The Smoking Tire Podcast: Nicole Johnson (YouTuber, Monster Truck Driver)
Hosts: Matt Farah, Zack Klapman
Guest: Nicole Johnson (Nicole Johnson’s Detour)
Date: September 25, 2025
Episode Overview
In this lively episode, Matt Farah welcomes back Nicole Johnson, acclaimed YouTuber, off-road racer, monster truck driver, and, as Matt insists, a hell of a baker. The conversation ranges from tales of Porsche project car adventures, off-road and racing culture, the realities of automotive content creation, Nicole’s journey with her 911, and candid reflections on car culture events like Monterey Car Week, SEMA, and King of the Hammers. True to Nicole's energetic style, the episode is packed with stories, technical deep dives, humor, and honest industry observations.
Major Topics & Discussion Highlights
1. King of the Hammers & Off-Road Racing Culture
[02:13 – 06:40]
- Event Scale & Evolution: Nicole comments on how King of the Hammers (KOH) has exploded in commercial scale, comparing early days with just a handful of people to the enormous, less spectator-friendly event it is today.
- Spectator Experience:
- Matt: "The worst thing about King of the Hammers...it's a pretty shitty spectator sport. Like in person." [02:58]
- Both agree it's more engaging on TV due to difficult viewing logistics and vast scale.
- Racing Superstitions: Joking about how you don’t dare mention “wind” at KOH due to racers’ superstitions.
- Desert Weather Challenges: Nicole shares stories of treacherous desert weather and infamous cold desert wind.
2. Baking, Cookies, and the Blue-Collar Fantasy
[06:40 – 08:41]
- Cookies for the Hosts: Nicole brings (slightly stale but still excellent) cookies for Matt and Zack.
- Alternate Career Dreams:
- Nicole: "When all of this car stuff fails, I'm gonna open up a store in the mall. Nobody's ever done that. And sell cookies."
- Discussion about the “fantasy” of escaping high-pressure jobs for a simple retail or mail-order business—and the harsh reality of retail hours.
3. Cars, Cash, and Car Culture Nostalgia
[08:41 – 13:02]
- Retail Businesses & Car Friends: More laughs about mail-order cookies and the meme: “Need money for Ferrari major service”—with Matt’s real-life tale about the meme’s origins.
- Old-School Forums vs. Social: Nicole discusses the Pirate4x4.com era: "This is all before MySpace and Facebook...that was where we all chatted about the upcoming events or where we were gonna be." [10:49]
- Funny Moments: Nicole reminisces about the “change cup” prank in stores, prior to cashless norms.
4. Porsche Projects & Project Car Realities
[13:02 – 34:35]
- Nicole’s 911 Journey:
- In LA for “Porsche reasons” (Car events, SoCal Euro, Rancho Santa Fe Cars and Coffee).
- Recap of rebuilding her 1978 911 engine with her husband—from broken head studs to a 3.2L short stroke, carbureted hot rod, including twin plugging the heads.
- Technical Deep Dive: Detailing how her husband created wax molds to practice machining, and now does twin-plug conversions for others.
- Ongoing Electrical Gremlins: Solving issues with advice and parts from Marco at TLG Porsche.
- Community Support: Matt underscores how hard it is to book good Porsche mechanics ("15 to 20 weeks" wait at TLG; [33:50]), so Nicole was lucky to get help quickly.
Notable Quote:
- Nicole: "We kind of do everything ourselves, but at some point, you still need to fast forward to the guy who's done it for 40 years. Help me out here. What are we missing?" [32:54]
5. Towing, Trailers & Unexpected Towing Champions
[20:13 – 27:57]
- Long-Haul Choices: Nicole debates driving vs. trailering her 911 to events like Luftgekühlt and Monterey.
- On Towing with Modern Cars:
- Matt blogs about towing with a Bentley ("People should be buying Bentleys to use to tow with." [24:25])
- Both agree the Cayenne Diesel (with an added dipstick!) is superior comfort-wise to her aging Dodge tow rig.
- Nicole: "The truck is so uncomfortable ... my 911 is actually more comfortable." [21:38]
6. Monterey Car Week & Glamping/Camping Hacks
[35:19 – 44:08]
- Monterey Cost Reality Check: Nicole details camping at "Camp Overcrest" instead of paying $3500 for a Travelodge.
