How to Hotwire a Car

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

It's not just criminals who may feel the need to hotwire a car. Everyone knows that "I lost my keys" feeling, and there are ways to get out of trouble. Hotwiring is a technique traditionally used by criminals and should be discouraged.
The following situations may prompt a person to think of hotwiring their car.

• Lost Keys.
  
• Broken or deformed Key.
  
• Malfunctioning ignition or starter lock out switch
  
• Wish to steal a car without keys
  

Steps

1. Find the yellow and black wires make sure you don't pick the radio wire which is also.This may not work with older models.
   
2. Touch them together to create a circuit.
   
3. The car will start up!
   
4. (Warning: Only use this technique when you need to.)
   

Tips

• You should always have a spare car key at your home, for use in emergencies. Keep an extra key in your wallet or purse and get in the habit of ALWAYS checking that you have your wallet or purse before leaving your car.
  
• Always have breakdown insurance coverage (often called roadside assistance), that will at least get you (and your car) home.
  
• Make sure you have details that prove you own the car or have permission to hotwire it.
  

Warnings

• Don't break the law. Car crime is a 'felony' (serious crime) in the United States, and most other countries. Punishments normally involve a prison term, which can mean the loss of voting rights, exclusion from work, difficulty in obtaining licenses, exclusion from possession of firearms, and ineligibility for election to public office.
  
• This method bypasses the neutral safty feature of your car. If your car is in gear it may start moving and cause INJURY OR DEATH. Be sure your vehicle is in neutral before atempting this.
  
• Never keep your spare keys inside the vehicle. It doesn't help when you're locked out, unless you are willing to break a window.
  
• In all reality, the color of the wire does not matter, please locate, under the steering column, two wires coming from the ignition. Those are the two wires, it is false to state they're the same color in every car.
  
• By hot wiring a car, it can void a warranty and cause a lot of wear on your starter.
  
• This procedure is very likely to fail with any recent (1995-onwards) vehicle due to such things as vehicle immobilisers, body computers, and coded keys. Fiddling with the ignition key wiring on such vehicles will likely result in a much more immobile vehicle in very short order.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Drive a Car
  
• How to Fix a Car That Stalls
  
• How to Install A Car Radio Head Unit
  
• How to Change Oil on a Car
  
• How to Switch the Wheels on a Car
  
• How to Change the Oil in Your Car
  
• How to Store a Car
  
• How to Make a Car Spin
  
• How to Avoid Being Carjacked
  
• How to Roll a Car
  

Sources and Citations

• Breakdown Direct offer national free Key Replacement. UK Only.
  
• BullDog Wiring Diagrams (Free)
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Hotwire a Car. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.