Chicago, Illinois. Call any hour.

Mobile tire repair in Chicago

Got a flat in Chicago? Call TJ 24 Hour Mobile Tire Repair Service any hour. Tell us your cross streets and we check for a tire tech who can come to your street, your driveway or your parking lot. A simple flat often does not need a tow.

Call (847) 497-0677

What we do in Chicago

Flat tire repair. For a small hole in the tread, like a nail or a screw.
Spare tire install. Your flat comes off and your spare goes on.
Mobile tire replacement. When the tire cannot be saved, ask about a new one brought to you.
Battery jump start. And battery replacement when a jump will not hold.
Car lockout. Keys locked inside.
Fuel delivery. Enough gas to get you to a station.

TJ 24 Hour Mobile Tire Repair Service is the Chicago arm of TJ's Nationwide Roadside. We take calls from all over the city.

Can your tire be fixed?

Here is the rule tire makers use. It comes from the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association.

Where the damage is	What it means
Small hole in the tread, 1/4 inch or less	It can usually be repaired.
Hole bigger than 1/4 inch	The tire needs to be replaced.
Sidewall or shoulder of the tire	It cannot be repaired. Use the spare or replace the tire.
You drove on it flat for a while	The inside may be ruined even if the outside looks fine. It has to be checked.

The proper lasting repair is a plug and a patch together, put in from inside the tire with the tire off the wheel. A plug pushed in from the outside gets you moving, but it is a short-term fix. Ask your tech which one you are getting. If it is the quick one, have a tire shop look at it soon.

Flat on a Chicago expressway

A flat on the Kennedy, the Dan Ryan, the Eisenhower or the Stevenson is not like a flat on a side street. Traffic is fast and the shoulders are narrow. Your safety comes before the tire.

Get right. Roll slowly to the right shoulder, as far from traffic as you can. An exit ramp or a gas station is better still, even if the tire gets chewed up on the way.
Flashers on. If it is not safe to stand outside, stay in the car with your seat belt on.
Call for safety help first. Call 911 if you are in danger. On Illinois Tollway roads such as I-294, I-88 and I-355, dial *999 from a cell phone to ask for help. The Tollway's H.E.L.P. trucks run Monday to Friday, 4 a.m. to 8 p.m., and can change a tire or move you out of a live lane.
Then call us. On the state expressways, IDOT's Emergency Traffic Patrol works to clear stopped cars from the road. They get you out of traffic. Call us about the tire once you are somewhere safe.

If you pass a stopped car with flashing lights, move over a lane and slow down. In Illinois that is the law, known as Scott's Law, and the fine starts at $250. Our guide to a flat tire on the highway has more.

Why Chicago is hard on tires

Potholes. The City says pothole season runs from December through April. Water gets into the pavement, freezes, swells and breaks it apart. City crews had filled more than 151,000 potholes in 2026 by late April. Hit one hard and you can pinch the tire against the rim. That often cuts the sidewall, and a sidewall cut cannot be repaired.

Cold snaps. The normal first freeze at O'Hare is October 19. AAA says a tire can lose about 1 PSI for every 10 degrees the temperature drops. So a tire that was fine in September can be low by the first cold morning. If your tire pressure light comes on after a cold night, add air before you assume you have a leak.

Winter parking rules. From December 1 to April 1, the City bans parking from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. on 107 miles of main streets, snow or no snow. A car left there with a flat can be towed. The City lists the cost as at least a $150 tow, a $60 ticket and $25 a day in storage. If your car is stuck on a signed street overnight, do not wait until morning to call.

Questions Chicago drivers ask

I found a nail in my tire. Can I drive on it?

Leave the nail in and check the air. Our guide to a nail in your tire walks through what to do next.

Is a roadside plug a permanent fix?

No. A plug by itself is a short-term fix. More in tire plug vs patch.

My car has no spare. What now?

That is common. Consumer Reports says about 45 percent of the new cars it has tested since 2020 came with no spare tire. Tell us when you call. If the tire can be repaired, it gets repaired. If not, ask about having a replacement tire brought to you. Have your tire size ready. It is printed on the side of the tire and looks like 225/65R17.

How far can I drive on a donut spare?

No faster than 50 mph, and under 50 miles in all. It is only meant to get you to a tire shop. See how long you can drive on a spare.

How much does it cost?

We do not post prices here because the price depends on the job, your tire, and where you are. Ask for the price on the phone before you agree to anything.

Do you cover all of Chicago?

We take calls from all over the city. Give us your cross streets when you call. We will tell you whether a tech can reach you.

A pothole wrecked my tire. Will the City pay?

Sometimes, for part of it. The City takes claims for pothole damage through the City Clerk. We wrote out the steps on our Chicago pothole damage claim page.

Flat tire right now?

Call the Chicago line. Tell us where you are and what you drive. Before you call a number you found in a hurry, it is worth a minute to read about roadside and towing scams.

Call (847) 497-0677

Where these facts come from

Checked on October 8, 2026.