Matt Farah - Huge Respect, but...

"Lets Just Drive" (lets-just-drive)
02/12/2014 at 01:29 • Filed to: None

... I'm worried there's something wrong with me; I don't enjoy his presentation, his style any more. Is there something wrong with me?

Maybe I've succumb to the Top Gear syndrome which, in recent years, seems to favor the flair and drama over... well, the car.

I like shows like Counting Cars, like Fast'n'Loud and this new Rods and Wheels but even I have to admit that these productions are more about the characters than they are about the cars and, in many cases, make characters out of the cars and wrap the good old informational content in Hollywood entertainment. But then again, I like MotorTrend. I like Road and Track. I like Lieberman and Lagos, just as examples.

But of late, I've felt disconnected with Tuned and from Matt Farah in general.

Now let me get something clear right here and right now; I have the most incredible level of respect for Farah and I trust him as a journalist. He's a pillar, a fundamental part of my car-hobby enthusiasm in terms of that on-line thang. I don't have a bad thing to say about the man...

... but I just don't feel that sense of involvement any more. I watch Tuned, read TST and just can't get over this feeling of ambiguous NOPE-ness. The worst part is, I don't know what it is. At some moments I think it's an arrogance thing, like he's reached such a status among the cult that he dosen't have to pander to the likes of me any more but that's not right because he's still out there, doing what he's always done and I can't say that anything has really changed at all. Other times, I think there must be something wrong with me, like I'm dreaming up unknown reasons to put the wall up between myself and his work.

I don't know what it is, but I want to get over it because I still remember how much I enjoyed his stuff only recently still.

Just the same, watch this video. Objectively, I know it's awesome.

DISCUSSION (23)

Grindintosecond > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 01:35

Could be style? Compared to Mike on Big Muscle....do you prefer that guys approach or perhaps chris harris' s more introspective poetic styles?

Squid > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 01:36

I don't really have any input on your feelings towards Matt, but I was wondering if anyone else has watched that Rods n' Wheels show. Really a show winning car can be completed in just a few weeks. . . Give me a break. Those guys are such terrible actors and misrepresent the timeline on how long it takes to actually build a car worth while. Everything is scripted in that show, it is basically a drama in the guise of a reality TV show and a not very good one at that. . .

MtrRider Just Wants Doritos > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 01:56

It's not just you. He's got an ego that he's never had before. He's completely jaded to horsepower, so nothing is fun or exciting to him and that comes through in his videos- there's no fun. The production is incredible for the budget, but that's not why I started watching him. He's a playboy, and his entitled rich-kid attitude sometimes makes me sick. He insults his followers on the regular, which I like as much as I don't. He bashes people with a different opinion than him. He's lied on camera a few times when he had no reason to, so he lost my trust in him as a journalist.

Lets Just Drive > Grindintosecond
02/12/2014 at 02:03

That's just it, I love so many of the styles out there. I like Musto a lot, a ton in fact. I absolutely adore Regular Cars...

I feel like Matt Farah is a really hot chick at a strip club that, for some inexplicable reason, does nothing for me.

I_AmDeath > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 07:44

I love Matt but almost agree with you. Id say that it's partially due to his ego increasing and him becoming so Jaded. I hate all of the TV "reality" shows though they are faker then a 5 dollar Rolex.

I_AmDeath > Squid
02/12/2014 at 07:47

Plus anyone would really just say "So long as it's done in a real time frame just do it right" If your going to blow like $75,000+ on a show car and want to go to an upcoming show you would know when it is... All of these shows are just silly.

I_AmDeath > MtrRider Just Wants Doritos
02/12/2014 at 07:48

Do you have any examples of when he's lied? ( I'm just curious not trying to be a Dick)

Brian Silvestro > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 07:58

Have you listened to his podcast? It'll restore your interest in him.

Grindintosecond > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 08:10

His boobs are too small for me..

Sinanigans > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 09:01

It's just for these car reviews. I feel like they're a little more subdued. His Tuned show though is still all Farah IMO

Casper > MtrRider Just Wants Doritos
02/12/2014 at 11:05

I'm jaded to cars and I have probably driven 1/100th the cars he has. After you have driven all of these dream cars of people keep on their walls as posters, you realize that they aren't all amazing and that they all shouldn't get praise simply for existing... and I haven't even driven some of the really expensive toys.

