24/7 towing and roadside help
Windsor Towing and Tow Truck Help, 24/7
Stuck in Windsor? Call 1-888-TOW-1213. We lock your price by text, send the nearest available partner tow company and check on you until help arrives.
If anyone is hurt or you're stopped in a live lane, call 911 first.
- Check-ins until help arrives
- Driver card and truck tracking
- Price locked by text
- Photo-protected tow
How it works in Windsor. Sentinel Towing is a network, not a tow company. A vetted local partner in the Windsor area does the job. We stay with you by text and hold them to your locked price. Not in Windsor? Find a tow truck near you.
Windsor tow truck help
Towing in Windsor, Right Across the River From Detroit
Windsor is a border city. Three road crossings link it to Detroit: the Ambassador Bridge, the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel and the new Gordie Howe International Bridge, which opened to traffic in July 2026. Traffic to the Ambassador Bridge is heavy with transport trucks.
- Huron Church Road. With Wyandotte Street, it's how you reach the Ambassador Bridge. Transport trucks have lined up on it for as much as 8 km at times. If you stall in that line, hazards on and stay in the car. Tell us the nearest cross street.
- The tunnel approach. The Dougall Parkway links the 401 to the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. Like the Ambassador Bridge, the tunnel has city streets and traffic lights between it and the highway.
- The Gordie Howe bridge. It connects directly to the 401 through the Herb Gray Parkway.
Tows stay in Canada
We can't send a truck across the Ambassador Bridge, through the tunnel or over the Gordie Howe bridge. Once you're on a crossing, we can't reach you. If your car breaks down on the Detroit side, call the same number. Tows don't cross the border, so we look for a partner on the Michigan side.
On the Windsor side, a partner can take your car to your home, a shop or anywhere else in the area you choose.
The 401 Trench, the E.C. Row and Highway 3
Windsor is where Highway 401 begins, and the E.C. Row is the fastest way across town. Here's what to tell us on each.
The Herb Gray Parkway
On this stretch, the 401 drops into a trench beside Huron Church Road and Talbot Road, with 11 tunnels carrying cross streets over it. The limit is 80 km/h west of Concession Road 9. Give us the nearest street that crosses above you.
The 401 heading east
At the Dougall Parkway split, the 401 turns east and leaves Windsor. Near Tilbury it loses its tall concrete median and narrows to four lanes. The Windsor to London run, especially west of Tilbury, earned the name Carnage Alley for its crashes. If trouble starts, get off at the next exit if you can.
The E.C. Row Expressway
Four lanes with a grass median and a 100 km/h limit, from a traffic light at the Ojibway Parkway to Banwell Road. Backups at the Dominion, Dougall, Howard and Walker interchanges are common. Devonshire Mall sits just off the Howard exit.
Highway 3 to Essex and Leamington
About 50 km from Windsor to Leamington. It's the daily commute for a lot of people in Leamington, Kingsville and Essex. A flat on the shoulder out there is a flat tire change call.
In town, many north-south streets cross rail lines at grade. And addresses count out from Ouellette Avenue, which splits the city into east and west. So "east of Ouellette" or "west of Ouellette" is a big help when you call.
Southwestern Ontario summer
Heat, Thunderstorms and Flooded Streets
Windsor has the warmest climate in Ontario. Summer here is about heat and storms, not snow. Windsor saw historic flooding in 2016, 2017 and 2019. In late August 2017, one storm dropped 285 mm of rain over 32 hours.
- Don't drive into water. Ontario's driver handbook says water can keep your brakes from working. If you did get through, test your brakes as soon as it's safe.
- Stalled in a flood? That's a tow, not a jump.
- Hot days, tired batteries. A battery that struggled all summer can quit in a parking lot at Devonshire or the university. A jump start usually gets you home.
- The tunnel on a bright day. The handbook says to slow down as you enter, take off your sunglasses and turn on your headlights so your eyes can adjust.
After a Crash in Windsor, You Pick the Tow
Windsor Police can tow a car after a collision, an arrest, an impound or a license suspension. The service has a contracted tow company, but it says drivers can choose their own company for a collision tow. That can be us.
- If no one is hurt and the cars still drive, Ontario's handbook says to steer them off the road and clear the lanes.
