Rescue Tyres fits, repairs and replaces car and van tyres at the car: on a driveway, a side street or a car park where the owner allows it. West Bromwich is about 99 miles in a straight line from our only base at Brent Cross, NW2 (further by road). We have no base or van stationed nearby. Call and we will tell you straight away whether we can take the job; if we can, the arrival time is given on the call. If the car is unsafe where it is, your breakdown cover may reach you sooner. B70, B71: Carters Green, Greets Green, Guns Village, Lyng
Puncture, blowout or worn tyres? We come to the car.
A job this far from our base is a long trip for one of our vans, so whether we can take it depends on the diary that day. We would rather tell you no on the first call than keep you waiting, so you can ring someone closer straight away.
Retail parks, Metro car parks and the A41
The fitter needs a safe, level spot beside the car with room to jack it up: a driveway, a quiet side street, a parking bay or a car park where the owner allows it. Elsewhere:
Retail parks such as Great Bridge Retail Park and Broadwalk Retail Park, and business sites such as the Tunnel Industrial Estate, are private ground. Private car parks need the permission of whoever runs them before we can work there.
Car parks at railway and Metro stations, at Sandwell General Hospital and at the New Square shopping centre are private ground too, so the same applies.
Multi-storey and barrier car parks can have a height limit the van cannot pass. Tell us if the car is inside one.
Fast dual carriageways such as the A41 Expressway and the Black Country New Road are no place to change a wheel. If you can do it safely, leave the main road and stop in a side street.
The M5 at junction 1 and the M6 at junction 7 are both close to the town. We never work on the carriageway of a motorway or main road, on a hard shoulder, in a smart motorway emergency area or on a slip road. Once the car is safely off the road, call us.
A nail or screw in the main tread can often be repaired. The fitter takes the tyre off the rim and looks at the inside before deciding, because a small hole can hide bigger damage.
Damage in the shoulder or the sidewall, or a tyre that has been driven flat, cannot be repaired safely, and you are told why before anything else is done.
Tyre taken off the rim and inspected inside
Repair considered only for small holes in the central tread area
A burst tyre, a bulge in the sidewall or a deep cut from a kerb or pothole cannot be repaired. The fitter replaces the tyre at the car and checks the wheel while the tyre is off.
Send a photo of the damage and the size on the sidewall so the right replacement can be found.
Damaged tyre removed and the rim checked for bends or cracks
Replacement matched to the size, load index and speed rating
New tyre balanced on the wheel before it goes back on
A vibration through the steering wheel at a steady speed is often a wheel out of balance. Balancing spins the wheel and adds small weights to even it out.
A wheel is balanced each time a new tyre is fitted to it, and it can be done on its own when a weight has come off.
Wheel removed and spun on a balancer
Weights fitted to the rim to even out the balance
Wheel back on with the nuts torqued to the maker's figure
We fit tyres only. We do not sell part-worn tyres and we do not do batteries, brakes or wheel alignment.
Worth knowing
Tyre know-how before you call
New tyres
New tyres fitted where the car is parked
Reading the size on your sidewall
The size is the string of figures on the tyre wall, such as 205/55 R16 91V. The first number is the width in millimetres, the second is the sidewall height as a percentage of that width, R means radial construction and the last number is the rim diameter in inches.
The part after the size, 91V in that example, is the load index and speed rating. A replacement should match or exceed both, and the two tyres on one axle should be the same size and pattern.
Signs a tyre is due for replacing
Tread close to the legal minimum is the obvious sign, but it is not the only one. Fine cracks that open up when you squeeze the sidewall, a bulge, exposed cords or uneven wear on one edge all mean the tyre should be looked at.
Tyre safety groups suggest thinking about new tyres at 3 mm of tread, because stopping distances in the wet grow noticeably below that depth.
Puncture repair
How a puncture is judged and repaired
What BS AU 159 allows
BS AU 159 is the British Standard for repairing car and van tyres. For car tyres it allows a repair only in the central part of the tread, known as the minor repair area, and only for damage up to 6 mm across. How wide that area is depends on the tyre.
Anything in the outer shoulder or the sidewall is outside the repair zone, because those parts flex too much for a patch to hold. Two repairs too close together, or an earlier poor repair, also rule a repair out.
Repair or replace: how the decision is made
Nobody can promise a repair over the phone. The decision is made with the tyre off the rim, against the limits in the standard and the tyre maker's own guidance.
If the damage rules out a repair, you are told why before anything else is done. Common sizes are often on the van; other sizes are sourced for the job.
Local detail
Looking for tyres in the town?
If you can drive the car safely to a tyre shop nearby, that may well suit you better, given how far we travel. A mobile fitter is most useful when the car cannot be driven, or when you would rather have the work done where the car is parked.
Local detail
Finding the car: B70, B71 and the Metro stops
West Bromwich is in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, and its addresses are in the B70 and B71 postcode districts. The area takes in the town centre, Carters Green, Greets Green, Guns Village, Lyng, Hateley Heath, Hill Top, Stone Cross, Charlemont and the edge of Great Bridge, and the Hall Green that sits on this side of the borough rather than the Birmingham district of the same name.
