How could a Terminator ride a vehicle that was made to support the weight of a human?

Question

In Terminator Judgement Day (1991) (T2) there is a scene of where Arnold is riding the motorcycle to follow John Connor, who is being chased by Robert Patrick (T1000). When Arnold jumps off the ledge with the motorcycle and lands, why do the tires not pop? Why do all the vehicles that exist within the series not break down when a terminator is riding them and/or maneuvering them?

The reasoning of why I ask the above is based on the fact that these Terminators like Arnold's T-800 model must at least weigh in at a ton, if not more. I am sure the T-1000 and T-x also weigh a lot as well. So how can these vehicles that exist in the past be able to support them when a Terminator weighs way more than a human body frame or a vehicle that was made to support human weight?

Answer 1

The terminators were designed for infiltration - to be able to sneak inside human enclaves and then terminate the people inside.

If a terminator weighed much more than a human of the same size/build, it would be a dead giveaway - and really easy for the resistance to spot.

Therefore, it seems reasonable to me that the terminators all weighed approximately the same as people.

Answer 2

Josh Friedman said this during a chat with fans:

2:40AM – < ashman01> tantalum is actually very light, like titanium

2:40AM – < schmacky> LUcas@ T3 was stupid for making Terms so heavy.. how could they ever drive the cars if they were that heavy??

2:40AM – < ashman01> or just put a f&^**g scale outside of every resistance base

2:40AM – <~astropixie> So they just suck at swimming, then?

2:40AM – < talli> @ash Didn’t Josh once say Cam weighs about 30% than a human girl her size?

2:40AM – < ashman01> “john does my a$$ look fat?”

2:41AM – < jfhenry> terminators weight hte same as human counterparts

Answer 3

It's a writing inconsistency. The only time I'm aware of where a Terminator's weight has been directly addressed in the movies is after the fight at Emery Animal Hospital in T3 between the T-850 and T-X. Here's a tongue-in-cheek running commentary of the T-850s weight discrepancy between movies.

While the T-850 fires at the T-X ineffectively, the right arm of the T-X undergoes a painfully slow transformation into its most powerful weapon--a plasma cannon capable of causing minor inconvenience to Terminators. Like the T-X, the T-850 doesn't have any basic dodge routines, so the T-X has no problems hitting the T-850 with the cannon. The impact sends the T-850 flying all the way across the parking lot and into a building. The shot also causes the sort of cartoon-styled electrical interference that acts like a temporary x-ray.

The T-850 is temporarily stunned, so the T-X converts the cannon back into a normal arm. As John Connor flees, emergency responders are seen travelling the opposite direction. They arrive at the scene of the explosion, and EMT's quickly locate the T-850. Discovering that the T-850 has no pulse, one of the EMT's attempts to move the T-850 while the other stands there doing nothing. The EMT is unable to move the T-850, because "this guy weighs a ton". Of course. Terminators need to blend in with humans, so naturally they should be built so heavy that they can shatter asphalt and concrete on impact, and react like a stone statue when manipulated by humans. Contrast this with T2, where a 10-year-old boy was able to help a Terminator to its feet. http://downfallofterminator.blogspot.com/2013/04/all-that-is-wrong-with-terminator-3.html