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I bought my first torque wrench as a teenager when I started autocrossing. It was a Craftsman clicker-type. I still have a later version of it today—along with at least a half-dozen other torquing devices. Even if you don’t do much work on your car, if you so much as take a wheel off, a torque wrench is a necessity. Luckily, good quality, reliable torque wrenches aren’t that expensive and I’ve rounded up deals on torque wrenches to prove it to you. I’ve even found a few favorites of The Garage that are on sale right now.
Not so fast. Before we get to the sales, let’s quickly talk a little bit about torque specs and how the wrenches work. Just about every threaded fastener on your vehicle has a torque spec. Yes, even the bolts threaded into plastic have a torque spec. It may have only been used when the car was assembled, but it exists. Way back in the 1900’s, we all had Chilton’s or Hayne’s Manuals for our cars, they were kind of like the internet but printed on the flesh of dead trees. These “books” had tables full of all the specs you needed. Now, you can just use Google with your year/make/model.
This is the part where I was going to go full-nerd and talk about how clicker wrenches don’t work the way you think, and why you can’t calibrate it by hanging a 20 lb weight a foot from the ratchet head. But, this video from The Bike Sauce does a better job than I could. The host, Nolan Tsuchiya, is an 18th-level mathlord with one of the best bicycling channels on YouTube. He also has a side gig as a professor of mechanical engineering. The video is less than 15 minutes long but it counts as two of your five recommended daily learning opportunities.
Now that you know everything about clicker torque wrenches, let’s talk deals. For doing things like lug nuts, suspension components, engine mounts, and things in that 80 – 180 lb-ft range, you want a 1/2-inch drive. The Kobalt Clicker for 60 bucks is a great choice for home mechanics. Both the American Forge & Foundry for $112 and the Gearwrench Electronic for $141 might be a little more rugged if you’re using the thing all the time.
If you’re doing lighter work, you can step down to either the 3/8-inch or even a 1/4-inch. The former is great for spark plugs, drain plugs, etc. The latter is for pan bolts and some transmission work. Honestly, most people working on cars in their garage won’t use a 1/4-inch all that often. I’ve also included a beam style from Gearwrench and an example of a calibrator, although a lot of tool shops will do it for less than 50 bucks. The last wrench is for those of you with Porsche center lock wheels.
More Deals on Torque Wrenches
Kobalt 1/4-Inch Drive Click Torque Wrench for $49.98
Kobalt 1/2-Inch Drive Click Torque Wrench (50-ft lb to 250-ft lb) for $59.98
Kobalt 3/8-Inch Drive Click Torque Wrench With Shallow Socket Set for $84.96
American Forge & Foundry 1/2-Inch Drive Click Torque Wrench (50-ft lb to 250-ft lb) for $111.62
Tekton 3/8-Inch Drive Micrometer Torque Wrench (10-80 ft.-lb.) for $38.79
Gearwrench 1/2-Inch Drive Electronic Torque Wrench (25-250 ft-lb) for $141.00
Gearwrench 2957N 1/2-Inch Drive Beam Torque Wrench, 0-150 ft/lbs for $59.99
Performance Tool M206 Digital Torque Adapter for $50.00
Portable Torque Wrench Tester/Calibrator, Range 22.0 To 220.0N.m not on sale $989.00
1-Inch Drive Click Torque Wrench, Dual-Scale 200-1000 ft-lb / 271-1356.7 Nm not on sale $519.99
