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. Lewisham is about 12 miles in a straight line from our only base at Brent Cross, NW2. We give you an arrival time when you call.
SE4, SE6, SE8, SE12, SE13, SE14: Deptford, Catford, New Cross, Brockley
The A2, which crosses the north of the borough as New Cross Road and climbs Blackheath Hill, and the South Circular (A205), which runs east to west through Catford and Forest Hill, are TfL red routes. We cannot stop or work on a red route; the car needs to be on a side street or private ground first. If the car stops on a busy main road and can be moved slowly and safely, take it into a side street before you call.
The other two main roads through the borough are the A20, as Lewisham Way and Lee High Road, and the A21, which runs south as the High Street and then Bromley Road. Both carry heavy traffic, so a residential street just off them is a far better place for the work than the main road itself. Give us the name of that side street and the nearest junction.
If you have to drive on a flat tyre to get there, go slowly and only as far as the nearest safe place. Running on a deflated tyre can damage the wheel and the inside of the tyre, which can rule out a repair.
If the car is in a controlled parking zone permit bay, tell us so the fitter can park legally beside it.
| Postcode districts | SE4, SE6, SE8, SE12, SE13, SE14, SE23, SE26, SE3 |
|---|---|
| Areas | Deptford, Catford, New Cross, Brockley, Forest Hill, Sydenham, Lee, Hither Green, Blackheath, Bellingham, Grove Park, Ladywell, Honor Oak |
| Landmarks | Goldsmiths, University of London, New Cross, Catford Bridge and Catford stations, Deptford High Street, Horniman Museum, Forest Hill, Blackheath |
| Local rules | Inside the London-wide Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) |
| Red routes: we cannot stop or work on them | |
| Controlled parking zones (permit or pay-and-display bays) on many streets | |
| Distance from our base | About 12 miles in a straight line from Brent Cross, NW2 |
The fitter brings the tools to the car, so there is no need to drive on a damaged tyre to a garage.
The fitter brings the new tyre to your home, your workplace or a safe place to park, fits it, balances the wheel and sets the pressure.
Tell us the size from the sidewall and we can talk through budget, mid-range and premium options for it.
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.
A flat tyre does not always mean a new tyre. Whether it can be repaired depends on where the damage is and how far the car was driven flat.
If the spare is missing, flat or a space saver you would rather not rely on, the repair or the new tyre is brought to the car.
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.
We work evenings, nights, weekends and bank holidays when the diary allows, at the same price as a weekday job.
Out of normal working hours, where the car waits matters more: somewhere lit, legally parked and away from passing traffic.
Lost, broken or rounded key? The nuts are removed at the car with extraction sockets made for locking nuts.
Plain nuts or a new locking set go back on, and the tyre can be sorted on the same visit.
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.
Van tyres carry heavier loads and are marked with a C after the rim size and a higher load index. The replacement has to match both.
Fitting at a yard, a business car park or the kerb outside the job keeps the van working.
Run-flats keep the car moving for a limited distance after losing pressure, but they still need sorting properly afterwards.
The correct run-flat is sourced for your car, including maker-approved fitments, and fitted at the car.
We fit tyres only. We do not sell part-worn tyres and we do not do batteries, brakes or wheel alignment.
Call or WhatsApp with where the car is, the registration and the tyre size from the sidewall.
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.
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.
Many cars have a tyre pressure sensor fitted inside each wheel, usually on the back of the valve. Mention it on the call, because the sensor stays with the wheel when the tyre is changed.
Cars that left the factory on run-flat tyres usually need run-flats again, and run-flat and standard tyres should never be mixed on one car.
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.
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.
To raise a car safely, the fitter needs it on firm ground that is not too steep. Some streets in the west of the borough, around Forest Hill, Honor Oak and Sydenham Hill, have a real slope. If the car is parked on a hill, say so when you call: it may need to be moved a short way to a flatter spot before a wheel comes off.
We cover the whole borough. In the north, SE8 and SE14 take in Deptford and New Cross, around Deptford High Street and Goldsmiths. SE4 and SE13 cover Brockley, Ladywell, Hither Green and the town centre. SE6 is Catford and Bellingham, SE12 is Lee and Grove Park, SE23 and SE26 are Forest Hill and Sydenham in the west, and SE3 is the borough's side of Blackheath.
The northern edge, near the river, is a little closer to Brent Cross than the southern end around Grove Park and Downham, which is worth knowing if you are deciding where to leave the car for a planned job.
The car parks at University Hospital Lewisham, the shopping centre and the stations, and the parking behind blocks of flats, all belong to someone. Private car parks need the permission of whoever runs them before we can work there. If there is a barrier or a gate code, tell us on the call.
The same applies to the station car parks further out, at Catford Bridge, Hither Green, Forest Hill and Grove Park, and to the yards on the Chiltonian and Clyde Vale industrial estates and the car park at Bell Green Retail Park. Ask the site or the operator first; if the answer is no, a public street close by usually works instead.
The area is inside the London-wide Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), in force since 29 August 2023: a charge for driving a vehicle that does not meet its emission standards, not for a parked car.
“A pleasure having them come down and save me. Big shout out to Hiwad, really responsive, recommend him to anybody.”
“I urgently needed to replace my tyres and the team were prompt, friendly and efficient at a great price.”
“Fast and efficient, really good service, sociable guy.”
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Yes, if the site allows it. Supermarket, retail park and station car parks are private ground, so the owner's permission comes first. Places of this kind in this area include:
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:
Rescue Tyres is a mobile service run from one base at Brent Cross, London NW2. The map shows the Lewisham area so you can check where your car is: it is not an address of ours.
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Tell us where the car is, the tyre size and what has happened, and the options are explained on the call.