The Metro runs through the area, with stops at West Bromwich Central, Dartmouth Street, Dudley Street Guns Village, Lodge Road and Black Lake. Naming the nearest stop or main road, such as All Saints Way or Newton Road, is a simple way to tell us where the car is if you do not know the postcode. Dartmouth Park and Sandwell College are useful landmarks too.
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Pricing
How the price is worked out
There is no fixed figure that suits every car, so the price is built from a few things and told to you before you decide.
The price is given on the call. The price is the same at any hour. Asking for a price does not commit you to anything.
When you compare prices, compare like with like: the same brand and pattern, the same load index and speed rating, and whether balancing and a new valve are part of the job.
What goes into the price
The tyre itself: size, load index, speed rating and whether it is a run-flat
The tier you choose: budget, mid-range or premium
The work: a repair, one new tyre or several, and any locking nut removal
The location of the car
Tyres and the law
Tread depth, tyre age and the law
The legal tread limit
Cars and light vans need at least 1.6 mm of tread across the central three-quarters of the tyre, around the whole circumference.
For a car, each illegal tyre can bring a fine of up to £2,500 and three penalty points; the maximum fine for a van is higher.
The 20p test
Push a 20p coin into the main grooves at several points around the tyre. If the outer band of the coin is visible, the tread may be close to the limit and should be measured properly.
Other defects that make a tyre illegal
A tyre is also illegal with a cut longer than 25 mm or a tenth of its section width, whichever is greater, that reaches the ply or cord, a lump or bulge, exposed cords, or the wrong size or type for the car.
How old is your tyre?
The last four digits of the DOT code on the sidewall give the week and year of manufacture, so 2319 means the 23rd week of 2019.
Rubber hardens and cracks with age even on a tyre that has done few miles, and many tyre makers advise replacing any tyre ten years old or more.
Sources: the tread and tyre rules are in the Highway Code, annex 6 on GOV.UK; TyreSafe publishes tyre safety advice.
Staying safe
Staying safe until the job is done
While you wait for the fitter
Stop somewhere off the main flow of traffic, switch on the hazard lights and, if you have one, put on a high-visibility vest.
Get everyone out on the side away from the traffic and wait behind a barrier, on a pavement or well back from the road.
If the tyre may still be repairable, say so before using a sealant can, and leave any nail or screw where it is.
Keep your phone on and charged, and tell us about anything that makes the spot hard to find.
Tyre failure on a motorway
If the car can still be driven safely, carry on to the next exit or services and stop away from traffic before you call.
If you cannot leave, use an emergency area or the hard shoulder, stop well to the left and, if it is safe to, get out on the side away from the traffic.
Wait behind the barrier, not in the car. Rule 277 of the Highway Code says not to attempt any repairs on your vehicle on a motorway.
Call 999 if you are in danger or stuck in a live lane. Otherwise National Highways can be reached on 0300 123 5000.
West Bromwich FAQs
Questions drivers ask
Can you work near The Hawthorns on a match day?
The Hawthorns is West Bromwich Albion's ground, and the roads around it are busy on match days. Tell us on the call that it is a match day and exactly where the car is, and we will say whether the fitter can get to it and work there safely.
Which main roads near here can the fitter not work on?
If the car stops on one of the roads below and can still be driven safely, leave at the next exit or turn into a side street, then call:
M5 J1
A41 Expressway and Black Country New Road
A4031 All Saints Way
A4041 Newton Road
M6 J7
Can I bring the car to you instead?
No. Our base at Brent Cross holds tyres only and is not a walk-in garage. Every fitting and repair is done at the car.
Can you fit tyres at my workplace?
Yes, if the car is parked legally on the street, or in a car park where the owner or site manager allows the work. Tell us where the car is. If the car has locking wheel nuts, have the key ready.
How do I find my tyre size?
Look on the side of the tyre for a code like 205/55 R16 91V. The handbook has it too, and many cars show it on a sticker inside the driver's door or the fuel flap.
Should I buy budget or premium tyres?
It depends on the car and how it is used. The tyre label's wet grip grade is a fair way to compare tyres in the same size.
Can a puncture in the sidewall be repaired?
No. The sidewall flexes as the tyre turns, so damage there always means a new tyre.
Will the wheel be damaged too?
It can be. The rim is inspected with the tyre off, and you are told if it is bent or cracked before the new tyre is fitted.
The key has broken in the nut. Can you still help?
Yes. Stop turning it, because forcing a broken key rounds the nut further. The nut is taken off with an extraction socket instead.
Can you work on the street outside my house?
Yes, if it is legal to park there and the car is not blocking traffic. A quiet residential street is usually fine; a busy main road or a red route is not.
Area map
See the area on a map.
Rescue Tyres is a mobile service run from one base at Brent Cross, London NW2. The map shows the West Bromwich area so you can check where your car is: it is not an address of ours.
Tyres are one of the most common MOT failures. Here are the exact tyre checks an MOT covers, the faults that catch people out, and how to pass first time.
Call to check we can take the job
Need a tyre fitter in West Bromwich? Call now.
Tell us where the car is, the tyre size and what has happened, and the options are explained on the call.