24/7 Mobile Tyre Fitting in Leamington Spa and Warwickshire

A tyre needs replacing when the tread is close to the limit, when it is damaged beyond repair, or when age has hardened the compound. The legal tyre tread UK requirement is 1.6mm across the central three-quarters of the tread, all the way around. That is the point at which a tyre becomes an offence, not the point at which it stops performing — wet stopping distances grow noticeably once you drop below 3mm, which is why we advise planning a change there.

Other clear replacement triggers are bald tyres, cracking in the sidewall, any bulge or egg-shaped deformity, exposed cords and uneven wear across the tread. Uneven wear is worth investigating: wear on both shoulders points to chronic under-inflation, wear down the centre strip points to over-inflation, and wear on one edge alone usually means an alignment problem that will destroy the new tyre too.

What we do on a replacement visit

We remove the wheel, break the bead on the van's machine, fit the new tyre, replace the valve or TPMS service kit as required, refit it with a torque wrench and set the pressures. We then check your remaining tyres and tell you where you stand, so you can plan the next change rather than be surprised by it.

Tyre pressure affects braking, steering, fuel consumption and how long the tyre lasts, and it is the cheapest safety check you can do. The question what tyre pressure for my car always has the same answer: use the figures on the placard inside the driver's door shut, in the fuel filler flap or in the handbook — never the maximum pressure moulded into the sidewall, which is a limit rather than a recommendation.

Do your tyre pressure check when the tyres are cold, at least two hours after driving, and use a decent gauge or a calibrated tyre pressure pump rather than the guesswork of a forecourt airline. Raise pressures when the car is fully loaded with passengers and luggage, and remember that pressures drop by roughly 1–2 psi for every 10°C fall in temperature, which is why the tire pressure light so often appears on the first cold morning of autumn.

TPMS and tyre valve replacement

Every car registered since 2014 has a tyre pressure monitoring system. Direct systems use a battery-powered sensor inside each wheel, and after seven to ten years those batteries die, which shows as a permanent warning light. We supply and fit replacement TPMS valves, and we renew the rubber service kit — valve core, seal, nut and cap — every time a tyre is changed. Ordinary rubber valves are replaced as a matter of course too: a perished tyre valve is a slow leak waiting to happen.

Winter, all season and all weather tyres

Winter tyres use a softer compound and heavy siping that keeps working below 7°C, and genuine snow tyres are the right answer if you live up a rural lane that never sees a gritter. For most Warwickshire drivers all season tyres are the practical choice: all season tyres UK models carry the 3PMSF snowflake marking, give most of the cold-weather benefit and save you storing a second set. Marketing also calls these all weather tyres — it is the same category.

How to change a tyre safely

If you do have a spare and choose to change it yourself, park on firm level ground, apply the handbrake, chock the opposite wheel and loosen the nuts before you raise the car. Use the jacking point marked in the handbook, never a sill or a suspension arm. Lower the car before final tightening, then tighten in a diagonal pattern. Space savers are limited to 50mph, and you should have the proper tyre fitted the same day. If any of that feels unsafe at the roadside, leave it to us.