Hopwood Park services
Welcome Break · J2 · off the junction roundabout, both directions · open 24 hours
M42 Birmingham eastern orbital · National Highways
Mobile tyre fitting
Mobile tyre fitting
on the M42.
Between J3a and J7 the M42 hard shoulder doubles as a running lane when the gantries open it. Stop in an orange emergency area or obey the overhead signs, and where neither is possible, the Highway Code applies. No fitter of ours works on a hard shoulder or in an emergency area. Still steering? Take the next slip. If not, behind the barrier, 999.
★★★★★5.0 on Google from 151 reviews·Arrival time confirmed before we set off
About the M42
Where breakdowns happen
Where breakdowns happen
and where we can meet you.
The M42 wraps around the south and east of Birmingham from the M5 at J4a to the A42 beyond Tamworth, collecting the M40 at J3a, the airport and NEC at J6, and the M6 near Coleshill. That means show-day queues, airport traffic with no idea where the locking key is, and lorries for the M1. J3a to J7 has a part-time hard shoulder lane. The refuges are Hopwood Park at J2, the NEC car parks at J6 and Tamworth services at J10.
- No hard shoulder: J3a to J7 (hard shoulder sometimes open to traffic: use an emergency area or follow the gantry signs)
- Road operator: National Highways (0300 123 5000)
Before anything else
Get off the live carriageway
If you can still control the car safely, leave at the next junction or pull into a services. If not, use the hard shoulder or an emergency area rather than a running lane, but never as a place to wait for a fitter: nobody can change a wheel there.
If you cannot move
Put your hazards on. If it is safe, get everyone out on the passenger side and behind the barrier; if not, stay in with seatbelts on. Call 999 if you are in a live lane or in danger. Otherwise call the road operator (details below) and get moved to a place of safety. On a smart motorway use an emergency area and the orange SOS phone, and do not rejoin until the signals are set.
Then call us
Once you are somewhere a van can park beside you, call 07473 720871 with the road, the direction, the nearest junction or marker post and the tyre size. We confirm the price and a realistic time before we set off.
Junction by junction
Where on the M42 we can meet you.
The usual arrival band from our Brent Cross base; we confirm a real time when you call.
| Junction | Serves | Nearest safe stop | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|
| J1 | A38 Bromsgrove, Lickey End | Bromsgrove town centre car parks via the A38 | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J2 | A441 Redditch, Alvechurch, Hopwood Park services | Hopwood Park services on the junction roundabout | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J3 | A435 Redditch, Alcester, Birmingham south via Wythall | Wythall or the retail units along the A435 towards Redditch | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J3a | M40 J16 for London and Oxford | Motorway to motorway only; continue to J4 for Shirley or drop back to M40 J15 for Warwick | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J4 | A34 Shirley, Monkspath, Stratford-upon-Avon | Shirley retail parks and supermarket car parks on the A34 Stratford Road | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J5 | A41 Solihull, Knowle, Warwick | Solihull town centre car parks or Knowle village | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J6 | A45 Birmingham Airport, NEC, Coventry | Airport and NEC car parks, or the hotel car parks around the airport approach | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J7 | M6 J4 for Birmingham and the north, Coleshill | Coleshill town via the A446, or the Hams Hall industrial roads | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J7a | M6 Toll link | No stop here; continue to J9 for Coleshill and Curdworth | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J8 | M6 J4a for Coventry and the south | Motorway to motorway only; use J9 for Coleshill or M6 J4 for Castle Bromwich | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J9 | A446 Coleshill, Lichfield, A4097 Kingsbury, Curdworth | Curdworth village or the retail and trading estates around Coleshill | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J10 | A5 Tamworth, Nuneaton, Tamworth services | Tamworth services at the junction, or Ventura Park retail park in Tamworth | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
| J11 | A444 Burton upon Trent, Twycross; the road continues north as the A42 | Village roads at Appleby Magna or Twycross, well clear of the junction | A long run from London: allow 2 to 3 hours |
Services on the M42
Tamworth services
Moto · J10 · off the junction roundabout, both directions · open 24 hours
Off the road
What can we do once you are off the M42?
From J1 to the A42 beyond J11, we fit and repair tyres off the M42: NEC car parks, if permitted, Hopwood Park or Tamworth services.
Puncture repair once you are off the M42
Show traffic makes the M42 around J6 a place where slow punctures get found out, usually in the queue for the NEC car parks, where allowed, which suits us because the car is already heading somewhere workable. There we check the hole against BS AU 159: central tread, no more than 6 mm, no sign of running soft. Pass, and it's patch-plugged.
How a mobile puncture repair is done →Burst and damaged tyre replacement on the M42
Losing a tyre between J3a and J7 is the worst case here: the hard shoulder may be carrying traffic and is no place to stop. Steer straight and use an emergency area or follow the gantry signs. Lift the SOS phone or ring National Highways on 0300 123 5000 and never drive back out unaided.
What to do after a burst tyre →Locking wheel nut removal at the services
Fleet cars and hire cars fill the M42 on weekdays, and neither usually carries a locking nut key where the driver can find it. Do not let anyone attack the nut with a chisel; a damaged alloy costs far more than the removal. We take locking nuts off cleanly at the NEC, Birmingham Airport, Solihull or Tamworth services.
