The Smoking Tire – September 16, 2025

Episode: The WORST Door Handles; a Free Car; Leno's Bill

Hosts: Matt Farah & Zack Klapman

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the quirks, frustrations, and occasional comedy of automotive culture, focusing on contemporary design trends (notably flush door handles and their problematic implications), the joys and logistics of upcoming track tests, the fate of California's “Leno Law,” and stories about scoring a “free” Mercedes convertible. Matt and Zack mix firsthand journalism with inside baseball and the wry commentary fans expect, rounding everything off with listener Q&A.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Secretly Expensive Cars & Automotive Journalism

• Value Perception: Early on, Matt and Zack riff on how certain cars, like a used Bentley, can cost far less than a loaded new pickup but deliver more wow-factor.
• The Power of Titles in Media:
  • Matt discusses having his article's headline changed (“SSC Tuatara is the Corvette of Paganis” to “Corvette of Hypercars”), which caused confusion and criticism online.
    • Matt (01:17): “It was all just about how stupid I am for making this comparison in the headline, which I didn't even write.”
  • Zack shares empathy from similar publishing experiences.

2. Writing For Print vs. Web

• SEO vs. Creativity: Print allows more creative titles, while web and video formats demand clickable, sometimes misleading headlines to attract readers.
  • Zack (05:14): “Video titles have to be attractive...[but] print magazine titles are pretty creative. They don’t need to be SEO friendly.”

3. Track Day Preview: Mustang Family Test at Chuckwalla

• Matt’s Upcoming Solo Track Session: Matt details his private Ford Mustang experience, where he gets to test multiple variants (GTD, Dark Horse, Dark Horse R, GT3, and possibly a drift car) at Chuckwalla Valley Raceway.
  • Matt (06:44): “I'm driving the whole family of Mustang race cars...I have all afternoon.”
• Race Car Logistics: Matt ponders how much track time is reasonable to request (settles on orientation + two 10-lap “hot” sessions).
• Zack’s Anecdote: Watching multi-class Mustang racing at Le Mans and the chaos/confusion in real time.

Memorable Quote:

• Zack (09:09): “Let me tell you, Matt, I am not colorblind, and my vision’s pretty good. And I had real trouble trying to determine which class was what, because they’re all Mustangs.”

4. Road and Track Events & Car Adventures

• Event Teasers: Matt plugs upcoming events, including “Seaside to Sierra” and “Blue Ridge Ramble,” blending scenic drives, bourbon tastings, and track days.
• Pride in Road Planning: Matt details the rigorous route scouting: “No notes, no changes—other than a couple of legs are long and require coffee.”
• Long Drive Philosophy: Their internal rule: every 90 minutes warrants a coffee stop (“Long by our standards.”)

5. Automotive Design: The WORST Door Handles

[Starting ~34:22]

• New Investigation: Discussion about Bloomberg covering problematic flush, power-actuated door handles, especially Tesla, and associated safety issues (first responders unable to access crashed/burning cars).
  • Matt (34:48): “If people are trapped in the cars and the exterior door handles are flush and won't pop out, emergency first responders can't get the cars open.”
• Door Handle Rankings: The hosts go through a rapid-fire list of the worst offenders from best-of-the-worst to truly awful:
  • Least worst: Taycan/992 Porsche – has a lip, can get fingers under.
  • Biggest offenders:
    • McLaren MP4-12C – weird capacitive touch (nearly impossible to use).
    • Lucid Air – power-presenting with atrocious key proximity logic (“possessed”).
  • Tesla Model S/X and Mercedes SLS – handles that fail to deploy, lose out to mechanical simplicity.
• Concluding Sentiment: “I’m glad somebody is finally pointing out that there might be problems with this type of design.” (Matt, 43:24)

Notable Moment:

• Zack (43:26): “People are working right now! ...Don’t you fucking people work?”

