The best torches to keep in the car 2025

Undoubtedly one of the more powerful torches on this list, the Fenix E28R V2.0 has 1,700 lumens as well as up to 260-hours of battery life between charges. What's more? It's even heavily waterproof with an IP68 rating - meaning you can drop it in a puddle and not worry about it breaking.

It's durable, too. Fenix says the torch is made from aircraft-grade aluminium and designed to withstand a big beating if it's taken on a big adventure. It's, therefore, the perfect torch if you ever want to go camping.

This Maglite has a bit of heritage to it. Not only has the company been around since 1955 and is renowned for its reliability, but they're also the signature torches for American police officers to use both on duty and on-screen in movies.

In many ways, it's the classic Chevrolet Impala of the torch world. It boasts a decent amount of style and heritage while also being incredibly capable. It has 625 lumens and can reach up to 406-metres in distance. It's run time is up to 16-hours on High Beam mode and 117-hours on Eco mode. It even comes stored in a box for that extra bit of occasion.

Ledlenser offers a wide range of torches to suit different price points and requirements. The P7R sits nearer to the top of the spectrum and offers 1,000 lumens with up to 210-metres of range. It can be charged using a floating charging mount, which is included in this set.

It can last for up to 40 hours on a charge and has an IPX4 water-resistant rating, meaning it's well protected from splashes, but not to the level of being submerged in water.

Striking an ideal balance between build quality and value, NEBO's Slyde King 2K takes the prize. It has five light modes, with the brightest throwing a beam of light at a distance of over 400 metres. That's all great but what makes this torch so fantastic is that you can slide back the handle to create a work light, you can then stick the torch to a metal surface thanks to its magnetic base - perfect for changing a wheel or illuminating an engine bay, for example. It feels solid, too, with an aluminium body.

If you're looking for a torch that's extra compact and still powerful enough, the NEBO Slim+ should tick a lot of your boxes. Not only is it rechargeable via USB-C, but it's also capable of lasting for up to 10-hours between charges.

It boasts 250 lumens and also has a magnetic base. This is brilliant for when you want to hang it somewhere to allow a bit of light into your workspace. This can include the engine bay of a car to illuminate the bits you're working on.

Half the output of the NEBO torch above yet more than twice the price, what gives? While the NEBO is well-made, the German Ledlenser is brilliant. On top of the impressive build quality, the MT10 has Ledlenser's Advanced Focusing Optics lets you switch between flood and focus beams instantly.

Moreover, it seems to make more efficient use of each lumen, giving a better quality, clearer beam than what you get in cheaper torches with the same brightness. The MT10 has a long run time and a seven-year warranty, too.

If you're looking for a work light that's ideal for shining the underside of a vehicle, you don't necessarily need to look further than NEBO's Big Larry 3. With 600 lumens on tap and a magnetic base, this is an ideal torch for the home mechanic.

In terms of battery life, it can last up to 40-hours if you use the lowest light setting. But even at the highest setting at 600 lumens, it can still last up to 2.5 hours between recharging.

For the inevitable and painfully overused car analogy, this is the TVR of the torch world in terms of power-to-weight ratio, but luckily, it's much more reliable. The 2000-lumen headline concerns the torch's Turbo mode, which is a setting that's all the more appealing to us petrolheads.

For the most part, you use a bit less than that, depending on the mode. Like the Slyde King 2K above, it has a handy magnetic base but is also has a neat wireless charging pad.

If you want something a little more heavy duty, Worx is very happy to oblige with its WX027.9 cordless flashlight. It's battery mount fits all cordless Worx batteries from 2.0Ah to 4.0Ah units and is flexible to suit a number of different tasks.

It telescopically extends out to become a lamp, which is very useful for a bit of night desk work as well as camping and other jobs. It also pivots, so you can point the light in the desired direction. Worx calls it a 4-in-1 flashlight, but we can see many more scenarios where it would be useful.

Ryobi's direct competitor to the Worx torch consists of the RLP4-120G. That's quite a mouthful of a name, but the torch itself is an intriguingly capable unit. For one thing, the battery and charging cable are included. It doesn't double as a lamp, but the Ryobi torch pivots around, so you can rest it with the light pointing in your desired direction.

Interestingly, it also has a laser pointer. It may not be as powerful as other torches on this list, but it holds its own being a good value, durable work torch which just so happens to have a laser built-in.