Has anyone ever gotten "hotwiring" right in a movie?
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — The Terminator
MaximRecoil — 10 years ago(July 11, 2015 04:52 AM)
Ironically, I think this movie was the first one to show someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner, i.e., when the Terminator breaks the station wagon's ignition lock and then simply turns the switch the same as if he had a key (he no longer needed a key because the lock portion of the switch was now broken). Kyle Reese does essentially the same thing with the second car he steals. This solves two problems at once: getting the car started and deactivating the steering wheel lock (which allows you to steer the car of course), which has been present on all American cars since 1970. This was/is a popular real-world method, though people can't generally break an ignition lock simply by hitting it with their hand like a Terminator can.
As for "hotwiring", the first problem is that the steering wheel will remain locked because the ignition lock is being bypassed, thus it remains in the "off" position which is what engages the steering wheel lock in the first place (1970 and newer American cars; the date varies for foreign cars). The steering wheel lock can be broken if you can manage to turn the steering wheel with enough force, but you never see anyone on TV / in movies actually do that.
The second problem is that no one actually automatically knows how to hotwire a random car (from inside the car), because there is no standard ignition wiring scheme which applies to all cars. The principle is always the same, but the colors and locations of the relevant wires varies from car to car. So unless someone has actually memorized wiring diagrams for a huge amount of cars, they are going to have to "trace it out" in order to figure out how to hotwire a year/make/model they have never hotwired before.
There are two steps to hotwiring:- Bypass the ignition lock/switch to turn the ignition "on".
- Activate the starter long enough for the car to start.
To do this from inside the car, you find the two wires which connect to the "on" terminals of the ignition lock/switch (easier said than done), and disconnect them from the switch (e.g., cut them). Strip and twist these two wires together and your ignition now has juice (i.e., it is "on"). Then you need to find the two wires which go to the "start" terminals of the ignition lock/switch (also easier said than done). Strip them and hold the bare ends together, and the starter will crank. When the engine starts, pull the wires apart from each other. All of this is easier from under the hood by the way; it is easier to find the "ignition on" wires, and to start it after that you don't even need to mess with wires; just jump the starter solenoid with a screwdriver / jack knife / whatever.
The scene showing Kyle Reese hotwiring a car near the beginning of the movie is absurd. It shows him twist two wires together and the car cranks briefly and starts as he does that. Even if we assume that he did step 1 off-camera, twisting the starter wires together and leaving them that way is the same as turning the key to "start" and holding it there even after the engine has started. Not only will you ruin the starter in fairly short order, but it makes a distinctive sound (try it sometime if you don't care about your starter).
Maybe people in Hollywood don't actually know how to hotwire a car, so they just wing it for the camera.
I don't dance, tell jokes or wear my pants too tight, but I do know about a thousand songs.
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sati_84 — 10 years ago(November 27, 2015 05:49 AM)
The steering wheel lock can be broken if you can manage to turn the steering wheel with enough force
I'm sure a Terminator is capable of that, but wouldn't that seriously damage the steering mechanism?
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MaximRecoil — 10 years ago(January 28, 2016 04:02 AM)
I'm sure a Terminator is capable of that, but wouldn't that seriously damage the steering mechanism?
No, it wouldn't damage it at all. The steering mechanism consists of a steel-framed steering wheel connected to a thick, solid steel shaft via a press-fit onto splines with a large retaining nut; the steel shaft connects to a U-joint or similar, which connects to another steel shaft which connects to the steel pitman arm on the steering box. The pitman arm also connects to tie rods (consisting of inner and outer tie rod ends connected with a threaded sleeve), the drag link, and the idler arm. The outer tie rod ends connect to the steering arm on each wheel, which is connected to the spindle / steering knuckle assembly on each wheel.
Newer rack and pinion steering systems are somewhat different, but either way, they consist of heavy steel components, while the steering wheel lock is just a relatively small steel pin which engages a slot to lock the steering wheel in place:
https://qph.is.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-174a7462e3fca4227662874ecefb3e44?convert_to_webp=true
See the disk on the right-hand side of the drawing with a bunch of slots in it, and the horizontal pin which can engage any one of those slots (depending on the position of the steering wheel when you turn the ignition lock switch off)? That's all there is to it. That steel pin or the slot it engages will break long before damaging any part of the steering mechanism.
But the Terminator didn't need to do that; he just broke the ignition lock switch which eliminated the need for a key. Then the car can be started and driven the same as if you had a key (turning that switch on is what deactivates the steering wheel lock). This is actually a method that car thieves commonly use, unlike hotwiring.
I don't dance, tell jokes or wear my pants too tight, but I do know about a thousand songs. -
igetitfaster — 10 years ago(November 27, 2015 12:38 PM)
I think this movie was the first one to show someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner
You mean the first movie you've seen; meaning you would do well to watch more movies.
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MaximRecoil — 10 years ago(January 28, 2016 03:32 AM)
You mean the first movie you've seen; meaning you would do well to watch more movies.
Given that you've provided no example of an earlier movie that shows someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner, your post is worthless, and as such, consider it dismissed out of hand.
I don't dance, tell jokes or wear my pants too tight, but I do know about a thousand songs. -
igetitfaster — 10 years ago(February 08, 2016 09:23 AM)
Given that you've provided no example of an earlier movie that shows someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner, your post is worthless
Are you prepared to prove you have seen every film ever made so as to establish credibility when you state that it has never been done in a film.
