I would love to see

"Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To" (murdersofa)
03/08/2015 at 12:24 • Filed to: None

...the look on a potential car thief's face when they see my Civic.

I got a quick-release wheel

It's quite nice for a $70 China thing.

The $70 got me three kits (wheel, hub, quickrelease) made by different companies with very little intention of being used together. As such, I have a pile of spare parts and none of the two horn buttons I god work with the final product. Good thing my horn doesn't work anyways.

DISCUSSION (33)

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:29

oh dear god... your ricing this thing out...

Dusty Ventures > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:31

Cheap quick-release wheels make me nervous

Soloburrito > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:32

Ha, i bought one of those but strictly as a temporary solution. It doesn't take much to flex/bend those cheap steering wheels.

I'll be investing in a proper setup at some point. Probably when I get serious about going back to the track.

TwinCharged - Is Now UK Opponaut > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:34

No steering wheel and stick. That's going to be bloody hilarious.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > TheD0k_2many toys 2little time
03/08/2015 at 12:34

Nah, I park in a seedy area of town and these things are ridiculously easy to steal. I figured detaching the steering wheel and tossing it in the trunk would make my car look a little less worth the trouble.

Also the slightly smaller diameter feels quite nice.

jkm7680 > TheD0k_2many toys 2little time
03/08/2015 at 12:35

Hate to say it, but spot on.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Soloburrito
03/08/2015 at 12:36

I beat the shit out of the wheel, stood on it, tried to flex it, etc. because I was worried about the same thing. It didn't give. I was impressed.

scoob > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:38

Hate to be that guy, along with other guys being that guy, but now you have no more airbag + a potentially bendable wheel.

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:38

uh ok cause late 90's hondas are very desirable now days. Cheap quick release kits are terrible. Just buy a new wheel, quick release gives even more slack into the steering unless you get a real good kit. A missing steering wheel is not going to stop someone from breaking a window to see whats in the car

jkm7680 > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:41

Just get one of those stering wheel locks. Airbag>Quick release wheel.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > scoob
03/08/2015 at 12:42

*shrug*

Jumping up and down on it wasn't able to deform it even in the slightest (then again I'm pretty light), and the lack of airbag doesn't bother me much.

scoob > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:45

I know this is Oppo and everyone thinks they're amazing drivers and won't crash. That may be true, but the other people on the road are dumbasses. You don't want to be killed by them.

I bet you think I sound like your mother now lol, but it's up to you I guess.

TopSirloin > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 12:48

Does it have the rigidity of a pool noodle? I'd expect it to have the rigidity of a pool noodle for 70$. May the force be with you.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > scoob
03/08/2015 at 12:53

I doubt people would be criticizing me this much if I had bought a Monte Carlo SS, IROC-Z Camaro, or some other car that never had an airbag or crumple zones, but by removing the 17 year old probably dangerous in its own right airbag from my car for reasons that are my own I will now insta-die?

A friend of mine got in a fender bender that deployed her airbag. It had an excessive amount of propellant (1999 Taurus or sable or something like that) on it and tore the skin off of her forehead. Fortunately there was no permanent damage, just a bigass scar on her forehead where they reattached the huge flap of skin, a bloodied eyeball, and I'm now terrified of old airbags designed pre-2000. Am I justified? Doubt it. Doesn't matter. Due to a computer bug, the Buick doesn't have functioning airbags either.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > TopSirloin
03/08/2015 at 12:56

This is the fourth or fifth time I've said this, but I did a goddamn tap dance routine on that wheel and did everything in my power to try bending it to absolutely no result. It's pretty hard to fuck up steel. The original wheel was actually flimsier due to the spokes being tiny-ass dowel rods.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 13:02

Easy, jimmy the lock release the hand brake load onto a flatbead and away it goes.

TopSirloin > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 13:24

Yeah I read the other four or five times you mentioned it. Sorry to pile on, it was too easy. In any case, good luck!

Kevin Barrett > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 13:24

So easy to steal, in fact, that all a thief needs is a $70 quick-release (quick-attach?) wheel, which he may or may not have watched you throw into the trunk.

