I am looking to start upgrading my Mini Cooper R52 and am wondering what tools I will need for some basic engine tinkering, like upgrading the air intake.
Ratchets, socket set. with extenders and knuckles. Basic screw drivers, plyers, adjustable wrenches, etc.
One really important thing, a torque wrench. Alot more engine parts these days require specific amounts of torque than on engines of old.
Edit: And a camera, take pictures of how something is put together, as you take it apart, in case you forget
I'd add a manual with exploded views and torque specs, the internet is great but nothing beats a manual laying on the fender that you can reference on the fly.
You're going to need a decent socket set. If you're concentrating on minor upgrades and appearance options for now, I'd start with a metric set in 1/4'' drive. Almost all cars are predominately metric fasteners now. Get a good quality flashlight. Obviously some of the basics (screwdrivers, pliers, etc...)
A printed manual specific to your car is a great suggestion as well as using a camera to keep things organized.
After that, let the car be your guide. If you have a lot of Torx fasteners on the car, obviously you'll need those. If there are special service tools you'll require, add those to your collection.
When it comes to tools, I go by what my dad told me years ago..."Buy the best and you'll only cry once."
I get away with using my girlfriends dads toolkit, but it all depends on the task at hand, so say if you were re-boring the engine, of course at home you would not have the correct boring tools.
For air intakes he says stuff like sockets, spanners and screw drivers, nothing special.
If you end up doing a lot under the hood, a small impact driver(makita mini 12v) will greatly speed things up. Look into a bit set with torx and phillips, and get a 3/8 and 1/4" square drive for sockets. As a former tech, those were my most used tools on modern cars.
Hmm. Look into toolset reviews and uhmmm.. I know they are american channels on ytube but look into finding some of Scotty kilmers and Eric the car guys videos on tool reviews.. They are long time mechs and will have good advice... Haha Eric the car guy has my first name xD
Personally I started off with the basics, socket set, torque wrench, basic screwdriver set and of course a good set of spanners.... Then built up the rest over time (every time I found myself needing a specific tool, I went and bought it).
I've also made it a habit of buying a workshop manual for every car I own.
And have found that having a computer in the garage, on my workshop bench has also been no end of help... It doesn't have to be anything special or super fast, but let's be real, handy access to the net is always good and trying to search shit on your phone or a tablet with greasy / oiley and generally filthy hands is a Major pain in the as.... I recently switched to an old dell laptop, just for a little more in flexibility and mobility in that department...