seeking advice on cordless impact wrench
 

Ok, I am going to give myself a Makita cordless impact wrench for Christmas, and yesterday bought in Home Depot a combination set that has a drill, an impact wrench, two batteries and the charger, however upon closer inspection the impact wrench has 1400 IN/LBS which is about 110 FT/LBS (not really a lot)…

The two options I am considering are the Model XWT08M that has about 750 FT/LBS and the Model XWT04M that has about 375 FT/LBS (the price between them is about $45), but very similar on size and weight...

Right now I have an electric (cheap HF) impact wrench that is dying and wanted to get a Makita, but wanted to ask the question about how much torque you really need, and hopefully someone here that has these type of cordless wrenches can share their comments.

Basically how often do you really need a high torque wrench..? Should a lower capacity (smaller and lighter) perhaps be a better choice?

Thank you in advance!

The main application for an Impact Wrench with a high torque capacity is to free rusted parts easily. It is a poor choice to tighten things .You will recall this only after you break/strip a few valuable items?
Do you need torque or impact and in what combo? The HF 'Earthquake" tool is excellent. For example the rear axle nuts - amazing. BUT 2 precautions:
Spray with Kroil for days before and make really sure you set the rotation in the correct direction !!
A relatively weak ,cordless impact wrench is useful for spinning on wheel nuts/bolts for example

the main purpose of the impact wrench would be able to work faster, I already have torque wrenches for that purpose.

Speed -O.K.
The next question is the battery system ,not the tool.
Once you buy ,you are 'stuck' with that system for other cordless tools. In my case I have multiple trades so I needed a brand with one affordable battery system(" One+")and a huge variety of O.K. tools. I do not need the fancy German tools - they get stolen and break just as easily when dropped. So I bought Ryobi 18v . Batteries are cheap and in multiple capacities of the same Voltage.Chargers are interchangeable.Easy to get more tools/batteries anywhere.
I also have Ridgid, Makita and even a bunch of Black & Decker.All duds by comparison. But Ryobi struck the right balance of selection and economy for me. No, they are not the absolute best but well up to my skill level & wallet.My favorite is a right angle drill/driver 18v with light P241

Makita, Bosch, and Dewalt make decent, middle of the road battery tools. Find the one with the best deals and variety of tools run by the same battery. Batteries are very expensive and once you have chosen, you are rather locked in to that brand. Watch for sales!

My .02...
I bought a 18V Kobalt impact from Lowes about 3-4 years ago. Tons of torque and the batteries seem to last forever...Really! I've rarely had to recharge and the batteries seem to stay fresh during long periods of inactivity.

Can't remember the price as I found it on sale and used a 10% off coupon. I want to say it was around $140 or $150.

Best part is I always pack the thing (along with appropriate socket when I travel. I've actually had two occasions to use it roadside and it made the whole flat tire experience a lot easier to deal with.

I use my battery-powered impact wrench all of the time for lug nuts plus its great for hard to remove bolts (like the pulley bolt on a BMW alternator where new alternator didn't come with a pulley and I definitely needed an impact wrench to remove the bolt to swap the pulley from the old alternator to the new one). You never know when you'll need it, but if you do its often the only tool that can get the job done.

Mine is a Craftsman 19.2v C3 Impact Driver, about $120. Very handy to have around the shop.

I have a 18V +One Ryobi impact with 300ftlbs of torque and 3000 IPM that I have used for the last couple of years. It has been a life saver on trips to Pick-n-Pull and for jobs around the garage. I have zero complaints about it. There are other impacts with better specs and worth more but this impact from Home Depot has earned what I paid for it five times over in sweat equity saved.

You have a uniquely powerful tool ? I hope you don't use it fully on any bolt on your Boxster.300 ft lbs +impact that is brutal !
If you check Ryobi ,it is 133 ft.pounds.(Plenty!) aka 1600 inch pounds
https://www.ryobitools.com/products/details/18v-one-plus-impact-driver

That isn't the impact wrench I was referring to but I do have that one as well :) . I know the research monsters are quick to check numbers, so I should have posted a picture and model number to avoid the confusion lol Without searching HD here's a similar one I was referring to..my apologies if there was any confusion in my response for the OP or anyone following/replying to the thread.

Ryobi ONE+ 18-Volt Impact Wrench Kit-P1890 - The Home Depot

O.K. so tell us which 18v Ryob i impact wrench with 300 ft.lbs of torque you were referring to ?
BTW, 300 ft pounds + impact will destroy most fasteners on a Boxster so be careful with it or buy a lot of Helicoils.

My, my you are a determined one. As, I know you have the capability to search and search is our friend.... OP was searching for an impact wrench, I only informed OP of the one I have, brand name and specs from memory. For what the OP will be using the impact wrench for...I never said it was a driver, you politely assumed and chased the white whale for no apparent reason. I'm not a keyboard warrior about who knows more about these cars as I am a "novice" but not novice enough to destroy what I'm working on. In the military we had a saying "right tool for the job". If this impact doesn't fit into the OP's garage plans, I am not offended but for my garage plans it has been a life saver. Lykke til

Different tools for different jobs.

