Yes, I might naturally say "It's no longer going to run as smoothly." But, to me, phrasing it as "It's going to run much less smoothly" adds to the humor by su

Yes, I might naturally say "It's no longer going to run as smoothly." But, to me, phrasing it as "It's going to run much less smoothly" adds to the humor by suggesting that it will to _some_ degree still run "smoothly" (when in fact it won't run at all).