports.  I usually get them off the hanger barbs with a crowbar, WD-40, bloody knuckles, and swearing that would make a sailor proud.  Now I see the Lisle has felt my pain and created a simple solution.  At about $15 delivered, it’s cheaper than stitches, too.”

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Richie writes: “Air pockets within your auto’s coolant system can cause big problems when its hot out.  This tool allows you to painlessly get rid of those pockets without flushing your entire system — unless you’re due for a flush anyway!”

Essentially this funnel snaps into your radiator fill port and slowly/steadily meters in the fluid, giving two advantages: less air in the system, and the ability to fill the whole system in an unattended fashion.

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Ever blow the gasket on your exhaust manifold?  We’re not admitting why we know this can happen — and rest assured it doesn’t involve fracturing the speed limit –  but it can happen.  Theoretically.  And if when it does, you might find that the manifold has warped and the holes don’t line up anymore.  That’s when you need a manifold spreader. 

A manifold spreader helps you expand a warped manifold so that all the bolt holes are accurately aligned.  This helps to prevent cross-threading of manifold bolts, which believe us isn’t something you want to deal with.  Just position the tool between two pipes and crank the center with an opened wrench. The tips will expand and push the pipes into place.

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Ok, this is actually my socket organizer of choice.  I saw these over at a friend’s place a while back and have been meaning to pick up a set.  Myself writes: “Sockets rolling around in your toolbox?  Drawers too shallow for the Hansen or Craftsman stand-up organizers?  Try the Lisle magnetic organizer and tote. 

“It holds standard and deep sockets, comes in two colors to keep metric and fractional separate, and will stick to the side of your toolchest if that pleases you.  Just be sure to wipe the accumulated metal dust off the bottom before sticking it to your car’s fender.”

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One of the first steps in turning a mild mannered street vehicle into a show-stopping monster-of-doom is to remove the stupid looking factory body molding.  For that, you need a molding remover set.

The set consists of two spring steel blades; the larger 3 ½” hand held tool works well, but for tough projects where elbow grease just won’t cut it you can attach a pneumatic air hammer to apply up to 40 PSI of force to the 2” edge.  That’ll peel that 80’s crap off like a banana.

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It’s been our experience that working on exhaust under a vehicle is a great deal like going to the airport: make sure that when you’re there you have everything you need and you know what to expect — and you might get out of there in a reasonable amount of time and accomplish what you need to do. 

Or, as the case may be, you might get out from under your ride with as little rust on you (or in your eyes) as possible.  Any little step in that direction is a good thing. When we saw the oxygen sensor socket our “good thing” light kicked on. 

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