Edinburgh Tyre Extinguishers hit ‘posh’ New Town area and boast about deflating tyres of 32 SUVs

Eco warriors strike again in Edinburgh, targetting 32 SUVs in ‘posh’ part of the city

Climate activist group Tyre Extinguishers claim to have deflated the tyres of another 32 SUVs in Edinburgh.

The guerrilla eco warriors targeted vehicles in the city's affluent New Town area on Thursday, November 16 – then took to social media to boast about their antics.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Tyre Extinguishers said: “Edinburgh, Scotland: 32 SUVs hit last night in posh New Town...again!

Climate activist group Tyre Extinguishers claim to have deflated the tyres of another 32 SUVs in Edinburgh.

“Yet another action in the New Town area of Scotland's capital city, specifically targeting Land Rovers and Range Rovers. Why do you own a tank in the middle of the city?!”

Since 2022, hundreds of SUVs have been deflated in the Leith, Portobello, Hillside, Marchmont, Bruntsfield and New Town areas by the group.

A global organisation, Tyre Extinguishers want to make it “impossible” to own an SUV. It describes them as “a climate disaster”, “dangerous” and “unnecessary”.

Members of the group deflate tyres by pushing small objects, like lentils, into their valves. They also leave leaflets on the cars they target, explaining: “We do this because driving around urban areas in your massive vehicle has huge consequences for others.”

SUVs feature elements of standard cars but are larger and have off-road capabilities such as high ground clearance. Petrol and diesel-powered models are generally less fuel efficient than cars. Tyre Extinguishers say even electric and hybrid SUVs are “fair game” as there are “not enough rare earth metals” to replace all cars with them, and “the danger to other road users still stands”.