- Before your car leaves, get the tow operator's name and license number, and know exactly where the car is going.
- Most collision tows don't need a police release. Arrest, impound and suspension tows do. Releases come from Windsor Police Headquarters at 150 Goyeau Street, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week. Bring ID, registration and proof of insurance.
Details are on the Windsor Police towing page. The province covers the rest, like an itemized bill and paying by credit, debit or cash, on its towing rights page.
Areas We Cover Around Windsor
- Downtown and the riverfront
- Walkerville and Ford City
- Riverside and Forest Glade
- Sandwich, on the west side
- Ojibway
- Tecumseh and Oldcastle
- LaSalle and Amherstburg
- Lakeshore
- Essex, Kingsville and Leamington along Highway 3
Windsor Towing Questions
Can you tow my car across the bridge to Detroit?
No. Tows stay on the Canadian side. If your car broke down in Windsor, a partner can take it to your home or a shop anywhere in Windsor or a nearby town like LaSalle or Tecumseh.
My car died in the truck line on Huron Church Road. Can you get to me?
Yes, as long as you're still on Huron Church or another Windsor street. Tell us the nearest cross street and which way you were headed. You'll get your driver's name, photo and truck by text, and you can track your truck as it works through traffic.
Police towed my car after a crash. How do I get it back?
Most collision tows don't need a police release, so you can usually go straight to the lot during business hours. Call the lot first to check hours and fees. Only the registered owner can pick it up, with ID, registration and insurance.
Will I know the price before the truck comes?
Yes. We text it to you before anyone is sent, and if the bill comes in higher, the texted price is what you pay. That's one of the seven parts of the Stay-With-You Promise.
Roadside help in Windsor, ON
Tow Truck and Roadside Services in Windsor
Sentinel is a 24-hour towing and roadside assistance network for Windsor drivers. Tell us what happened, and we send a vetted local towing company near you with a truck suited to the job: a tow truck for a car that can't be driven (a flatbed where the vehicle needs one, like many all-wheel-drive cars), or a service truck for a jump start, lockout, flat tire, fuel delivery or winch-out.
Car towing
Cars, SUVs, minivans and light pickups. Price locked by text, photos before hookup.
Car towing
Jump starts
Clicks, dim dash lights or nothing at all? A dead battery jump, day or night.
Jump starts
Car lockouts
Keys locked inside, on the seat or in the trunk. A partner works to get you back in without damage.
Car lockouts
Flat tire changes
Got a spare but no safe way to put it on? A partner swaps it for you.
Flat tire changes
Fuel delivery
Ran out of gas? Enough fuel to get you to the nearest station.
Fuel delivery
Winch-outs
Stuck in snow, mud or a shallow ditch near the road? A partner can usually pull you out.
Winch-outsThe Sentinel Stay-With-You Promise
Seven Promises on Every Windsor Call
Read the fine print on the promise page.
We stay with you. From your call until the truck arrives, we check on you by text.
See your driver before they arrive. You get their name, photo and truck by text, and you can track your truck on a map.
Your family knows too. Give us one number, and we text them your location and arrival time.
Photo-protected tow. Before hookup, your driver photographs all 4 sides of your vehicle. We text you the photos.
Price locked by text. You get your price by text before we dispatch. That price is the most you pay for the job. If the job changes, we text a new price first and you decide.
Never stranded after. Ride along in the truck when it's safe and allowed, or we help you get a ride. We also point you to a good repair shop.
Free Sentinel Circle. After your first job, your vehicle is on file. Next time, just text "TOW" for priority dispatch.
How it works
From Your Call to Your Driver
- 01You call
Our 24/7 line answers
Call 1-888-TOW-1213. Tell us where you are, what you drive and what went wrong.
- 02We lock it in
Your price, by text
We text your price before anyone is sent. That's the most you'll pay for the job you described.
- 03A partner accepts
The nearest truck takes it
The nearest available partner tow company accepts your job. They're vetted for insurance and licensing.
- 04You see who's coming
Driver card and tracking
You get your driver's name, photo and truck, plus a link to track your truck. We check in until they arrive.
Nearby cities
Windsor, ON
Stuck in Windsor? Call and We'll Stay With You.
Our line answers 24/7. Your price is locked by text before we send anyone.