3 Of The Best Stores To Rent Tools For Your Next DIY Car Repair

The tricky thing about cars is when something breaks, you're never quite sure what's broken and where until you start fixing it. It's a complex, interconnected system; if one small part goes bad, the whole thing stops working. This is why performing DIY repairs on a car exhibiting some sort of problem, even a seemingly simple one, is never quite as simple as popping the hood and swinging a wrench around. To perform a proper repair, you will need a few different tools and implements to diagnose the problem and fix it.

While there is something to be said for buying automotive tools and keeping them handy, doing so can be prohibitively expensive. If you need to fix your car but can't afford to drop the cash necessary for the complete automotive overhaul suite, there exists a better option: rental tools. Several prominent automotive repair chains will rent out the tools you need for any given job and then give you a full refund after you return them.

If you need specialized automotive repair tools, visit your local O'Reilly Auto Parts. O'Reilly stores keep a stash of ready-to-go repair kits for all kinds of automotive jobs, including diagnostic repair, steering and suspension, brakes and tires, and air conditioning, to name a few. If you need help getting the right gear, just give an employee some details on your situation, and they'll help you grab what you need.

If you want to rent the tools, just pick out what you need at an O'Reilly Auto Parts location and pay a deposit at checkout. The deposit is the same price as these tools normally cost, so if you decide to keep the tools, you don't need to pay anything else; you can just keep them. Otherwise, once you're done with the tools, just bring them back to the O'Reilly location that you rented them from. So long as the tools are still in good, usable condition, you'll receive your deposit back in full.

For a little more flexibility in your tool renting process, try visiting the nearest AutoZone location. AutoZone maintains a catalog of around 100 prefab tool kits ready for rental and to handle just about any auto job you could think of. Simply visit an AutoZone, grab the tools you need, and pay their collective price tag as a deposit. Bring them back when you're done with them to get your deposit back. The only hard rule is that you must return them within 90 days of rental to get your deposit refunded.

Don't have an AutoZone near you? Worry not; the chain also offers online rentals. You can browse AutoZone's online catalog the same way you would its normal product offerings, add stuff to your cart, and purchase them. When you're done with the tools (again, within the 90-day window), you can either ship the parts back to AutoZone HQ with a preapproved return form or simply drop them off at any physical AutoZone location to get a refund.

Are you concerned about keeping the tools you rent in proper, returnable condition? Then, you might want to get your loaners from Advance Auto Parts. Advance Auto Parts offers a variety of prefab kits, each one stored in a stylish carrying case, for you to rent either online or from a physical storefront. As with other chains, you just have to pay a deposit at checkout and then bring the tools back within 45 days of purchase to get that deposit back.

What's especially nice about Advance Auto Parts, though, is that every tool it loans out is covered by a 100% lifetime warranty. In the event any tool in the kit you rented breaks or is otherwise damaged, you can still return it to the storefront you got it from. As long as you're within the 45-day window, you will still receive your deposit in full, with no strings attached.