This is the tool my brother has 170 ft lbs, 18V lithium. It works great for most automotive applications in wheels, brakes, suspension etc. Great batteries and not too bulky. If you need this much tool I recommend it.
https://www.amazon.com/Makita-XWT05Z-Lithium-Ion-Cordless-2-Inch/dp/B00OA9ZZHK/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1482131660&sr=8-5&keywords=makita+impact+1%2F2

I have a lighter more general purpose cordless driver that I use every day on the job and it doubles as my automotive speed wrench. What it gives up in max torque it gains in getting into tight places and allows me to use it overhead without fatigue. For wheels I usually start and finish all lugs with a hand tool while using the cordless primarily for speed. I can change 4 wheels and check brake pads in 20 minutes pretty consistently. I don't need my cordless to remove heavily rusted bolts because I have a breaker bar with 4' galvanized helper for the heavy stuff I hit every 5 years or so. I don't live in the rust belt so heavy rusted bolts are damn rare. This is my favorite tool if you choose speed and compact daily use over heavy duty.

Makita 12-Volt Max Lithium-Ion Cordless Impact Driver Kit-DT01W - The Home Depot

Cordless Impact
 

This is the one that I have Milwaukee M18 Fuel .
https://www.blackrocktools.com/milwaukee-m18-fuel-1-2-high-torque-impact-wrench-kit-w-friction-ring-2763-22.html[/url]

This is the one that I have.
https://www.blackrocktools.com/milwaukee-m18-fuel-1-2-high-torque-impact-wrench-kit-w-friction-ring-2763-22.html

I have the Ryobi 3 speed one
Ryobi ONE+ 18-Volt 1/2 in. Cordless 3-Speed Impact Wrench (Tool-Only)-P261 - The Home Depot

I have a bunch of other Ryobi cordless tools, so it made sense to get their impact wrench. One really handy tool Ryobi has is an infiltrator. It is great at thetrack or AX for adjusting tire pressure.
Ryobi 18-Volt ONE+ Dual Function Inflator/Deflator (Tool Only)-P731 - The Home Depot

HD often has sales on Ryobi and the bundles they sell are usually a great deal on sale

I like it and mainly got it for lug nuts. I found it works great for that. I set it on 2 to snug the nuts which puts them around 80 ftlbs and then use a torque wrench to tighten them to 96 ftlbs

YMMV

I guess it really comes down to what you will be using the impact wrench for and if you have other cordless tools

The other point in favor of Ryobi is that they have consistently stuck with the same format and connectors for each generation of batteries.So old tools that were originally sold with NiCads still work with newer Li-On batteries. By contrast B&D have frequently changed theirs and there is no compatibility so you get stuck with a good old tool, for which modern batteries are unavailable.
So if you are building a collection of cordless tools for multiple trades, Ryobi is a smart,inexpensive choice.
For the Boxster , a 'weak' cordless tool is surprisingly useful, as I mentioned. It will spin on the fastener finger-tight without risk of stripping threads.Then use a torque wrench and consider using Wicking grade Thread Locker afterwards. This is a big issue because the Porsche has many,many blind threaded holes in aluminum alloy castings- some torque values are less than 20ft lbs. Jake's excellent reference book has more info.

1+ on the Ryobi 18V cordless tools!

I have the 1/2" impact wrench. It does most things, but is not the most powerful on the market. But it saves me lots of time and probably a few busted bolts and knuckles.

1/4" impact wrench is great when you have lots of smaller connectors to remove and replace. I constantly use an adapter to put 3/8" sockets and torxs bits on it for lots of work.

I have found their reciprocating saw to be the most useful tool every made! And it is damn handy for car work too.

The inflator pump is really handy too!

Beyond that, I have a number of their tools that all used the same battery. They have a sale going on right now. Picked up a nice drill for my Daughter for school and got myself a free angle grinder in the process! :)

Here is what you need
 

But only for removing bolts or breaking bolts, nuts or anything you can get a strong socket on

FREE SHIPPING — Milwaukee M18 FUEL 3/4in. High Torque Impact Wrench with Friction Ring Kit — Two M18 RedLithium XC 4.0 Batteries, Model# 2764-22 | Cordless Impact Wrenches| Northern Tool + Equipment

Actual automotive uses for impact tools are quite rare.

Basically, their real use is loosening fasteners where there is difficulty keeping the whole thing from just spinning rather than the nut actually backing off. Steering wheels, shocks, ball joints, etc. That is, you need impacts because steady force hardly works. And where impact damage to the fastener isn't visible.

For home use, you're not attempting 12-second NASCAR pit stops and hopefully you just don't want to make noise as a macho thing. They are frankly a tool of extremely limited use and money would be better spent on higher quality tools ... which aren't found at Home Depot and other dime stores.