How locking wheel nuts are removed →24 hour cover for the M42
Arena concerts, late flights and early shifts at the business parks around J6 keep the M42 moving through the night. A tyre that gives up at two in the morning means a long wait for anywhere in Solihull to open, but our line is answered at any hour and the fitter comes to wherever the car stands, off the motorway.
How our 24 hour tyre service works →Every tyre service on the M42
Motorway advice follows the Highway Code (motorway rules 253 to 273 and breakdown rules 274 to 287) and National Highways breakdown guidance; repairs follow BS AU 159, the British Standard for tyre repairs.
Real situations
Stopped on the M42: what happens next.
J6 NEC: pressure warning in the car park queue
The tyre light comes on as show traffic crawls off J6 towards the NEC. Follow the queue in rather than stopping on the slip road; the exhibition car parks are flat. Send the row.
Hopwood Park at J2: blowout coming north from Bromsgrove
A front tyre bursts on the climb between J1 and J2 with a caravan behind. Hold the steering, lose speed without stamping on the brake, and if the outfit still rolls take J2 into Hopwood Park.
J4 Shirley: seized locking nut on a fleet car
The pool car has a puncture and the locking nut rounds the moment the socket turns. Come off at J4 onto the A34 Stratford Road and use a Shirley retail park; the nut is drawn out cleanly.
M42 FAQs
Questions drivers on the M42 ask.
Where is the M42 hard shoulder sometimes open to traffic?
From J3a where the M40 joins, past Shirley, Solihull and the airport, to J7 at the M6. There the hard shoulder is sometimes a lane: take an emergency area or obey the gantry, else the Highway Code. Stopped in one, wait for a red X.
My tyre is going down on the M42 near the NEC. Where should I go?
Take J6 and follow the signs to the NEC or Birmingham Airport car parks rather than stopping on the slip road. Both are large and flat, and the hotels along the airport approach have car parks too. Send the car park name and row once stationary.
Can you meet me at Hopwood Park services?
Hopwood Park sits on the roundabout at J2 and is reachable from either direction, so it suits drivers coming up from Bromsgrove as much as those heading south from the M40. Park away from the pumps and coach bays and tell us the registration and colour.
Will you come to the M6 Toll junction at J7a if I stop there?
There is nowhere to stop safely at J7a; it is a motorway-to-motorway link with no car parks. Carry on to J9 for Curdworth and Coleshill, or once on the toll road continue to T2 for Sutton Coldfield or Norton Canes.
How long does it take you to reach Solihull or Tamworth from London?
From Brent Cross, J4 to J6 around Shirley, Solihull and the airport is a drive of well over two hours off peak, and Tamworth services at J10 is further. We do not have a Midlands van, so you get the real figure on the call.
Is it safe to change my own wheel in an emergency area on the M42?
No. Emergency areas are for getting out of live traffic, not for working on the car: short, close to a running lane and unprotected beyond the barrier. Report in on the SOS phone, get out on the far side and wait for recovery.
Do you cover the A42 north of J11 as well?
Our M42 coverage runs from Bromsgrove at J1 to Tamworth and J11, where the motorway becomes the A42. Beyond that towards Ashby and Nottingham is outside what we can honestly serve from London. Heading south on the A42, aim for Tamworth services at J10.
Is same day fitting realistic at Solihull or Knowle if I leave the M42 at J5?
For the Solihull end of the M42 it may be possible, as far as the diary and stock allow, and the van comes from London, not a local depot. Park in a Solihull town centre car park or Knowle village and ring 07473 720871.
The car has died between J3a and J7 on the M42. Who do I ring first?
Its hard shoulder is sometimes a lane: use an emergency area or the gantries; a stopped car needs recovery first. Use the orange SOS phone, or 0300 123 5000 for National Highways. Ask recovery to drop you at the NEC or a Solihull car park.
Google reviews
Recent Google reviews.
Rated 5.0 from 151 Google reviews.
★★★★★
"Faultless experience. Great communication, attitude and service."
BCBen CorrieGoogle review
★★★★★
"Good communication, excellent work and takes the initiative. Happy to go the extra mile, highly recommended if you're in a tyre-related bit of bother!"
DFDavid FordhamGoogle review
★★★★★
"A pleasure having them come down and save me. Big shout out to Hiwad, really responsive, recommend him to anybody."
AMAdam MorrisGoogle review
Along the M42
Which towns along the M42 do we cover?
Bromsgrove →Redditch →Alcester →Shirley →Solihull →Knowle →Castle Bromwich →Sutton Coldfield →Tamworth →
Roads it meets
Guides
What to do after a motorway breakdown →Tyre breakdown on the M25 →What to do in a tyre blowout →Tyre blowout: causes and prevention →Can a puncture be repaired? →Slow puncture: causes and fixes →
Written and checked by Hiwad Yarkhil, founder of Rescue Tyres LTD, Unit 9 Adrian Avenue, Brent Cross, London NW2 1LX. Updated 2026-10-08.
M42 · 24 hours
Off the road and waiting? Call now.
Once the car is off the M42 and parked, Hopwood Park to Tamworth services, we bring the right tyre.