The Smoking Tire Podcast — December 16, 2025

Episode: Ferrari 12C Review; Zack's M3 Goes Tracking; Q&A (FMK!)
Hosts: Matt Farah, Zack Klapman

Overview

In this episode, Matt Farah and Zack Klapman offer a deep dive into the new Ferrari 12C after an extended test drive, recap Zack's recent track day with his BMW M3 at the revamped Willow Springs “Streets” circuit, and take on a lively batch of Q&A from Patreon supporters—including a few FMK (F*ck, Marry, Kill) rounds and “guess the car based on gas station snacks.” With their signature humor, passion for driving, and absurd attention to detail, Matt and Zack deliver candid analysis, real-life anecdotes, and plenty of hot takes from the world of performance cars.

Ferrari 12C Review (00:00–38:00)

Ferrari Naming and Design

• Ferrari 12C—the official name is “12 Cilindri,” prompting the hosts to poke fun at Ferrari's insistence you use Italian for an alphanumeric model.
  • Matt: “You’re going to turn alphanumeric into words? Which is fine. I don’t have to say it in Italian” (03:36).
  • Zack: “Just call it SP3” (04:51).

Styling and Presence

• Front-engine, mid-motor V12 layout reminiscent of the 812 Superfast; a long wheelbase with the engine set behind the front axle.
• The styling is recognized as a Daytona homage, with the hosts preferring the look, especially with body-colored rear deck lids rather than the default black plastic.
  • Matt: “I would certainly have the top and the rear deck lid painted to match the body color. I don’t like them in black at all. The nose bit which is bare carbon, not black on this car—I don’t mind that.” (12:00)
  • Zack: “The back is really busy … it’s like diffusers and plenums and carbon and stuff. Some of it’s functional but some is a design choice.” (12:11)

Driving Experience

• 819hp V12, revving out to 9,500rpm, with peak power and torque very high in the rev range.
  • Matt: “Obviously it’s 819 horsepower, but get this power band—819 horsepower at 9250 RPM. Red line’s 9500. ... Peak torque at 7250. ... It has nothing below 3,000 RPM, which is hilarious.” (04:52, 06:52)
• Comparison to Aston Martin Vanquish: The Vanquish is “quote better” in numbers (more torque, lower revs), but “the whole car exists to serve this [Ferrari] engine.”
• Notable driving impressions:
  • “Very sharp turn in that’s happening over there. And it pulls like a f***ing cigarette boat.” (04:52)
  • Needs to be revved to enjoy, lacks low-end grunt—“But you do it because it’s fun.” (08:26)
  • “This car inspired me to really drive like an asshole on the highway … you have to rev the shit out of it.” (13:00)

Comfort, Features, and Usability

• Disappointing cabin comfort for the price: minimal seat adjustability, no lumbar, no heated seats, limited legroom, and practicality is not GT-level.
  • Matt: “For this kind of car and this kind of price, the seats are not good. Straight up, they’re not good.” (09:07)
  • “I don’t have enough legroom in this car … my hips and lower back are pretty shot.” (09:56)
• Not particularly practical, more show than go in terms of usability.

Peculiarities & Quirks

• Early production electrical gremlins: Trunk ghost-opens randomly, infotainment screen lag (the latter gating basic controls like the nose lift).
  • Matt: “The trunk on this car has a ghost … it opens on its own. ... I’d have to check the trunk before and after every single drive.” (22:00)
  • Infotainment lag: “Sometimes you get in the car, you’re sitting there, the thing is just a horse [on screen], and you’re like, I’d like to get out of this driveway.” (24:35)

Reliability & Warranty

• Modern Ferraris are “overwhelmingly very reliable cars now” (26:22).
• Warranty: 3-year unlimited mile warranty, 7-year unlimited mile included maintenance.

Verdict

• Unique, high-revving V12 experience, “a real treat,” best for those under 6’ tall or with a 30” inseam—“these things are boss.”
• Ferrari quirks remain despite excellence.

Morgan Aero 8 Sidebar (29:37–37:29)

• Matt shares a story about a friend (“Corinne”/Korean) acquiring a Morgan Aero 8, powered by a BMW 4.4 V8, praising its rarity:
  • Matt: “Anything from the Aero range in America, there’s like 50, 60 of those, maybe, in the entire country ... Having a Morgan Aero 8 ... in America ... it fucking rules.” (34:56)
• Zack: “They look like they’re from the future and the past at the same time.” (35:15)

Zack's M3 at Willow Springs: Track Day Recap (38:00–53:00)

New Willow “Streets” Experience

• First drive on the freshly resurfaced circuit during an “influencer day.”
• The good:
  • “The surface is great ... bowling alley level everywhere.” (41:47)
  • New safer layouts; “runoff is so nice to have in a car.”
• The less good:
  • New tarmac is still a little slippery, especially at the “bus stop” section.

Facility Improvements

• Major upgrade to track buildings—“almost too nice” (43:08), but a welcome improvement over the “milk crate” old facility.

