Welcome to The Smoking Tire. Kick ass automotive videos and more.

SLP’s Camaro ZL1 is a Loud Waste of Money

Friday, December 30th, 2011

 

Manufacturers have the tough job of building a car that pleases a big market. Not too stiff, not too soft, not too fast for the tires but not too slow to feel like (god forbid!) last year’s car. It’s a hard job. I imagine it’s like waiting on-or eating with-someone with 3 fake food allergies (“I just don’t like green things.” True story). The aftermarket lets you make a car your own. Add power, sticky tires, sway bars, ultra-stiff track suspension, air bags, whatever. The goal-although people often fail-is to make the car better.

 

Using that math you’d assume the more money you spent the better the car would get. I spent $4k improving my last car, but absolutely wished I’d been able to spend $10k, because i knew what issues it would have solved. It’s this ideal that has led me to be annoyed at the SLP Camaro ZL1. If you want to see $80,000 squandered, make the jump. (more…)

Optima Ultimate SC Invitational is a Must-Attend (Gallery/Video)

Sunday, December 18th, 2011

 

Note: Let’s call this Sunday reading. It’s a bit long but there’s pretty pictures, even one that moves! It’s Sunday, take some time for the story I spent hours on yourself.

 

SEMA was over. The AdultCon of car shows had packed up, making way for the AdultCon of people; AdultCon. Hundreds of thousands of people stared at thousands of cars, parts, dudes in company polo shirts, failed strippers promo models, obstructing the way for depressed humanoids trying to gamble. Everyone went home on Friday…and missed the best show of the entire week: The Optima Batteries Ultimate Street Car Invitational

 

You should have gone, because this event is the shit. Matt was invited to compete in his 1998 C5 Corvette. We figured between the car’s lightweight, power and suspension and Matt knowing Spring Mountain like the palm of his hand, he might do pretty well. However we were not prepared for what showed up early on Saturday morning. Make the jump for the story and massive gallery. (more…)

Camaro ZL1 ‘Ring Time Induces National Orgasm

Friday, October 7th, 2011

 

…except for me. Here I sit, like a young Clay Aiken watching Porky’s…nothin’.

 

The way this car is being touted you’d think the internet was about to seizure. First it was “Will they make one?!” then “GM says no ZL1″ and now “We’re fast in Europe bitches!” Now the story (from NA President Mark Reuss) is that this is the fastest production car under $75,000 around the ‘Ring, AKA, “Ford…Ford! Lookit! Lookit my time! Dad’s going to put it on the fridge!”

Make the jump to watch the lap, and why I remain flaccid.

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2012 Camaro ZL-1; Horsepower Bribery

Friday, February 11th, 2011

There a lot of problems that can be fixed with the word, “more.” Hungry? Eat more food. Tired? Get more sleep. Blue Oyster Cult recording? More cowbell. But can the same be said for the Chevy Camaro with a healthy extra serving of horsepower? The 2012 Camaro ZL1 aims to find out.

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Video: The Woodward Dream Cruise and the Firebreather

Friday, August 27th, 2010

The Woodward Dream Cruise, now in its 16th year, is the largest single-day car show in the US. Literally millions of people, and tens of thousands of cars gather on Woodward Avenue and cruise up and down the 8 mile stretch of road for hours upon hours. Spectators can pick a spot along Woodward and just watch the whole show cruise on by, or hop in their rides and be a part of it. Of course, The Smoking Tire isn’t the type to sit on the sidelines, so we got ourselves an ass-kicking piece of Detroit iron, the Firebreather, and hit the road.

In addition to the madness that is the Dream Cruise, we learned the story behind the Firebreather, along with the film, Jinn, that it stars in. And, in usual The Smoking Tire fashion, we throw a twist into the mix, when Matt convinces a car fan to get the Firebreather logo as a tattoo. Video after the jump.

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The Smoking Tire Featured on G4′s Attack of the Show!

Wednesday, August 18th, 2010

Tonight, I appeared on G4 TV’s Attack of the Show, which, if you haven’t heard of it, is essentially a show about cool tech gadgets, video games, and the best of the web. I spoke about the Camaro SS, Ferrari 458 Italia, some of our experiences on Bullrun including the ticket tally, and spill some secrets about what’s coming up on the show. I’m even moderately funny.

2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS Review

Tuesday, August 10th, 2010

After we posted our 2011 Mustang GT review and the subsequent Mustang GT vs. Camaro SS Drag Race video, we got lots of comments that the race was unfair, or that we drove the wrong Camaro. You see, that particular Camaro was an automatic, which means that instead of the 426 horsepower LS3 engine underhood, it only had a 400 horsepower. This is neither our fault nor Ford’s, however in the interest of satisfying our viewers, we took a 2010 Camaro SS, this time with a stick, to the track. We ran some hot laps to find out if these Chevy fanboys are on to something, or if the Camaro is all style and no substance. Of course, we also ran some hot laps to see if the Camaro’s 226 horsepower advantage is enough to take our Time Attack crown from the current leader, the 2010 Volkswagen GTI. Video review after the jump.  (more…)

2011 Shelby GT500 vs. 600HP 2011 “Firebreather” Camaro

Tuesday, July 27th, 2010

The Smoking Tire hits the Mailbu canyons for one last hurrah with our Shelby GT500, and we brought along our closest competitor: the Classic Design Concepts/Exxodus Pictures “Firebreather,” a 600-horsepower Firebird-converted Chevy Camaro.

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What Do You Want to Know About the 2010 Camaro SS?

Monday, July 26th, 2010

This week in The Smoking Tire garage, we’ve got a Rally Yellow 2010 Camaro SS with a 6-speed and the RS package. It’s pretty much loaded at $36,000. We’ll be filming with it tomorrow, and I’d like to answer some viewer questions about it. So, what do you want to know about the 2010 Camaro SS? Leave a comment and if it’s not too-stupid, we’ll address it on camera.

2011 Mustang GT 5.0 vs. 2010 Camaro SS Drag Race

Saturday, April 3rd, 2010

OF COURSE we were going to show the whole drag race. Here it is. Clearly, the Mustang slaughters the Camaro in a 1/8 mile drag race on a runway. The drivers were two Ford engineers, and for those of you who think the Camaro driver sandbagged, he was a former pro racer who cut a .001 light. The Mustang driver cut a .008 light. Happy Easter!

For the serious performance modder, AmericanMuscle has a great selection of Mustang heads to take your Stang to the next level.