Which cordless drill/driver should I buy for loosening my lug nuts at the track?
 

I want to be able to quickly loosen my lug nuts at the track and was wondering which tool/brand would have enough torque. Any experience and recommendations?

You'd probably want to go with an electric impact gun IMO. I'd stick with something in 1/2" drive, 18V+. Most of the big names make them (Snap-On, DeWalt, Bosch, Milwaukee, Makita, etc..).

You want to do the initial loosening with a breaker bar and a socket and the final tightening with a torque wrench. Therefore, you don't need a ton of power to spin the nuts quickly.

That having been said, there are many to choose from. I'd get one that will be usefull around the home. DeWalt 18v are no slouches. Ryobi seems to be selling stuff on the cheap lately and they have some good power. My favorite is Makita. I think some of these cordless drivers are getting up to the 24v range.

Thats the step I'm trying to skip with the breaker bar--loosen them quickly. Is this not a good idea? I realize I'll use the torque wrench to tighten to spec.

Also I'm hoping someone has a specific model they use and like and can recommend. There are a lot of choices--how long does the battery last? is it heavy? rugged? The things the advertisement descriptions don't tell you that only personal use can. Hopefully someone uses one for this purpose and can recommend.

I have a DeWalt 18v and am very happy with it, haven't needed a breaker bar with it. It is in my truck, I can get the model # tomorrow..

I was sold on these after I broke 2 breaker bars trying to loosen a lug bold on an old 931, after we got back to the shop, I tried the DeWalt, after a few seconds, the bolts broke free, after that I bought one for myself.

One home project was fastening some land scape timber that kept washing out with heavy rains, I drilled a few pilot holes then bolted them together, no problem after that

I have an older Snap-on 14volt 1/2" impact that will tale the nuts off my diesel dually. It has more torque than most honda's! ok maybe exagerating but I do really like it

i have a 18v milwalkee, impact. i can do 3 911's at the track, on/off on one charge. the thing is badarse

I would go Makita 18v LI-On. Tons of power, lightweight, and killer battery life. Under heavy use we havent had the best luck out of the dewalt batteries.

I have a dewalt 18v driver and personally love it. The battery lasted two tire changes on two cars. That was with an XRP battery, Dewalt also carries Li-ion batteries that last longer if need be.

A co-worker has the Makita 18v impact driver. They work exactly the same, same torque, same battery life. The Makita is smaller and lighter though. Oh, and it has a fancy led light built in for working in the dim.

http://www.makita.com/en-us/Modules/Tools/ToolDetails.aspx?ID=24033
25 min charge time and 3.7 pounds. This is the one I guarantee.

DeWalt unit works fine, no doubt the other big names are as good.
btw, pm'd you Jon.
Jim