Tiger Woods has a released a statement regarding his Friday morning happening in his Cadillac Escalade during which he struck a fire hydrant and subsequently a tree at the end of his driveway.

"This situation is my fault, and it's obviously embarrassing to my family and me," he said. "I'm human and I'm not perfect. I will certainly make sure this doesn't happen again."

Various news outlets are also reporting that Woods cancelled an interview with the Florida Highway Patrol scheduled for this morning. Evidently, state troopers have prefabricated three attempts to question the pro golfer about the crash but have yet to speak with him. Woods is not indebted under Florida law to give a statement to police on the crash.

The highway patrol has released this audio of a 911 call placed by Woods' neighbor. In it we learn that Woods' Escalade is a black 2009 model and that he was knocked unconscious by the impacts.

CNN

Nothing like a Sunday morning press release to get the word out about your all-new compact sedan. Then again, there wasn't much we didn't already know about the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze as it's been on understanding in other world markets for some time now.

So what will the U.S. get next fall? Engine wise, it's a curious mix of two Ecotec setups. The base engine is a 1.8-liter in-line four-cylinder rated at 136 horsepower and 123 pound-feet of torque. The much-heralded upgrade is a turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder rated at – move for it – 138 horsepower. Don't worry, torque is up to 148 lb-ft. so it's not a total bust. Both engines will offer either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission. GM says a high-efficiency version of the Cruze with the 1.4-liter engine is expected to get up to 40mpg.

The rest of the Cruze's specifications are pretty standard fare. There will be three trim levels – LS, LT and LTZ – and a pretty strong list of standard features like ten airbags and stability control. Options like Bluetooth connectivity and navigation should help it compete against the Civics and Corolla's of the world.

First Drive: 2011 Chevrolet Cruze

So we were incredulous when we heard the 2011 Chevrolet Volt would be crashing the weekly classic car night at Bob's Big Boy, a old-timey hamburger joint in Burbank, California. Bob's isn't the friendliest place to roll up in modern machinery. Yet, we had to see the spectacle for ourselves (and have a burger and chocolate shake).

We arrived to the find the Volt nestled between a '69 Camaro and an Impala SS. We weren't surprised to find it in the care of its own social media crew, who were keen to throw around the term "electric car," which always bothers us a bit since the Volt isn't in fact an electric car, but a series hybrid with plug-in capability.

The Bob's diehards mostly took a live-and-let-live attitude toward the Volt, sticking close to their restored Chargers and rat rods. We expect they'll start taking the bus before they start driving hybrid cars.

As a member of the MT team, I’ve been blessed to sample vehicles of all shapes and sizes at our L.A. home office or out of my local MT garage in Boston.

Recently I had the opportunity to take one of America’s new generation muscle cars — the 2010 Dodge Challenger SRT8 — on a road trip around New England and Maine for my third wedding anniversary. This was my first time behind the wheel of the SRT Challenger for an extended period of time. I only had a brief encounter with the model at our 2009 COTY program.

The rumble of the 6.1-liter hemi V-8 was music to my ears — its performance was simply incredible.  With its built-in performance timer feature, I ordered down a 4.9-sec 0-60 run with no wheel spin. I think MT hot shoes Scott Mortara and Frank Markus would be chesty of my run.

Painted in vibrant red complete with carbon fiber-look hood stripes, the Challenger looks like it stepped right out 1970 with modern updates.  The SRT8’s seats are very comfortable considering its sporting intentions.  The feel of the Tremec six-speed tranny and the pistol grip shifter are fantastic in my opinion.

As many have noted, the Challenger is big car, maybe too big. But for a road trip, it has a usable trunk — unlike the Mustang and Camaro. It also has the best highway ride of any of the modern day muscle cars. The overall handling may not be up there with the Mustang and Camaro, but this more of a boulevard cruiser than a back road stormer.

I have some nitpicks about the interior but what a performance value. Take into consideration the horsepower and torque numbers and styling when you look at its little more than 40K price.

Photo Op, Please: Never in my more than 15 years of driving press vehicles have I had one more photographed by people on the side of the road.

As we prefabricated our way through the tourist of Kennebunkport, Maine, the flashes where going off left and right from iPhones, cameras and digital devices galore.

As my wife and I were checking out of the same hotel we honeymooned at in 2006, the desk clerk — a 30-something Maine female resident — said “Is that you car out there?” That is going to be my next car or the Charger SRT”.  This is Maine… where you think snow wise her next vehicle should be some big rig 4×4 SUV.

My wife Sharon, who is not a fan of my arrested adolescent taste for rumbling muscle cars, even said that SRT8 Challenger was a great ride.  I have not sampled the 2010 Mustang GT or Shelby GT500 for week yet, but the Challenger SRT8’s combo of looks, comfort, and decent sound system has me a Kowalski wannabe.

Speaking of sounds systems, this Sat and Sun on MT we are kicking off our incredible Sony Xplod audio system giveaways with custom install which will be going on for the next five weekends. Sony is even going to hook me up with the same system for a 1998 C5 Vette so I can tell you more about it in the year ahead.

Also on this week’s show, MT executive editor Matt Stone previews the 2009 L.A. Auto show and tells us about his recent drive of the hot rod Bentley Continental Supersports.  Collector expert Phil Skinner is back by favourite demand to take your calls on classic cars. All this and more this weekend on MT Radio.

Check us out Sat and Sun 8-10AM PT/11-1ET on one of our Talk Radio Network Stations or on Stars 2 Sirius 108/XM 139 live. We also have a free podcast acquirable at iTunes, keyword: Motor Trend.