Some cars are good, most just exist, and some are bad. Just because a car has a few high points doesn't mean it deserves praise.

Peter > Brian Silvestro
02/12/2014 at 12:58

Agreed, much more down to Earth and "I'd hang out, drink beer and laugh about cars with this dude"

Brian Silvestro > Peter
02/12/2014 at 12:59

Exactly, he's that kind of dude.

Lets Just Drive > Brian Silvestro
02/12/2014 at 13:21

Nope. But on your recommendation I'll check it out Bri-Bri.

Lets Just Drive > Peter
02/12/2014 at 13:23

Are you kidding? There's no doubt it my mind he'd be the kind of guy I could have a beer with, talk shop, and really enjoy ourselves.

I keep reiterating that I don't dislike Matt, in fact I quite like him and have a mountain of respect for the guy but his presentation style, just of late, has started to appeal less and less to me... but again, I don't really know why.

Lets Just Drive > I_AmDeath
02/12/2014 at 13:25

See, I don't know that is his ego. I think it's more our perception of his ego, like these are attributes we're transposing upon him. I feel like he's not a humble dude, but he never has been because he knows his shit, and I used to really enjoy that.

It's probably all me.

Brian Silvestro > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 13:27

DO THE REGULAR CARS ONE. If you follow them, you'll love it.

Lets Just Drive > MtrRider Just Wants Doritos
02/12/2014 at 13:29

Even if that is the case, it's not new, which is why I can't seem to fathom how I've come to change my opinion regarding Farah. It's pretty much inexplicable for me.

Look, I really like Tanner Faust but there's no question that he is the epitome of the rich-kid-racer whose reputation in the trade was helped by the fact that he came from an affluent enough background and had the right support in his interests. Sure, Farah reflects some of that, but he's not a pretty boy and (please don't hate me if you read this, Matt) in fact he's just the opposite - he's an ugly, big bear of a dude who isn't seemingly into pimping himself for the corporate tit. So it makes even less sense why I've fallen away from Farah as a car dude/presenter.

Lets Just Drive > Casper
02/12/2014 at 13:30

Nope. I don't buy that for one second. Not a second.

Lets Just Drive > Grindintosecond
02/12/2014 at 13:30

10/10 would motorboat.

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 13:51

Never got or enjoyed his stuff to begin with. It always fell in between the more technical/car focused end of things (say, Fifth Gear, Motor Trend, etc.) and the shows which focused on the cultural/production value/emotional side (Top Gear, Road Kill, etc.), and instead of being a nice compromise it wound up being a bad compromise.

I also just don't care for his delivery and style on the shows and how he carries himself on the internet. A lot of that's just personal taste, but methinks there's an arrogance there as well, yet he manages to get dragged down into a lot of petty fights with internet folk as well.

tl;dr not my kind of car video dude.

MtrRider Just Wants Doritos > I_AmDeath
02/12/2014 at 15:57

One example- he did a review of the Ford GT and another car in the same video (it's been removed) The other car was supposedly a Ferrari that had been turned into a 250 GTO replica, but was a real vintage V12 Ferrari. Turns out, it was actually a Datsun based kit car with a straight 6. For weeks Farah claimed he "saw the stampings" on the engine and argued with people claiming it wasn't real. Matt claimed it was 100% real Ferrari 365 underneath, turned into a GTO and even admitted to having used Datsun parts in the interior. It took literally minutes after that video being posted for people to call him out on it.

He later admitted to having not seen the engine, as the owner said there was a problem with the hood release. Later he apologized, then he took the video down.

MtrRider Just Wants Doritos > Lets Just Drive
02/12/2014 at 16:36

Tanner is nothing like Farah. Yeah he's rich (everyone in "the spotlight" is), but he did it the correct way- by pimping himself out to energy drink companies. I don't know much about how he grew up.

I do know Matt bought a new Corvette with cash when he was 18, and by the time he was 25 he had owned a Shelby Cobra replica, a Hummer H1, and a Aston Martin Vantage. But that's beside the point. I don''t blame him for it, I would do the same thing if I could. Who doesn't wish they came from money?

My point about him being jaded didn't really happen until Tuned. When you're driving 1k hp cars every week, "normal" fast cars feel slow. The Hennessey Venom GT ruined horsepower for him and he even admits it. Nothing with under 700 hp gets to him any more.