Between Market Harborough and Kettering, on the A6, a missing locking nut key leaves two choices: a new key ordered from the code, or the nut removed at the car. Which one suits depends on how soon the wheel has to come off.
Desborough is about 65 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 code card is in the car's original paperwork and nothing is urgent, a main dealer or the lock maker can often supply a replacement key. That may suit you better than a fitter coming 65 miles.
If there is no code, the nut has rounded, or a tyre needs changing now, removal is the answer. The fitter uses tools made for locking nuts rather than a hammer and chisel, and says before starting if a particular nut design makes a clean removal harder.
A drive or a quiet residential street on the Grange estate or in Rothwell gives the fitter room at each wheel. The villages just over the county line, Braybrooke, Stoke Albany, Wilbarston and Arthingworth, are the same.
Magnetic Park, the Leisure Centre and the Pipewell Road Industrial Estate near Rothwell have their own car parks, and their owners decide whether work can be done there.
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. The A6 Rothwell and Desborough bypass and the A14 at junction 3 are out until the car is off them.
The price depends on how many locking nuts need removing and whether you want standard nuts or a new locking set, plus any tyre work. It is confirmed on the call before anyone sets off, and it does not change in the evening or at the weekend.
Every wheel nut is tightened to the maker's setting with a torque wrench. It is good practice to have the nuts checked again after the first short drive following any wheel work, as alloy wheels can settle slightly.
If you want locking nuts again, a new set can be fitted later. Keep the new key in the glovebox and note the key code somewhere outside the car, such as on your phone, so a replacement key can be ordered if it goes missing.
Tell us whether the key is lost, broken or rounded off. A clear photo of one of the nuts helps.
You hear what the job involves and the options for your car. Nothing is booked until you say yes.
The fitter comes to your home, your workplace or a safe place to park, raises the car on a jack and does the job beside it.
Before the fitter leaves, the wheel is checked for security and the tyre pressure is set to the maker's figure.
If the key turns up but does not fit, or it slips on the nut, stop rather than force it: a rounded nut is harder to remove.
The previous owner, or the dealer that sold the car, may still have the key or its code, so a call to them can be worth it if the wheel can wait.
“A pleasure having them come down and save me. Big shout out to Hiwad, really responsive, recommend him to anybody.”
“Faultless experience. Great communication, attitude and service.”
“Good and reliable service in all conditions.”
These are the neighbourhoods, postcode districts and main roads on record for this area. Whether we can take a particular job depends on the diary and the distance from our base, so the call always decides.
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Tell us the make, model and registration, and whether you have the key code card. The price is given on the call.