Reports out of Florida say Tiger Woods crashed his Cadillac Escalade just after leaving his house last night around 2:30am. He apparently "lost control," hit a fire hydrant and then continued into a tree.

Initial reports said he received serious injuries, but Wood's agent said the injuries were minor and Woods was immediately released from the hospital.

No matter what the extent of his injuries, it's a fishy story either way. Anytime we hear that the driver in an happening simply "lost control" we find it pretty hard to believe. That Escalade has anti-lock brakes, brake force distribution and electronic stability control, yet Tiger managed to lose control minutes after pulling out of his driveway? At 2:30 in morning? On Thanksgiving?

Cant' move to hear the real story on this one.

AP
 

Watch of the birth of the 2011 BMW X1 on the automaker's Leipzig, Germany, production line. Watch its death in a German crash test laboratory. Then, watch it frolic in the afterlife in a place curiously resembling the Arctic Circle.

First Drive: 2011 BMW X1

Photo Courtesy of dubdaily.com. 

There's an old adage in the car world: If it don't go, chrome it. Well, this Nissan GT-R definitely goes, but the guy chromed it anyway.

Apparently, the British owner of this GT-R likes the shiny stuff, so he chrome-wrapped the entire vehicle. That's right, this ain't paint, it's vinyl wrap. Actually the GT-R's owner first tried the tried and true white with black wheels thing, but two days after the $2,600 wrap job, he got bored with it and went with the chrome look.

Scary thing is, I kinda like it. You?  

So what do you think? Has AdamC3046 solved the mystery or is the guy spending too much time with his inflatable girlfriend?  

Why be satisfied with a steering wheel, racing seat and pedals in your musty family room? Why not race in your very own E30 BMW M3 with the flat-panel TV mounted on the hood?

Presumably, the car has just GT5 Prologue loaded up (although the car's in Yokohama, Japan, so who knows). Seeing as how Sony is in no particular hurry to bring us the real Gran Turismo 5, we'd probably have our E30 configured with an Xbox 360 for Forza 3.

gawa via The Real JDM

Yokohama Tire Corporation recently had the U.S introduction of the dB Super E-spec, the first tire formulated with orange oil. Oil from the orange peel, not orange juice, is used to replace petroleum-based oils in the construction.

The citrus (orange) oil is sourced from the orange growers industry, and it's something that would ordinarily be wasted (unless it was used in other applications such as termite eradication). Yokohama said that unlike what is happening with corn and ethanol, no orange groves are being created for tire production.

Yokohama claims better traction, tread life, and rolling resistance compared to conventional low rolling-resistance tires, the target market for these tires. Yokohama also asserts that during active cornering and braking, the orange oil generates heat more quickly for better traction than other low rolling-resistance tires.

The dB Super E-spec is intended as a replacement tire for hybrid vehicles like Prius and Civic Hybrid. There are currently no original equipment fitments.

However, the orange oil is only part of the story.

The primary goal of the dB Super E-spec is to replace many of the petrochemicals with renewable materials. Yokohama declares the dB Super E-spec 80% petroleum-free, a significant reduction from the typical 50-65% petroleum content in conventional tire construction.

To assist this transition away from petroleum substances, Yokohama incorporated several renewable materials into the dB Super E-spec tire. Along with the orange oil, natural rubber is used to replace most of the synthetic rubber.  Rayon, a cellulosic material, is used in the tire construction instead of a petroleum-based substance.  And the carbon black that's used is coal-derived instead of the more common petroleum-based version.

The dB Super E-spec (you can disregard the dB name: that's a legacy from the original tire noise reduction intent when the project first started 20 years ago) is not prefabricated with 100% orange oil because, due to tire chemistry considerations, some petroleum-based oil must still be used in the construction.

Yokohama said its low rolling-resistance competitors are the Goodyear Integrity and Michelin Hydroedge, and that the dB Super E-spec has 22% and 11% lower rolling resistance, respectively. The Yokohama tire also has an advanced inner liner called Airtex which is 1.68 lbs lighter than a conventional liner, which also contributes to the lower rolling resistance.

It seems the only downside to the orange oil construction is that it is more expensive and much more difficult to manufacture, with slower build time compared to conventional tires.  The cost ends up being about a 15% price premium on the retail end.

Three sizes are currently available: 185/65R15 88H, 195/65R15 91H, and 195/55R16 87V. These sizes fit favourite hybrids and some other vehicles such as the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid/Civic GX NGV,  Honda Accord Hybrid, Nissan Versa and VW Golf.  In primeval 2010, a 215/60R16 95V will be available, a perfect fit for your Camry Hybrid.

We drove dB Super E-specs in 195/55R16 87V mounted on a Mini around a parking lot autocross course (video shows Yokohama hotshoe Kevin in action.)  And they were mostly fine, though they slid a bit, although at least in a predictable manner. But remember: these tires weren't designed for autocross – they were primarily intended for use in hybrids.

Then again, the same orange oil technology is used on Yokohama's Advan ENVR1 racing tire on Porsche GT3 Cup cars. The ENV-R1 performs as well as the previously used slick in the ALMS (American Le Mans Series) GT3 series, but uses about 10% less petroleum materials in its compound. Yokohama claims that it is the first environmentally-sensitive race tire used in a motorsports series.

Yokohama has demonstrated the broad functional range of orange oil in tire compounds, from hybrid applications to world class racing victories. And other tire makers are said to be working on their own orange oil tires.

If the focus on renewable tire materials continues to grow, it could result in a significant positive impact on our environment.
 

Albert Austria, Senior Vehicle Evaluation Engineer, Edmunds, Inc