Track Action & Car Notes

• Community:
  • Attendance by various influencers, including Larry Chen (fastest lap in his turbocharged GR86).
  • Jay Z2Cents, Vin Andotra with an E92 M3 giveaway car, and a wild, ex-race IROC Camaro.
• Zack’s BMW E90 M3:
  • Finally tested after “shaking it apart for two years” with upgrades (KW ClubSports, sway bars).
  • Strong handling, but brake fade due to “performance street pads” rather than true track compounds—a “basic mistake.”
  • Zack: “Car turns in, feels like it weighs 500 pounds less. Corners pretty flat but not too flat. ... I was so happy to finally, like, you know, take the sheepdog to where there are sheep.” (48:12)

Highlights

• Wildest car: Ex-Trans Am Camaro with “no joke, five or six-inch exhaust coming out the passenger door ... sounded like absolute old school Trans Am car.” (46:38)
• Vin gets black-flagged for drifting repeatedly for the cameras: “After like, six times, it’s like, you got the shot.” (51:45)

Listener Q&A & FMK Segment (53:00–89:00)

Sample of Key Questions and Insights

• Used Cadillac CT5 Blackwing—will it hold value?

  • “They depreciate better [slower] than AMGs and M cars but not as slowly as CTS-V wagons.” (56:26)

• 911 Turbo S: Supercar or Not?

  • Zack and Matt debate, both ultimately agreeing it crosses the “supercar” barrier by price, exclusivity, and performance—especially outside LA.
  • Matt: “Turbo S & GT3 cross into supercar. ... For me, it’s a fluid line.” (59:14)

• Affordable Enthusiast Cars for $50K

  • Suggestions: Toyota GR86/BRZ, E46 M3, used 997 Porsche, C6 Z06, V8 Vantage, Taycan (used), C63 AMG.

• FMK: Bump Stops, No AC, or Straight Pipe?

  • Both would “marry” no-AC, “kill” being slammed on bump stops, and “f*ck” a straight pipe, if forced. (85:01)

Notable Quotes from Q&A

• Matt, on luxury car quirks: “You always gotta give up something to drive a Ferrari ... it's funny the ways that we discover in which these cars end up being weird.” (26:22)
• Zack, on the new Willow Springs building: “It does feel ... you feel like you can't be any kind of dirtbag.” (42:46)
• Matt, on 997/991 vs. new 911T: “A 997 is not the same thing with CarPlay. That’s a different car.” (83:20)

Funny Moments & “Guess the Car by Snack” (72:17–74:00)

• Doritos and a Monster? “Challenger Hellcat or SRT ... drove it off the base.”
• Cherry Pepsi & meatball sub? “That’s literally Foley. ... Highly financed Grand Cherokee.”

Industry Talk

• Porsche’s plans for Boxster EV—delayed due to shifting regulatory landscape.
• Chevy Volt as a great under-$10K daily.
• Toyota/Lexus versus GM coverage of the “enthusiast market”—GM wins when all brands included.

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Time | Topic | |---------|--------------------------------------------------| | 00:00 | Ferrari 12C — Naming, specs, review | | 12:00 | 12C Design Impressions | | 22:00 | Ferrari quirks: trunk & infotainment issues | | 29:37 | Morgan Aero 8 sidebar | | 38:00 | Zack's M3 at Willow Springs Track Day | | 46:38 | IROC Camaro story | | 53:00 | Listener Q&A — Used Blackwing, 911 Turbo S | | 62:00 | Watch-buying advice (Cartier, Shinola tangent) | | 67:11 | Worst sales experience (Matt's V6 Mustang story) | | 70:59 | Car brand planetary names (Uranus, Jupiter) | | 72:17 | Guess the car by gas station snack | | 77:52 | Porsche Boxster EV talk & regulatory changes | | 84:45 | FMK Mods | | 85:56 | FMK: M3, C63, CTS-V | | 86:40 | S8 vs. CT6-V | | 87:23 | Harry Metcalfe’s Maserati Grecale Trofeo |

Closing Thoughts

This episode exemplifies The Smoking Tire’s mix of technical car talk, personal driving stories, and insider industry banter. Matt and Zack leverage their perspectives as reviewers and real-world owners to dissect not only the Ferrari 12C’s driving magic and quirks, but also the realities of performance-car ownership and the nuance of the enthusiast market. Their Q&A rounds are both insightful and irreverent, offering practical guidance, laughs, and a sense of community with their listeners.

Most Memorable Quote:

• Matt, on modern Ferrari ownership:
  “Now, like the cars, like run and drive. They don't overheat. Like, they're...overwhelmingly very reliable cars they're building now. They really are. And they give you the unlimited warranty. ... But it's also—you still gotta give up a little something. Shit's gonna be weird. We just don't know how yet.” (26:22)

[Watch their car reviews and more at youtube.com/thesmokingtire]

Patreon: patreon.com/thesmokingtirepodcast
IG/Twitter: @thesmokingtire / @fakezackklapman

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