Roadside Assistance in Shelby Township, MI
We bring a jump pack, a jack, fuel and car-opening tools and try the fix where the car sits - and because a tow truck comes, the car can still ride if the fix won't hold.
Tell us what the car does and exactly where it's parked
Roadside assistance in Shelby Township starts with two answers: what happens when you turn the key or press start, and exactly where the car sits. With those, the truck leaves carrying what your problem needs.
What the symptom usually points to
- One click, or dash lights that fade - a battery too weak to spin the starter. A jump normally gets it going.
- Strong cranking that never catches - fuel or ignition, not the battery. Tell us if the gauge was near empty.
- A thump, a pull to one side or the tire-pressure light - a flat or a slow leak. Say whether there's a spare or a donut, and where the wheel-lock key is.
- Doors locked with the keys or fob inside - a lockout, which we open with car-opening tools.
For the location, be precise: the lot and the row, the street and the nearest mile road, or on M-53 the direction and last exit. A car in a traffic lane or on a freeway shoulder is a safety problem first, so start with what to do before a tow truck reaches you.
Waiting in the cold? NHTSA's winter advice is to stay with the vehicle, keep snow cleared from the exhaust pipe if the engine is running, and run it in short spells, just long enough to stay warm. Keep your phone charged, too; the driver calls as the truck gets close.
On the call you hear one price for the visit. If the fix doesn't hold, the same truck can tow the car - that price comes first, and nothing is loaded until you agree.
What a roadside visit costs depends on four things
A roadside visit gets one total, given on the phone before the truck leaves. Four things set it:
- The drive out. A dead battery in a Shelby Township driveway is a short run. A park lot in Washington Township, about 6 road miles from central Shelby Township, or a street in Romeo, about 12 road miles from central Shelby Township, takes longer.
- The job itself. A jump is quick. A flat with a seized or locking lug nut, or a fob locked in a trunk, takes longer, and you hear that before you agree.
- The fuel. Gas or diesel, and enough of it to reach a station, is part of the total.
- Whether the fix holds. If the car dies again, a tow replaces the visit, and you hear that price before anything is loaded.
There's no rate card here, because a jump in your garage and a tire change on a freezing shoulder are different jobs. The pricing page lays out what a roadside call costs compared with a tow.
Not urgent - say, a second car you'll need tomorrow? Send it through the quote form and we call you back to set a time.
Jump starts, flats, fuel and lockouts, handled where the car sits
Jump starts in Michigan cold
Cold is the battery killer here. The National Weather Service's 1991-2020 normals for Detroit put the average January low at 19.2°F and February's at 20.8°F, and NHTSA's winter guidance says it plainly: when the temperature drops, so does battery power. A battery that was already tired in the fall can quit on the first hard freeze.
We clamp a jump pack to the terminals and start the engine. If it dies again soon after, the battery or the charging system is the likely cause, and the car may need a shop rather than another jump. If the terminals are crusted, we'll point it out: the state's MI Ready auto checklist says the battery and ignition system should be in top condition, with clean terminals. Then drive a real distance before you shut it off.
Flat tires in pothole season
MDOT explains how Michigan's potholes form: in the freeze-thaw cycle, water seeps into the pavement, freezes and pushes it up, and when the ground settles it leaves a void that traffic breaks through. Cold air works on tires too - NHTSA notes that tire pressure drops with the temperature - so a pressure light on a frosty morning can mean low air rather than a puncture.
With a usable spare or donut, we jack the car on firm ground, swap the wheel and tighten the lug nuts in a star pattern. A donut is a temporary spare built to get you to a tire shop, so keep the speed down. Locking lug nuts need their key, usually in the glove box or with the jack. No spare, or a rim the pothole bent? Then it's a short tow to a tire shop.
Then report the hole. MDOT takes reports for I-, M- and US-routes - M-53 and Hall Road included - through an online form or a voicemail line at 888-296-4546, and its pothole page explains the damage-claim process. In Shelby Township, other roads go to the Macomb County Department of Roads, except Dequindre, which the Road Commission for Oakland County maintains.
Out of gas or diesel
Tell us which fuel the car takes and we bring enough to reach a station, then check the filler again before pouring, since the wrong fuel turns a quick visit into a repair. Once fuel is in, the engine may crank longer than usual while the fuel system refills; we stay until it runs on its own.
Winter is the time to keep it topped up. NHTSA's winter tips say to keep the tank close to full whenever possible, and the state's MI Ready auto checklist says to keep it full, adding that a full tank helps keep water out of the fuel system.
Locked out
Keys locked in at a trailhead, a campus lot or your own driveway? We open the door with car-opening tools: an air wedge eases the top of the door away from the frame, and a long-reach tool presses the unlock button or lifts the handle. We don't cut, copy or program keys. Have your ID ready, and show us the registration once the door is open.
Call 911 first, not us. The National Weather Service says a closed car's interior can heat up 20 degrees in as little as 10 minutes even when it's in the 70s outside, and Detroit's normal July high is 83.7°F. A January cold snap is no safer for a child waiting in a locked car.
Park lots, trailheads and carpool lots where cold cars won't start
A car that sits for hours in the cold is the one that won't start, so name the lot, and the row if there is one, when you call. The big ones around Shelby Township:
- Stony Creek Metropark. About 4,435 acres around 500-acre Stony Creek Lake, with a paved hike-bike loop of a little over 6 miles. The park is open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., so call early if the car won't start after a late walk.
