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Is there a possibility of getting the jeep started in Jurassic World?

According to the Canon TimeLine of Jurassic Park, the Jeep has been sitting there for 22 years. There are several things I can't see happening to get it started.

  • Tires would be flat or degraded
  • Fuel would be too degraded to run
  • possible seized engine
  • Rust

Being a car guy who has worked on cars as a hobby most of my life, I don't see it happening. But, this is a movie and there may have been measures taken, that could have allowed them to get it started.

Any information that addresses this in or out of the movie?

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    well, they did get it started, so as far as the JP universe is concerned, yes there's a possibility. If you asking if that could happen in "real life" those questions are out of scope. IIRC the only thing special they did in the movie was find a spare battery.
    – KutuluMike
    Jul 15, 2016 at 11:11
  • Yeah, in-movie, the only thing wrong with Jeep 29 was that the battery was dead, so they got a new one from a nearby maintenance vehicle to "repair" the Jeep. Presumably there was something else wrong with the maintenance vehicle that meant they couldn't just drive that instead. Outside of the movie, it's just another Easter Egg. The Jeep HAD to run because it's Jeep freakin' 29. Plot and Fans demand a working Jeep 29. Jul 15, 2016 at 11:15
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    It probably stood more chance of starting than the VW Beetle in Woody Allen's Sleeper. That had been in a cave over 100 years.
    – Chenmunka
    Jul 15, 2016 at 11:30
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    i personally have driven a car that has been sitting in an old womens garage for approx 15 years. It didnt run "good" but it was able to drive to my place and to some shops to do some maintenance.
    – Himarm
    Jul 15, 2016 at 12:18

2 Answers 2

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In the movie (and largely due to the need for tight editing) you could be mistaken for thinking that all they did was switch out the battery. According to the film's Junior Novelisation, however, it's clear that the boys spent some considerable time getting the jeep back into a workable condition, we just didn't see it. This presumably includes re-inflating the tyres and turning the engine over manually a few times to make sure that it's not seized.

You may also want to note that the fuel for the Jurassic Park jeep came from a Jurassic World vehicle, not from the original jeep. Presumably whoever stored it in the garage would have taken the time to drain off the fuel to prevent clogging.

“A 1992 Jeep Wrangler Sahara, beige,” Gray said.

Zach popped the hood and looked at the engine. “You remember all that stuff from when Dad fixed up Grandpa’s Malibu?”

and

They went back outside to the crashed Jurassic World vehicle, salvaged the battery, the spark plugs, and a can of gasoline attached to the back. They worked fast, on edge, listening for the slightest rustle of leaves. Zach heard the roar of a dinosaur in the distance.

and

“I mean, I know for sure that thing is definitely not out there,” Zach said. “Totally safe.” He handed his brother the car battery. “Here. Take this. You’re stronger than me.”
Gray smiled. They lugged the car parts back into the garage and started working on the old Jeep.

and

In the garage attached to the old Jurassic Park visitors’ center, Zach finished connecting a cable to the battery. Gray sat in the driver’s seat, peering over the wheel.
“Okay,” Zach called. “Turn it over!”
Gray turned the key. The Jeep chugged, coughed…and started!


For what it's worth, in the original novelisation, the equipment sheds contained many useful items including fuel, oil and spare tyres. It's clear that the staff were doing their own servicing (due to the remoteness of the island) so there's probably spares of everything you'd need to get an old jeep running.

Grant stumbled deep in the gloomy recesses of the building. He pushed past five-gallon containers of herbicide, tree-pruning equipment, spare tires for a Jeep, coils of cyclone fencing, hundred-pound fertilizer bags, stacks of brown ceramic insulators, empty motor-oil cans, work lights and cables.

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These are factors that could have helped the jeep to be able to start after 22 years sitting unused. Of course, it is speculation.

The vehicle was parked in a garage

This protected it from sunshine and probably rain. This helped protect it from sun damage and rusting due to water exposure.

The vehicle may have been left with a fuel stabilizer in the tank

Jeep 29 was used to pick up Hammond and company from the helicopter pad and drive them to the main compound. After that, most of the personnel are leaving for the weekend. The whole point of the park is it is built around the idea of maximizing automation and minimizing personnel. They presumably have at least 29 jeeps for a facility that I'm not sure even always has 29 people (certainly not during the movie, as most of the people leave on the boat before things go to pot). Those jeeps could sit around for months at a time, which means to protect them they might add a fuel stabilizer, which helps prevent the breakdown of fuel.

So maybe they dumped a bunch of stabilizer into jeep 29 right after it got back from dropping off everyone at the main compound. Thanks to the protection from the garage and the stabilizer the jeep clearly only suffered from a dead battery. Once the battery was replaced, the starter motor still worked and the engine wasn't seized, and it worked, at least as long as they needed it to.

For all we know it didn't start again after that, because all the gum and crap in the fuel tank was pushed up through the lines and then they clogged the thing and it never started again.

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  • The fuel they used came from the Jurassic World jeep, not the original jeep.
    – Valorum
    Jul 15, 2016 at 17:37
  • @Valorum how do you know that? Jul 15, 2016 at 17:38
  • "They went back outside to the crashed Jurassic World vehicle, salvaged the battery, the spark plugs, and a can of gasoline attached to the back" - Junior novelisation (based on original screenplay)
    – Valorum
    Jul 15, 2016 at 17:38
  • I guess it depends on if you think the novelization is telling things that happened behind the scenes of the movie, or if it is expanding the scene of the movie with things that didn't necessarily happen in the film. Jul 15, 2016 at 17:40
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    In this instance, the novel is based on the screenplay. The events of the novel basically mirror the events of the film without especially elaborating. The only stuff that's in the book that isn't in the film is stuff that's been removed by editing (such as a montage scene of the boys fixing an engine while music plays) or deleted scenes.
    – Valorum
    Jul 15, 2016 at 17:42

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