Don’t Leave Home Without It: The Vehicle 72-Hour Kit

Soccer moms, football moms, cheerleading moms, whatever they call us, “chauffeur” better describes what we, Survival Moms, do every day. In my world, it’s not unusual to have a kid’s dentist appointment, a field trip, and a swim meet all on the same day, transported by our trusty Tahoe. Now, if that Tahoe ever broke down or for some reason we couldn’t get home as planned, what would we do?

My answer is the Vehicle 72 Hour Kit, or Emergency Kit. If you were well and truly stuck somewhere, this Kit could see you and your family through at least 72 hours. That’s three days. It wouldn’t be luxurious living, that’s for sure, but it would be survival, and that’s what we’re talking about here.

I consider the Vehicle 72 Hour Kit to be an essential part of being prepared for emergencies, and fortunately, it’s pretty easy to put together. In fact, you might have all the necessary, basic supplies in your home and garage right now.

Putting the vehicle 72 hour kit together

To get started on your own Vehicle 72 Hour Kit, you’ll need some type of container that will fit in the back of your  minivan, SUV, or in the trunk of your car. I chose a Rubbermaid clear plastic bin, the type that is designed to fit under beds. It’s the perfect width for our vehicle, and I like the fact that I can see what’s inside. It also holds a lot.

The typical 72 Hour Kit, also sometimes called a Bug-Out Bag, is stored at home and ready to grab as you run out the door in case of an evacuation. Since we’re building a Kit for the vehicle, we want it filled with items we’ll need if stranded somewhere. If you have more than one vehicle in the family, make a kit for the one you use most often and then add kits to the other vehicles as you have the time, supplies, and money.

You can find numerous lists online of what should be in a 72 Hour Kit, but since I’m a mom, and I pretty much always have the kids with me, my own list is a little different.  A lot of these items are available online, and I’ve included links. Anything to make shopping easier, right?

Here’s what I’ve packed.

Sanitation

(With kids, you just have to start here.)

• A 4-pack of toilet paper, flattened  (Take the center cardboard tube out to make it as flat as possible. You can put these flattened rolls in a Food Saver bag and vacuum seal for even flatter toilet paper.)
• Baby wipes
• Small box of tissues
• Hand sanitizer
• Bar of soap
• Clorox wipes (Germs never take a vacation.)
• A few plastic grocery bags stuffed into another grocery bag.
• Toothbrushes and toothpaste
• Dental floss
• Tampons/feminine protection. A menstrual cup is a great option. You can read more here to decide if this is something you might want to try.
• Paper towels
• Emesis bags for unpleasant car sickness incidents. These are so much easier to use than a random trash bag or, worse, your purse.

Sustenance

(Kids will quickly panic if they think you’re out of food, but whatever you pack, make sure it’s something your kids will eat.)

• Beef jerky or something similar
• Trail mix
• Shelled sunflower seeds
• Small cans of food, such as fruit, ravioli, tuna
• Protein bars and granola bars
• High calorie energy bars. This article compares several different brands.  (Handle these with care. High energy may be the last thing your kids need!)
• Hard candies (Offer a prize for whoever can make their Lifesaver last the longest!)
• Packets for flavoring water
• Can opener, unless all your cans have a pop-top
• Plastic forks, spoons and knives, one set per person. I like this set of sporks from Amazon.

Entertainment

(After everyone has eaten and gone to the bathroom, then what??)

• A read-aloud book  (Should be something entertaining for the whole family with plenty of chapters. I packed Journey to the Center of the Earth and Charlotte’s Web.)
• Small Bible  (This is more for my own sanity than that of the kids!)
• Paper and pens/pencils
• Deck of cards  (Think “War”, “Go Fish” and math flashcards. If you’re stranded for very long, your kids will invent their own games!)
• Single-use digital camera  (Not only good for entertainment, but it might come in handy to document your emergency situation.)
• Small binoculars
• Sharpie  (Drawing fake mustaches on each other should keep the kids busy for a couple of minutes (make sure it’s a WASHABLE Sharpie!), and you’ll be grateful for this if you have to leave a note on your vehicle.)
• Glo-sticks  (Great value:  entertainment and emergency light in one!)
• Ibuprofen  (For me.)
• Ear plugs  (Again, for me.)

