Beggs used the sounds of the compressor in several scenes to create a sense of tension. Like in the scene where Tucker explodes after the cars designer Alex Tremulus is almost crushed by the car. The sounds of the compressor is used at the beginning of the scene. It stops at a very critical point. The fact that it stops helps to create ambience and mood that is dramatic in nature.
Emotional realism is a kind of "antromorphic mirror" placed in the diegesis. In the same manner as music does, the soundscape reflects the mood of the story and the characters feelings.