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

Tue Sep 16 2025

What's the WORST door handle ever? Plus, towing in used luxury vs a new F-150: Matt's upcoming drive in 4 legendary Mustangs; an early look at the new, improved Streets of Willow; a FREE car shows up; our thoughts on Leno's Bill, and Patreon question include: How do we downsize our car payment: lease or buy? Most played out current design trend How will the current NSX be seen in the future? What we think about the Mitsubishi 3000GT Which front-engine RWD car to add to the fleet? Used RS or Touring? Which car did everyone love that you hate? LC500 or Vantage S? Should I modify a Merkur XR4Ti? Would a Sim rig at a track be helpful? And more! Recorded September 11, 2025 Show Notes: DeleteMe Take control of your data and keep your private life private by signing up for DeleteMe. Now at a special discount for our listeners. Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to https://www.joindeleteme.com/TIRE and use promo code TIRE at checkout. MudWtr Start your new morning...

Transcript

Zach (0:00)

That's amazing. 80 grand. And most people won't know it's 80 grand. It's 200.

Matt Farah (0:05)

Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Like, it's like if. Do you want to, like, do you want to shock someone with how high the MSRP was on your F150, or do you want to spend less and roll a fucking Bentley? You know, even a 2018 Bentley with 5,000 miles is much nicer than a brand new F150.

Zach (0:24)

That's wild.

Matt Farah (0:26)

So anyway, that's the article. Dude, you know what's crazy? I. I glanced at Reddit looking for a story for this show because we talked about a lot of things yesterday, covered a lot of ground. We can do the Reddit stuff if you want to do that. But I noticed that in the. Our Reddit cars section that someone had shared not our video, but my Road and Track article about, about the SSC Tuataro. And it really, it really reminded me of the importance of titles because when I submitted this, the written piece to them, I said, the SSC Tuatara is the Corvette of Paganis, which is the same title I used in our video. I think it was the same title. Someone at the magazine changed it to the Corvette of Hypercars, which is a change that. I understand why they made it, but it's. It's not what I wrote. Fine. I'm not the editor. When I went into the Reddit cars comments section today, it was like, every comment, like, there was like 30 comments, and all of them were about how that, like, that we're all about the title. Like, one was like one of the comments, like, actually was, like, actually in the article. He clarifies pretty quickly what the argument here is. But, like, it was all just about how stupid I am for making this comparison in the headline, which I didn't even write.

Zach (2:01)

Right? Yeah, yeah, that. That happened to me a year ago or something. Like, I. They changed the title or they made the title, whatever. But it definitely was a point that I had not made and didn't totally agree with. And so when I posted it on Threads, I was like, my post literally says, I wrote the article but not the title. Please go read my piece about something.

Matt Farah (2:25)

Or when someone wrote an article about me, it was a very nice article, very complimentary, beautiful photography for a magazine. But the headline of the article was, Matt Farah has never worked a day in his life. Which not a good line. You need the first half of. I know what you're. You know what I mean? It's The. I know what you're trying to say.

Zach (2:47)

Yeah.

Matt Farah (2:48)

Summary

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.