Emergency service in my car - How do I turn it off?

[Jetboy]

If we assume the op is rational, reasonable and somewhat well informed the question sounds shady at best.

First, the idea of living in a society like ours anonymously is irrational. It cannot be done. And if you wanted to do it you would not use a computer or phone. You would not drive around a vehicle with a big identification plate on both ends. You would not give the information to insurance companies and the state. You would not have a drivers license. The list could go on. The point is that driving a car legally is mutually exclusive with hiding. In the united states you will not do both. If you think you can do this you might as well get put the tinfoil and we can end this discussion. Its not rational.

Second, considering this there are only a few things that the sos system is actually used for. Signaling emergency response to emergencies and tracking stolen cars. There is a difference between fixing a glitch and disabling a system. When you ask to disable not fix you implicate either stolen car or some reason for not wanting emergency response under any circumstance. Why might someone want to eliminate the possibility of an occupant calling for help? What are you doing that is so secret that you do not want to have an ambulance or police in a rollover? I can only think of a few reasons. And most of them aren't good. Its kidnapping. Drug running. Weapons dealing. Transporting stolen property. Etc.

So help me out. What rational reason is there (assuming you recognize that you cannot hide in today's society) for disabling permanently not fixing?

 

[2014 Warthog]

Just to add a little more gas on the paranoia fire. :hiding:

Hopefully everyone also understands that the newer the ECU is (2007 or newer), the more likely that it is recording your speed and throttle position, brake usage and a lot of other information continuously (In a loop over the last few seconds). This information is continuously scrolling off into nothingness until you are in an accident, then it gets permanently recorded. The information can then be pulled through the ODB connector and becomes evidence that can be used after an accident by police or insurance companies...

Here is a PDF that explains it:
http://kjccs.com/documents/ToyotaEDR_Report_Explanation_and_FAQ.pdf

Actually I kind of wanted to have the tracking system, was looking at a runner that had it but ended up with one that didn't. It could be seriously helpful in saving your life if you went offroad on a lonely stretch of highway after 10 hours of driving.

 

[Mistaken]

First, a lot of innocent things can sound shady if not well explained, and I think it's natural to make some assumptions until things are clarified.

If we assume the op is rational, reasonable and somewhat well informed the question sounds shady at best.

What is with all these assumptions? He asked a question... Answer it, or don't. Otherwise, why do you care?

 

[Jayhawk5G]

What is with all these assumptions? He asked a question... Answer it, or don't. Otherwise, why do you care?

You are assuming I care...

 

[Mistaken]

You are assuming I care...

Negative. Your attention to this thread shows you care. :cheer2:

 

[Jetboy]

What is with all these assumptions? He asked a question... Answer it, or don't. Otherwise, why do you care?

If its your stolen car then u care? Otherwise not?

 

[flatspin]

Well I own a 2014 4Runner and I want to turn it off also.

Mostly because I keep hitting it when I try to open sun roof..

:hiding:

 

[Engineer]

for a modest fortune [MENTION=66316]1engineer[/MENTION] and I will design and build a Faraday cage around anyones 4runner who wants privacy. It will fit all trim levels across model years. I will start a new thread for a group buy.

 

[Antman]

Personally, I would drill a big fuggin' hole in that S.O.S. button in the overhead console. That should do it.

But hey, that's just how I role.:closed_2:

 

[BlackWorksInc]

for a modest fortune [MENTION=66316]1engineer[/MENTION] and I will design and build a Faraday cage around anyones 4runner who wants privacy. It will fit all trim levels across model years. I will start a new thread for a group buy.

More interested in the Faraday cage protecting against Electromagnetic Emissions of large enough amplitude to fry electronics than privacy. (Another future possible tweak to the 4Runner later down the line...)

 

[Engineer]

More interested in the Faraday cage protecting against Electromagnetic Emissions of large enough amplitude to fry electronics than privacy. (Another future possible tweak to the 4Runner later down the line...)

I am envisioning a 4runner in a giant shopping cart but we are in the initial design phase.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

I am envisioning a 4runner in a giant shopping cart but we are in the initial design phase.

I was thinking fine, flexible, coated woven mesh that is used like DynaMat under the sheet metal, around modules, wiring harnesses, ect. the biggest issue being how to shield the gaping area's where there is glass...

That and I suppose creating an effective ground... or maybe a capacitor bank?