6. The Fate of the “Leno Law”

[Starting ~43:32]

• What is the Leno Law? Meant to relax emissions requirements for collector/classic vehicles in California.
• Why it Failed:
  • Quickly watered down—limited to 35+ year-old cars with collectors' insurance (thus daily drivers, working-class old-vehicle owners left out).
  • Still didn’t pass; provides zero benefit as a result.
• Collector Insurance Problems: Can exclude owners without a garage or those using their cars frequently.

Memorable Quote:

• Matt (45:26): “It eliminated all the people in the lower half of the income bracket who would have benefited… now it will help zero.”

7. Free Car Stories: The Mercedes E320 Cabriolet

[~51:46 and 52:00]

• Matt Inherits a Classic: Scores a 1995 Mercedes E320 Cabriolet from his wife’s legendary publicist aunt, Aunt Liz Rosenberg.
• Nostalgic Value: Matt reflects that growing up, a mom in an E320 cabrio meant drama (“the dad banged the secretary, now mom…”) and affluence.
  • Matt (54:26): “In 1994, this was an $86,000 car… when a mom rolled up in one… it was like, oh, the dad…”
• Project Possibilities: Considers whether to restore, modify, or maybe do nothing, depending on underlying condition.
• Zack’s role: May daily it for a while (“Everyone’s gonna think I cheated on my wife and got this in the divorce!” – Zack, 58:06).

8. Listener Q&A Highlights

(Timestamps variable, ~48:49 onward)

• Leasing vs. Buying (59:24): Advice for cost-conscious buyers trading down; favoring used EVs with remaining warranty, rather than new leases.
• Played-Out Design Trends (61:27): After the light bar, things like “squarified” wheel arches and weird C-pillar plastic valences; “floating roofs.”
  • Matt (61:59): “Haptics... are going away, thankfully.”
• Modern NSX (62:38): Great to drive, but cramped; may become a “performance bargain” future classic.
• Watches vs. Cars Patina (89:08): Added value in watches (if unpolished with a story), but not always true in used cars unless the car’s history is compelling.
• Dream & Nightmare Garages (69:19, 70:06): Three-car “nightmare” garage: Ferrari F50, Porsche 959, and VW Phaeton—guaranteed to bankrupt the owner.
  • Matt (70:07): “Best of luck to you, son.”
• Patina and Value: Refers to the nuance of how wear can add/inhibit value, depending on story or prominence (cars and watches).
• Reverse Depreciation Specials (92:11): Expensive, under-the-radar cars like dark-colored Singer 911s or obscure Italian classics look “cheap” to the casual observer yet cost a fortune.

9. Fun & Memorable Quotes

• On Internet Outrage:

  • Matt (01:17): “It was all just about how stupid I am for making this comparison in the headline, which I didn't even write.”

• On Collector Car Law:

  • Matt (45:26): “...eliminates all of the people in the lower half of the income bracket who would have benefited from the law anyway.”

• On ‘Free’ Mercedes:

  • Matt (54:26): “When a mom rolled up in one of these in middle school, it was like, ‘Oh, the dad banged the secretary, now mom…’”

• About Worst Door Handles:

  • Matt (41:09): “My worst was Lucid. ...But the MP4-12C absolutely beats Lucid, but only just.”

Important Timestamps

• 01:17: Matt on headline outrage
• 05:14: Zack on title-writing for video vs. print
• 06:44: Matt previews Mustang track extravaganza
• 34:48: Door handle dangers and design rants
• 43:24: Wrap-up on bad handle chat
• 43:32: Leno Bill breakdown
• 51:46: Killing time with a “free” E320 cabrio
• 61:27: Design trend gripes (light bar, haptics, C-pillar weirdness)
• 70:06: Nightmare garage picks for financial ruin
• 92:11: Reverse depreciation/sleeper status picks
• Full episode Q&A: ~48:49 onward

Episode Tone & Flow

Conversational, irreverent, and personal—just as Smoking Tire fans love. Matt and Zack blend deep knowledge with unfiltered commentary. The episode is part advice show, part therapy session, part schoolyard gossip, all with a thread of car-enthusiast relatability and self-aware wit.