Hard-Core Survival

• Emergency blankets. These have multiple uses.
• Fleece blankets  (Cheapest way to get these?  Buy two yards of any fleece print at a fabric store.  Instant blanket. Bulky, but can be stowed beneath a seat.)
• Light sources  (Headlamps are worth their weight in gold, but also have a traditional flashlight or two.  These can be stored in a glove compartment or other niche in your vehicle.)
• The Luci light. My current favorite solar lantern because not only does it charge quickly using sunlight, but it collapses to a thin disk, which is very easy to pack.
• Rain ponchos
• Duct tape
• Hand and foot warmers  (Small, stashable)
• Rope  (Check out paracord for top quality and versatility.)
• Knife  (A cheapie pocket knife is better than nothing, but you’ll be grateful if you pack something sturdier.)
• Battery/solar-powered emergency radio in case your car battery dies
• Ground cover (I packed two large heavy-duty plastic tablecloths purchased at a dollar store.)
• Work gloves
• Extra batteries for anything battery powered in your Kit
• Umbrella
• Waterproof matches
• Whistle
• Water purification tablets
• Small portable water filter
• Mirror for signaling — this one comes with a whistle
• Small, sturdy shovel  (Check out a collapsible shovel if space is tight.)
• Two heavy duty black trash bags

Medical Emergencies

(With kids, need I say more?)

• Basic First Aid Kit from Wal-Mart, price $9
• Children’s pain relief medication and dispenser
• Adult pain relief medication. Read more about pain relief choices in this article.
• QuickClot (This product quickly stops bleeding in the case of a serious wound.)
• Benadryl
• Aspirin
• Small bottle of bleach to use for water purification and sanitize medical supplies
• Thermometer
• Sunblock
• Medical gloves and face masks
• Tweezers
• First Aid reference book. I own this one by Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy and this book by the Survival Doctor.
• Super glue
• Additional medical supplies according to the needs of your family, e.g. inhaler, a few doses of prescription meds

Miscellaneous

• Ziploc-style bags  (Just store some of your items in different sized bags so you’ll have them already packed.)
• Rubber bands
• A bungee cord or two
• A cell phone charger, unless you know that you know there’s one elsewhere in the car.
• A charged battery pack for your small electronics
• Comb/hairbrush
• Small scissors
• Sewing kit
• Cloth sheet
• A couple of compact nylon bags and a nylon backpack  (If we have to leave our vehicle, we’ll need something for carrying our supplies.)
• Money in small bills, along with plenty of change  (If nothing else, this will help greatly with bribing your children to be nice to each other!)

In addition to storing things in the plastic bin, I took a long, hard look at the Tahoe to find other nooks and crannies where I could put additional supplies. A large city map book, along with maps of neighboring states, is in a back seat pocket, and there are two Gymboree baby blankets and a couple of beach towels rolled up and stored beneath the back seat.

I also have several 2-liter bottles filled with water stashed beneath the back seat. I’m not so sure the water/plastic bottle/heat is a good combination, so when we leave the house, I always make sure we have a handful of fresh water bottles with us. However, if the stored water was all we had, we’d drink it until we could get fresh water. Even if we don’t drink the stored water, it can be used for washing grubby hands and faces.

It’s recommended to have a gallon of water on hand per person, per day. It would be pretty difficult to keep that much water stored in your vehicle.   One option, in addition to the 2-liter bottles, is a 5-gallon collapsible water bottle or two. My family has used the inexpensive Coghlan brand for years and recommend it.

What about a change of clothing for each person? It depends on how much space you have in your Kit and in your vehicle, but a clean shirt, pants, underwear and socks shouldn’t take up too much space. If you have Space Bags, a Food Saver, or something similar, clothing and items like the fleece blankets will take up even less room and can be stored beneath the back seat.

For warmth in extreme cold condition, check out this homemade heater demonstrated by Erich over at Tactical Intelligence.  If you use this, be sure to roll down a window for ventilation. This article contains many more ideas for surviving cold weatherif you are ever stranded in your vehicle.

Finally, not to be a fear-monger, but there’s always the chance you’ll be stranded far from any bathroom facilities. A 5 or 6 gallon bucket, equipped with a portable potty lid is a big improvement over squatting by the side of the road.  Be sure to include toilet bags and there are even chemicals to have on hand that keep the odors down.

You’ll be surprised by how quickly your own Kit comes together once you get started.  I was able to finish mine in just a day or two.  I actually had most everything on hand already.  You may never need this Vehicle 72 Hour Kit, but I’ll bet it will bring you and your family peace of mind just knowing it’s there.

Get the printable list!

Click here to get a printable list for your own Vehicle 72 Hour Kit!

Save

The following two tabs change content below.

• Bio
• Latest Posts

The Survival Mom

I'm the original Survival Mom and for more than 11 years, I've been helping moms worry less and enjoy their homes and families more with my commonsense prepping advice.

Latest posts by The Survival Mom (see all)

• 7 Ways to Use Summer’s Long Days to be Better Prepared - May 24, 2023
• How to Start Homeschooling: The Beginner’s Quick & Easy Guide - May 21, 2023
• 5 Deadly Habits You Need to Change Today - May 7, 2023
• Beekeeping Realities: 14 Valid Reasons to NOT Keep Bees - May 3, 2023
• 6 Simple Steps to Packing a Highly Functional Emergency Kit - April 30, 2023