 

[Engineer]

I was thinking fine, flexible, coated woven mesh that is used like DynaMat under the sheet metal, around modules, wiring harnesses, ect. the biggest issue being how to shield the gaping area's where there is glass...

That and I suppose creating an effective ground... or maybe a capacitor bank?

Stop it you are starting to sound half way serious

 

[Jetboy]

If people are seriously concerned, you can rest easy. Most cars will have little or no effect from an EMP. EMPs have been tested in labs on modern cars. Most had no effect.

 

[Eagle]

for a modest fortune [MENTION=66316]1engineer[/MENTION] and I will design and build a Faraday cage around anyones 4runner who wants privacy. It will fit all trim levels across model years. I will start a new thread for a group buy.

Will my tires rub on it?

 

[dawudih]

If people are seriously concerned, you can rest easy. Most cars will have little or no effect from an EMP. EMPs have been tested in labs on modern cars. Most had no effect.

At my last job, we had huge blast doors that were designed to close when an EMP was detected; lightning storms would trigger them occasionally. The older guys would always laugh at anybody with a car built later than the mid 90's saying they wouldn't be able to bug out if an atomic blast went off.

 

[Jetboy]

At my last job, we had huge blast doors that were designed to close when an EMP was detected; lightning storms would trigger them occasionally. The older guys would always laugh at anybody with a car built later than the mid 90's saying they wouldn't be able to bug out if an atomic blast went off.

I don't know how the blast doors could actually work. Anything that could sense an EMP would not be able to transmit the signal back in time to close the doors before the EMP actually arrived. It propagates near the speed of light. Considering the distances relative to velocity, the pulse would reach the facility at least at the same time as the signal to close the doors if not earlier. And with an EMP the pulse is usually a declining wave form so the initial wave is the greatest energy and most damaging. I could be convinced otherwise, but I'd be pretty skeptical of the functional value of EMP doors.

I'm not an expert on EMPs by any means, but I do have a degree in physics so I have some background. It's extremely variable depending on the pulse formation and energy level, the orientation of the vehicle to the pulse, and a host of other factors. It's very hard if not impossible to either predict or replicate the world of possibilities in a lab, or even theoretically. The best lab I know of is Sandia. I've been there, but it's very compartmentalized with access limited based on your needs, so I've never seen their facility that does EMP simulation. My understanding is that it's one of the best in the world, but I highly doubt it can generate something similar to the conditions of a nuclear EMP. The energy level of the nuke is really hard to replicate in a safe lab setting with a reasonable budget.

With that caveat, the testing that has been done seems to show that most cars are already pretty immune to most em radiation. They need to be or all the components would interfere with other components. The radio would have all sorts of static. The ignition would disrupt the CPU. I can envision a host of issues that would come with unshielded electronics all together in a car, but I'm not a auto engineer, so I really don't know. That's my best guess as to why most electronics in vehicles are pretty safe from at least lower level EMPs. Not to mention the vehicle its self - especially the engine bay - is a natural Faraday cage for many wavelengths. Finally car wires are pretty short relative to their conduction capacity. EMPs damage electronics primarily by inducing current in the wires exceeding the capacity and causing thermal failure (the wires melt). Long wires relative to capacity are much higher risk. That's why the transmission likes are probably the highest risk, but car wiring is relatively low risk. And I don't know, but it may be the case the very very small electronics like 14nm chips are actually EMP resistant. I just don't know enough to make that kind of assessment, but it's certainly possible.

 

[dawudih]

I don't know how the blast doors could actually work. Anything that could sense an EMP would not be able to transmit the signal back in time to close the doors before the EMP actually arrived. It propagates near the speed of light. I could be convinced otherwise, but I'd be pretty skeptical of the functional value of EMP doors.

You're right. I think the idea was "we're under attack, button down". Besides, the 25 ton doors took 2-3 minutes to close.

 

[Intruder]

At my last job, we had huge blast doors that were designed to close when an EMP was detected; lightning storms would trigger them occasionally. The older guys would always laugh at anybody with a car built later than the mid 90's saying they wouldn't be able to bug out if an atomic blast went off.

How often did people reenact this?

 

[Jayhawk5G]

Negative. Your attention to this thread shows you care. :cheer2:

I never cared why he was asking, and I didn't make assumptions about it (though I didn't find it unreasonable that others did.) I just think he made stupid comments after that about "progressives"... Everybody knows that person who make anything about politics, you know the one that most others dislike?