AthomSfere > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 13:24

Just curious who declared it had too much propellant?

Not to argue, but just point a few things out:

Most likely the true cause had more to do with seating position.

A scar is always better than a fatality.

airbags still save lives.

airbags have come a long way, although lat 90's still did have issues.

I was in a 60mph accident (non-right of way person turned out right in front of me from a corner I couldn't see around). 2000 Taurus, not a scratch despite doing a 180, hitting the other car a second time and then continuing another 180 down the highway.

itranthelasttimeiparkedit > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 13:42

did you try testing it for flex? Also you know you don't have an airbag now right?

(I have an e30 that doesn't have a working airbag so I can sympathize. I figure I'll be dead in an accident anyways, the car feels like a tin can. Besides, airbags kill more people than they save anyways.)

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > AthomSfere
03/08/2015 at 13:56

no body every pays attention to the seating position.

I'm always afraid to look up the details on how many have been killed sitting too close to airbags.

It's the reason my mom's airbag is de-activated, she's too short to sit far enough away from it.

My wife used to push the limit and I told her if she wasn't comfortable further back I'd have to pull the fuse on it. My mom literally drives 6 inches from the steering wheel, it would kill her.

AthomSfere > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
03/08/2015 at 14:02

I can see both!

But my seating position is generally perfect, although I get mocked by friends and family for going through the hassle every time I get in a car I didn't drive last.

The fact that I have walked away without a scratch from two accidents and heard essentially "I can't believe you survived that" says I am more than OK with the hassle.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > AthomSfere
03/08/2015 at 14:08

I'm glad, and I'm glad you walked away fine.

I'm all for airbags, but if you sit too close they definitely will do more damage then good.

TheJWT > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 14:10

My friends and I used to do something like this when we would ride our bikes to High School. We'd take the seats off and carry them around all day in class....

And that confusing handle thing coming up out of the center console is enough to deter most thieves.

McMike > Dusty Ventures
03/08/2015 at 14:12

Especially in Civics.

Kinja'd!!!

gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 14:40

This. I've never owned a car with an airbag. Until 2001, neither had my parents. My parents are both fine, despite having been involved in many collisions. My mom even managed to roll a Pinto without more than a few scrapes and bruises.
Now, if I had a family I'd definitely want them riding in something modern and safe, but me? I'll drive what I want.

404usernotfound > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/08/2015 at 14:50

I don't think it would even faze these guys.

Arben72 > TheD0k_2many toys 2little time
03/08/2015 at 15:37

Believe it or not VERY DESIRABLE. No one wants a stolen whole car because that's easily found. Stolen parts are no different then non- stolen parts though. 90's Hondas are the most common stolen cars. Also earily airbags if they haven't been replaced every ten years are almost as good as a takata airbag. That being said there are better ways to protect your ride.

AthomSfere > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner
03/08/2015 at 22:08

And that's exactly it, there is an exception to when airbags make sense. There are also people who make bad decisions, sit wrong, use the wrong hand placement and break arms in minor accidents.

The unfortunate thing is people take that small percentage and try to justify not using seatbelts/ airbags at all. So I am OK with those with good reason. It's a lot like airplanes. They truly are safe by any metric, but anyone touting that we shouldn't fly because everyone on most commercial plane crashes dies horribly... well...

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > AthomSfere
03/09/2015 at 09:49

Well said

MonkeePuzzle > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/09/2015 at 11:59

you don't just take your ECU? I take mine :P yup, I get looks, but less so now that it has a laptop cd-rom drive cover :D

Kinja'd!!!

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > MonkeePuzzle
03/09/2015 at 22:06

That is actually genius. Annoyingly, the ECU in the Civic is buried behind the glove compartment, but on a car like my mom's where it's two thumbscrews and four plugs away from being removed that's a brilliant idea.

MonkeePuzzle > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To
03/09/2015 at 22:48

nope, not behind the glovebox, its behind that little plastic kick panel at the passengers feet. three plugs. I just never bolt mine in. and mine has a custom single plug to avoid wear on the factory ones, and to make it impossible to bring your own ECU :)