- Glamping Details:
- Shows off Instagram-ready campsites ("Very Instagrammable. But it is a financial decision." [36:34])
- Describes the logistics and challenges of camping (no hot showers, dirty shoes, poison oak, packing up camp).
- Contrast between “bougie” hotels and pragmatic camping for car events.
- Access and Inclusion in Car Culture:
- Nicole raises the concern: "How are we gonna get younger people interested in cars if the price of entry is so high?" [44:08]
- Matt lists ways to experience Monterey car culture for free with planning and perseverance.
7. Car Market (New & Used), Affordability, and Bubble Concerns
[49:02 – 53:54]
- Used Car Price Insanity: Nicole shares how she sold her 310k-mile Sequoia for more than she paid for it years earlier, expressing shock at the “floor” for running trucks.
- Matt’s Analysis: Supply chain issues, inflation, and a scarcity of new “cheap” cars push used prices up.
- Auto Loans & Repo Bubble: Matt observes rising repossessions and auto loan defaults, tying them to overall market stress.
8. Audience Q&A Highlights
[53:54 – 68:22] (Selected questions with notable answers)
Fizziest Car Under $100k
Matt: "A Lotus Exige, or maybe a hopped-up Ariel Atom—those are 'bull riding on a fly'." [54:22]
Favorite Old VW?
Nicole: "The sleeper bug that I drove that doesn't even have a Volkswagen motor in it." (11 million views on her channel). [55:20]
Most Memorable Drive?
Nicole: “The FIA Cobra at Willow Springs… there were five actually made. Carroll Shelby sent to Europe to race, and I drove one of them at the track. Very memorable.” [60:38]
Automotive Bucket List?
Nicole: "A real GT40, but I’d also love to do vintage racing, like racing a little Datsun at the Historics." [64:32]
Funniest/Most Memorable Quotes
-
Nicole (on King of the Hammers):
“You don't say the W word. I'm assuming you know what the W word is. So it's wind. And if you say... it will be windy.” [04:08] -
Matt (on Overcrest camping):
"Jews don’t camp, Nicole." [36:17] -
Nicole (on replacing the Porsche’s distributor):
“At some point, you still need to fast forward to the guy who's done it for 40 years. Help me out here.” [32:54] -
Matt (on Monterey car event prices):
"Regular people, it is crazy...half the people there, their business pays for it." -
Nicole (on SEMA show changes):
“Everything outside is like a big river truck on just big wheels with… a Bluetooth drive shaft. It used to be that if your car was at SEMA, it was like, ‘Whoa.’” [78:58]
Notable Moments & Timestamps
- King of the Hammers Spectator Gripes: [02:58]
- Cookies and the blue-collar career escape fantasy: [06:40]
- Pirate4x4.com & early days of car forums: [10:49]
- Car camping vs. hotels at Monterey: [36:09]–[41:16]
- Ongoing project car woes and Porsche problem-solving: [28:03]–[33:03]
- Audience Q&A (“Fizzies” car, Bucket List drives, etc.): [53:54]–[68:22]
Where to Find Nicole
- YouTube: Nicole Johnson’s Detour
- Instagram: @nicolejohnsonoffroad
- Upcoming Appearances: SoCal Euro, Rancho Santa Fe Cars and Coffee, Luftgekühlt, SEMA (Turn 14/Bilstein Display)
Episode Tone and Takeaways
This episode is a perfect blend of gearhead banter, technical wrenching stories, event gossip, nostalgia, and industry introspection—anchored by the infectious energy of Nicole Johnson. Both hosts’ familiarity allows for lots of humor, real talk about the car world’s barriers and absurdities, practical tips for enthusiasts, and plenty of motivation for anyone laboring through their own project car drama.
Memorable close:
Matt thanks Nicole for the cookies, jokes about creating Patreon tiers for baked goods, and they muse on Taylor Swift sourdough before signing off.
For automotive enthusiasts or hobbyists, this episode delivers the full sensory overload of real life in the car world: the passion, the practical realities, and the joy of sharing car culture with the people who truly get it.