When you buy a brand new car one of the first things you learn is that the price of the car is merely the first, albeit largest, number on the invoice. Swayed by a salesman or being swept up in the excitement of buying a new car, whatever it may be, most of us walk out of that dealership with at least a few things we didn’t need or at least didn’t plan on buying when we went in.

On top of the usual extras like fancy floor mats, rear view cameras or LED driving lights the list of optional kit available when you purchase a Nissan GT-R (in Japan at least) is interesting. Today we’re looking at just one of these items, the Snap-On tool kit option.

There are officially two Snap On toolkit part numbers from Nissan for the GT-R. One like the one we have here and another limited edition run of 1000 created as a celebration of the launch of the Nissan GT-R which were available to the first 1000 Nissan GT-R purchasers inside Japan… As long as they paid for it… The kits are different so lets save that one for another time.

This kit is most likely the one that will make it to the options list for the GT-R globally so US/Europe/Australian readers will probably be keen to know; is this a box to tick?

Continue reading for the in-depth look and hi-res photo gallery …

The kit comes in an attractive enough packaging if not slightly cheap feeling. This kind of packaging could easily be found in any car toolkit from the cheapest car Nissan make and up so it’s a bit concerning that their flagship model doesn’t attract leather or at least some fake carbon somewhere.

The kit is compact and well packed however so it fits easily in the toolkit storage area and the tools aren’t going to get loose.

Opening the kit up you’re first drawn to the GT-R logo’s on everything which is a nice touch. Next thing you’re probably going to think is “is that it”? Well yes it is but it’s not all bad news.

So the kit comes with a small but adequate compliment of tools.

• Stubby phillips head screwdriver
• Adjustable pliers
• Standard sized reversible screwdriver (1/4″ flat head and number 2 phillips head)
• 8mm – 10mm ring spanner
• 12mm – 14mm ring spanner
• LED flashlight
• White cotton gloves

Let’s take a close look at the tools:

Stubby Screwdriver

The handle is textured black plastic that for some reason looks like wood grain. It’s very light probably due to this material. Unfortunately this results in a fairly cheap feeling although the tool looks solid in the flesh.

Adjustable Pliers

These look cheap and will scratch easily. They would do the job though and I wouldn’t expect them to break.

Screwdriver

The screwdriver has the same handle finish as the stubby screwdriver but this time has a reversible driver. One end is 1/4″ flathead and the other number 2 phillips head.

8mm – 10mm and 12mm – 14mm Ring Spanners

These are great. They look good and feel solid. The only complaint I have is that they’re not ratcheting but good solid ring spanners are always necessary.

LED Torch

This is actually kinda cool and shines quite brightly. It’s quite a solid little thing too and is just the thing to help locate that nut that fell through the engine bay onto the ground below.

White Cotton Gloves

Very Japanese this. You will often see these used when working on cars doing anything from changing a tire to rebuilding the bottom end. Usefulness? Well if you’re comfortable using them I guess they would keep you from bringing excessive dirt back into your car after changing a tire or something.

Conclusions

These tools are cool. They are useful and they are attractive for the most part. They are also extremely overpriced. The Nissan dealerships will charge over 60,000 yen for this toolkit which is over $600 USD. What these will sell for in the US dealerships is unknown but it’s hard to see anyone paying more than $100 – $200.

The limited edition Snap On toolkit is even MORE ridiculously priced at over 150,000 yen or $1500 USD. It adds a socket set with extension and ratchet, a cheap looking ratcheting screwdriver. The limited sets are numbered out of 1000.

So to conclude, no this is not a box to tick at the current price. I would personally be tempted if the price was more in the $100 – $150 bracket.