in defense of that first point, I've been in plenty of cars where the panel under the steering wheel was easy to rip off, whether it was screwed in or not.
Plastic is not that strong. especially if its an older car.
especially especially if its a older car thats spent its life in a hot climate.
I remember gta chinatown wars on the DS have an elaborate minigame to hotwire a car, probably wasn't realistic too, I just liked how it took some time.