Or are you content with looking like another the garden variety dbag?
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MaximRecoil — 10 years ago(February 09, 2016 01:09 AM)
Are you prepared to prove you have seen every film ever made so as to establish credibility when you state that it has never been done in a film.
^^^ Reading Disability Alert
I said:
"I
think
this movie was the first one to show someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner"
Does the bolding help, Slow Doug?
I don't dance, tell jokes or wear my pants too tight, but I do know about a thousand songs. -
igetitfaster — 10 years ago(February 09, 2016 06:37 AM)
I think this movie was the first one to show someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner
"think"
That your next thought wasn't "But I haven't seen nearly enough films to make such an asinine assumption" is the key.
Hopefully someone under 12 will read the thread and appreciate the elementary school clichs you've opted for insult. Those would have been awesome when I was in 6th grade.
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MaximRecoil — 10 years ago(February 11, 2016 08:55 PM)
"think"
Yes, as in "I suspect, but I don't know for sure".
That your next thought wasn't "But I haven't seen nearly enough films to make such an asinine assumption" is the key.
In reality, it wasn't an assumption at all, Special Ed, which makes this the second time you've established that you don't know what the word
think
means in this context (LOL @ that, and LOL @ you too, you know, while I'm at it). Also, your laughable attempt at a crystal ball reading with regard to how many "films" I've seen is dismissed, Miss Cleo.
Hopefully someone under 12 will read the thread and appreciate the elementary school clichs you've opted for insult. Those would have been awesome when I was in 6th grade.
Your tacit request to redefine the word
clich
is denied, Slow Doug.
And once again:
Given that you've provided no example of an earlier movie that shows someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner, your post is worthless.
I'll also point out the very strong likelihood that you, being a well-established idiot, haven't the faintest clue regarding what is or isn't a realistic method of starting a car without a key.
I don't dance, tell jokes or wear my pants too tight, but I do know about a thousand songs. -
igetitfaster — 10 years ago(February 12, 2016 08:51 AM)
That required an edit?
It was worse before?
Given that you've provided no example of an earlier movie that shows someone starting a car without a key in a realistic manner, your post is worthless.
Ah, the old
Argument from ignorance
fallacy. Neat.
haven't the faintest clue regarding what is or isn't a realistic method of starting a car without a key
But I obviously use a computer as evidenced by my posting here. So what precludes me from obtaining that information the same way you did a few weeks ago?
I suspect, but I don't know for sure
Indeed.
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MaximRecoil — 10 years ago(February 12, 2016 11:17 PM)
That required an edit?
Obviously, else I wouldn't have edited it, numbnuts.
It was worse before?
It's often been said that there's no such thing as a dumb question. This, of course, isn't true, given that you've asked two of them in a row.
Ah, the old Argument from ignorance fallacy. Neat.
No, simple fellow; that would require that I claimed the thing in question to be true. If not for your unfortunate reading disability, combined with your equally unfortunate case of "The Stupids", you would know that I never did any such thing. On the other hand, you have made an assertion
"You mean the first movie you've seen; meaning you would do well to watch more movies."
and have failed to support it. Your sentence indicates that, in fact, there is an earlier movie which showed a car being started without a key in a realistic manner. Without support, it is nothing more than a mere assertion, which is worthless, and can legitimately be dismissed out of hand.
Then you proved that you don't know how to read properly when you typed
"Are you prepared to prove you have seen every film ever made so as to establish credibility when you state that it has never been done in a film."
given that, in reality, I never stated "that it has never been done in a film".
But I obviously use a computer as evidenced by my posting here.
Thank you, Captain Obvious.
So what precludes me from obtaining that information the same way you did a few weeks ago?
LOL @ your second attempt at a crystal ball reading, Miss Cleo. I've worked on cars since I was a teenager, and I've worked on them quite frequently during the past 5 years, which is when I started bringing my derelict 1969 Dodge back to life. I learned a lot about ignition systems in particular when I converted it from its original points-type ignition to solid-state electronic ignition (using a standard Chrysler electronic ignition distributor, a General Motors HEI module, and a Ford ignition coil). I've done all the work on that car at my mechanic friend's auto repair garage, and in exchange for letting me raid his junkyard for stuff I needed for my car, I did a lot of work on his customers' cars, so I've worked on, and watched work being done on, a wide variety of cars and trucks, from old to new.
There is an obvious difference between knowledge gained from experience and knowledge gained strictly from reading, and you've established that you are too stupid to recognize it, which isn't surprising, given that you've already established your idiocy in other ways as well.
By the way, July 11, 2015 wasn't "a few weeks ago".
I suspect, but I don't know for sure
Indeed.
Your concession is noted, road apple.
I don't dance, tell jokes or wear my pants too tight, but I do know about a thousand songs. -
Captain_Wesker — 10 years ago(February 13, 2016 04:41 AM)
I'm convinced "igetitfaster" has to fulfill his a$shole quota somehow and has chosen IMDB for the job.
Either that, or he graduated from the GIFT academy with flying colors.
It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing
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igetitfaster — 10 years ago(February 14, 2016 09:08 AM)
The lady doth protest too much methinks
You can lie as much as you want herebut who are you trying to convince? Me? Members of the moron brigade now coming to your rescue? Yourself?
Anyway, all this 'dismissing' is kinda getting boring now. Ive already demonstated that you are a liar so that about wraps it up.
thanks for participating.
I Excel and Prevail