- Trail lots. The Macomb Orchard Trail runs about 23.5 miles from Richmond to Dequindre Road, and its Shelby Township access lot is on the west side of Dequindre just south of 24 Mile. There it meets the 16-mile Clinton River Trail, which in Rochester meets the Paint Creek Trail, an 8.9-mile route that was Michigan's first rail-trail.
- Carpool lots. MDOT's carpool lots are free for daily parking but carry a 72-hour limit, so a car that dies there has to be jumped or towed before a long weekend runs out.
- Campus and school lots. Cars sit all day there too; give us the campus or school name and the lot.
When a roadside fix isn't the answer
- The jump doesn't last. If the engine dies again soon after, the charging system is the likely cause, and the car needs a shop.
- Heat or oil warnings. Steam, a temperature needle in the red or an oil-pressure light means the car shouldn't be driven.
- A torn tire or a bent rim, and no spare. Nothing at the curb fixes that; the car rides to a tire shop.
- Stuck, not broken. Spinning wheels in a snowbank or a ditch call for a winch-out before anything else.
- AWD, an EV, a lowered car or a motorcycle that won't run. It goes to the shop on the flatbed, every wheel off the road.
In each case we switch to a tow and price it before anything is loaded.
Roadside assistance in the eight towns around Shelby Township
Every town page has a roadside section with its own lots, roads and winter details. Find yours, or head back to towing and roadside help in Shelby Township.
- Roadside assistance in Utica - M-59 along the city's south edge is a state trunkline, so a pothole there goes to MDOT's pothole line rather than to the city.
- Roadside assistance in Sterling Heights - after snow, the city plows its Priority 1 arteries such as 15, 17 and 19 Mile, while 14 and 18 Mile are county roads the county plows and salts.
- Roadside assistance in Macomb Township - four public school districts serve the township, Chippewa Valley and L'Anse Creuse among them, so if you're stuck in a school lot, give us the school's name.
- Roadside assistance in Washington Township - most of Stony Creek Metropark lies in Washington and Oakland townships, and its 10 p.m. closing makes an early call wise when a car won't start there.
- Roadside assistance in Romeo - the village keeps its own address numbering, counting out from 32 Mile and from Main Street, and downtown sits where the two cross.
- Roadside assistance in Rochester - the Paint Creek and Clinton River trails meet in the city, and 24 Mile, Walton Boulevard in Rochester Hills, is called University Drive there.
- Roadside assistance in Rochester Hills - Oakland University's 1,443-acre campus straddles Rochester Hills and Auburn Hills along Walton Boulevard; tell us which lot.
- Roadside assistance in Clinton Township - Macomb Community College's Center Campus is on the corner of Garfield and Hall (M-59); name the parking lot when you call.
Official pages to bookmark
- Sterling Heights priority plowing - which roads the city plows first and which belong to the county.
- MDOT's Mi Drive map - closures, incidents, cameras and MDOT's snowplows before you head out.
Frequently asked questions
Can you jump-start my car or change a flat in Shelby Township in the middle of the night?
Yes. Shelby Township Towing's phone is answered at every hour, and a roadside visit covers jump starts, spare and donut changes, gas or diesel delivery and lockouts for cars, pickups, vans, SUVs and motorcycles. You hear the visit's price before the truck leaves, and since a tow truck comes, a car that won't stay running can go straight to a shop.
My car only clicks on a cold morning - is it the battery?
Most likely. A single click or fading dash lights usually means the battery can't turn the starter, and Michigan winters are hard on batteries: Detroit's normal January low is 19.2°F, and NHTSA notes that battery power falls with the temperature. We jump it with a pack and check the charging system. Long cranking with no start points to fuel or ignition instead, and a jump won't fix that.
A pothole flattened my tire on Hall Road - can you put my donut on?
Yes, if the donut holds air and you have the key for any locking lug nuts. We jack the car on firm ground away from traffic, mount the donut and send you to a tire shop at a gentle speed. A bent rim or no spare means a short tow instead. Report the pothole too: Hall Road is M-59, so it goes to MDOT, whose pothole page also explains its damage-claim process.
I ran out of gas - can you bring some, and is diesel OK?
Yes to both. Tell us whether the car takes gas or diesel, and we bring enough to reach a station; the fuel is part of the total you hear on the call. If you're stopped in a traffic lane rather than on a shoulder or in a lot, call 911 first. In winter, NHTSA suggests keeping the tank close to full whenever possible.
My keys are locked in my car at a park - can you get me back in?
Yes. We open the door with car-opening tools, an air wedge and a long-reach tool, and you should expect to show ID, and the registration once the door is open. We don't cut, copy or program keys. If a child or a pet is locked in, call 911 before you call us; the National Weather Service warns that a closed car can warm 20 degrees in as little as 10 minutes.
How do I know if I need a tow instead of a roadside visit?
Ask for a tow if the car died again soon after a jump, if you see steam or an oil-pressure light, if a tire is torn or a rim bent with no spare, or if the car is stuck in snow or a ditch. All-wheel-drive cars, EVs, lowered cars and motorcycles that won't run ride the flatbed. Describe what you see, and we'll send the right truck the first time.
Jump pack or tow truck? Four answers tell us which to send
You'll hear the visit's price before a truck heads your way.
- The symptom - a click, long cranking, a thump from one tire, or keys in sight through the glass
- The exact spot - lot and row, street and nearest mile road, or M-53 direction and exit
- Car and fuel - model year, make and model, and whether it burns gas or diesel
- Spare and lug key - is a spare or donut aboard, and where's the wheel-lock key?