I ordered two of these kits in anticipation for another cold Minnesota winter. I received it within 2 days since I have Amazon Prime. I am pleased with the kit overall, but am disappointed as well.
The kit seems sufficient with plenty to get by if I were to be stranded somewhere in the middle of no where. There's stuff to keep me warm, safe, and to signal others as well. Everything seems to be of mediocre quality, which is good enough for me.
However, it is different from what is described.
1) No Matches! The set of matches in both sets were replaced with another cheap candle due to shipping restrictions. What good are my 4 candles without matches?
2) The flashlight is NOT a hand-charged dual LED flashlight. Instead it is an ordinary cheap flashlight with two AA batteries.
The waterproof matches and the hand-charged flashlight were definitely selling points, and I'm not so sure I would have bought this particular set if it I knew these pitfalls ahead of time. Nonetheless, I'll keep them to save myself the hassle since I'm still better with the kits than without them.
I am planning on adding a few items before I chuck it into my trunk. Some hard candy, extra socks, some baggies to keep my feet dry in case I need to trudge through some snow, a container to melt snow in, chapstick, a medium sized and durable container of cat litter, and finally my trusty jumper cables. AAA 65-Piece Winter Severe Weather Travel Kit
If you are a driver who travels in rough winter weather (or if you know and like such a driver), this is a perfect starter kit to put in the trunk before the first leaves fall. The AAA Winter Travel kit has put together a bunch of survival items that could make the difference between freezing to death or waiting for help in relative comfort. The kit is not 100% complete, no kit could be, but if you add the items that pertain to your personal situation, you will feel a lot better when driving those backwoods roads.
The most useful item, by far, is the enclosed "Emergency Car Care Guide," which has instructions and suggestions to get your car headed back to safety instead of being stranded at the side of a cold and stormy road. If the car cannot be started again easily, the Guide also contains suggestions on how to keep warm and safe while waiting for rescue. To help, there are emergency candles, a shovel to remove snow from around the car's tailpipe (keeps away that carbon monoxide), a flashlight and an emergency blanket. The blanket is made of thin, reflective plastic and would be better supplemented with a heavy woolen blanket, or even layers of newspaper in an emergency.
Another thing that the kit does not contain is food and water necessary to stay warm, comfortable and not hungry while waiting. I suggest always having a case package of water bottles (you need a lot more water than food, and three candles won't melt much snow) and some high calorie snack bars, which last a long time and will provide needed body heat in a winter emergency. Both items can be easily replaced and rotated as time passes, so that the items won't be old and stale when a real emergency occurs.
As a thoughtful starting point for your kit, this is great, but don't kid yourself - 46 pieces of the 63 piece kit are the "first aid supplies" (mostly bandages) and "quality vinyl cover." You need more than this in a winter emergency. An hour's online research will give you a complete list, to which you need only add something to kill time. A novel from Amazon, perhaps? :-)
As other reviewers have said, the description and pictures are misleading! Unfortunately for me, these reviews didn't go up until after I put in my order! I am very upset. This is the first time I've ever bought something from Amazon and been so misled. And for those that may not have read the other reviews, there is no hand chargeable flashlight or waterproof matches. Matches were replaced by ONE candle due to alleged shipping restrictions. How am I supposed light any of the candles WITHOUT matches?! Also, it is now a 65-piece kit. I don't know how it compares to the 63-piece kit, but I doubt the 2 extra pieces are anything more significant than bandages. One final thing is that there is a August 2010 expiration date listed on the front of the bag. I haven't checked to see which item expires, but it probably refers to a minor first aid item.
Useful item, misleading description. I actually used this last weekend when I unexpectedly had to put chains on my tires and was without a hat and mittens, so I am glad I had it. However, the item description lists "1 hand-charged dual LED flashlight" which is not the case. I got a normal, incandescent flashlight with two batteries. No LED, no hand-charge. Also, the item description lists "strobe light" which also appears to be absent, unless you repeatedly turn the flashlight on and off by yourself. Finally, no matches as the description says. Apparently shipping regulations restrict the shipping of matches.
These items really need to be fixed in the description.
I got one of the other AAA kit's and figured that the severe weather one would be a good addition considering I live in Chicago and every so often we have severe weather. I read the reviews and people raved about the little shovel...ummm why? Either I didn't get the same one they did or I got a defective one because I couldn't use it. Three people couldn't use it. I actually threw it out it was that much of a waste (the shovel not the kit).
Any of the other AAA car kits are just as good and have everything if not more that this one does.
Watch the price on this kit. It shouldn't cost more than $30. It is a basic winter weather kit for your vehicle. The highlights have to be the shovel, strobe light, and first aid kit. You get a whistle (nice touch if you spot someone in the distance), 3 tiny teacup candles (that might come in handy?), an ice scraper (which you should already have), a small flashlight (low power), and a guidebook.
It also has everything to keep ONE PERSON very warm. Keep that in mind. This seems like a one person kit. It comes with two hand warmer packets. I added several more. It has a three-piece fleece set for one person. Make sure you dress warm when you leave the house and that shouldn't be a problem. If someone in your party gets wet, you have the three-piece fleece set as a back-up.
It only comes with one emergency blanket. That didn't cut it for me. I bought 4 more for less than $5. You can buy more here Emergency Thermal Blankets (4 Pack). These are supposed to be great at preserving body heat while you wait for help to arrive.
You will still need to add a few things to this kit. They do not have waterproof matches. Buy some. I need to get a few glow sticks in case the flashlight quit working. And it wouldn't hurt to put a pocket-sized bible in this kit. If you are stuck in the middle of nowhere all alone and in trouble, who better to be with than God? Just a tip. - First Aid - Automotive - Keep In Car - Safety'
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