A Spokane-area man has created a tool that he says can be used for five-different functions, ranging from a small snow shovel to a traction device in bad weather.

Kevin Klier of Colbert, Wash., says both Napa Auto Parts and O’Reilly Auto Parts have agreed to carry his Spare Me 5-1 Rescue Tool on their shelves this fall. He also says he has had preliminary talks with Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. about the device as well.

His initial inventory will include 1,500 Spare Me units available by no later than September, Klier says. 

For nearly two years, Klier, who is 60, has been working on the Spare Me 5-1 Rescue Tool. The initial retail price will be between $15 and $25, Klier says.

“It’s designed to be a rescue tool that every driver in North America should own,” asserts Klier, calling it the Swiss Army Knife for your car’s trunk.

Klier has created a device that is just a little more than 18 inches long. It has a five-inch wide shovel to help remove debris, snow, and mud from around tires. The shovel end can then be flipped 180-degrees and used as an ice scraper on windows during bad weather, Klier says.

A flat, grooved, metal surface on the reverse side of the shovel is designed to provide traction on slick or deep surfaces by wedging it under a tire, Klier says. The Spare Me has an opening at the opposite end that’s crafted to fit standard-sized lug nuts. It can be used for added leverage when changing tires. Finally, the Spare Me 5-1 Rescue Tool is sturdy enough to serve as a tire lift when replacing a flat tire, Klier says.

“The tool has gone through a development process that now has it ready for market,” Klier says. 

Jeff Fisher, of Spokane Valley-based Evergreen Fabrication Inc., created three different versions of the Spare Me 5-1 Rescue Tool before Klier settled on the final version, for which he says he has received provisional patent status. Proto Technologies Inc., in Liberty Lake, also provided design and assistance on the project.

Todd Ray at Dana-Saad Co. in Spokane Valley was the project’s engineer for the molding process, and Dana-Saad is manufacturing the Spare Me 5-1 Tool.

Klier’s full-time job is serving as a regional manager for MBCI, metal roof and wall systems company based in Houston. A Midwest native, Klier says he’s always wanted to have a device like the Spare Me 5-1 Rescue Tool. 

“It just seems more convenient than having a bunch of these kinds of tools bouncing around in the trunk,” he says.