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Red Bull's three title rivals are conspiring against the team with a common goal -- to rein in the dominance of the RB6 car. According to Germany's Bild-Zeitung tabloid, the dramatic solution was devised after Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber scored every pole position in 2010 so far, and then pulled even further ahead with developments debuted in Barcelona last weekend. Bild said the "secret pact" between McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes involves the "exchange of data" about the technical superiority of the latest car designed by Adrian Newey. Ross Brawn is quoted as saying: "In some areas Red Bull have gone in different directions. Our people are looking at it closely." And Ferrari's Stefano Domenical is quoted by L'Equipe: "Red Bull has taken a big step forward in performance (in Spain). We saw it Friday and Saturday and with Mark's performance on Sunday. "This is a reference for us. We are not overstating it but we have to look more carefully at it and understand," he added. It was earlier wrongly believed that the RB6 was hiding some sort of variable ride-height system, but Bild reveals that one of the actual reasons for the car's competitiveness is the exhausts. We reported during the February tests that Red Bull had put stickers on the car to make it look like the exhausts were located conventionally, when in fact they were located much lower. Bild said the lower exhausts, hidden from view by six mechanics on the Barcelona grid, contribute to the car's superior aerodynamics. It is also reported that Red Bull could begin using a McLaren and Ferrari-like F-duct system at Istanbul in two weeks. Gerhard Berger told APA: "They are clearly the championship favourites. Even without the air-duct, Red Bull are the fastest." Source: GMM

will prices of these cars from japan shoot up??? ST 19/7 TOKYO - HONDA Motor Co joined other Japanese automakers in cutting production after an earthquake caused a shortage of parts and forced car assembly lines around the country to grind to a halt. Honda will suspend part of its production on Friday and Saturday because of difficulties buying piston rings from Riken Corp, which was badly affected by Monday's quake northwest of Tokyo. Some 2,000 vehicles would have been produced by the affected assembly lines on Friday alone, said a spokesman. Toyota, Japan's top-selling automaker, said on late Wednesday it would suspend production at all of its domestic plants from Thursday evening until Saturday because of problems buying parts from Riken Corp. The suspension was unavoidable given the lack of parts, said Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe. 'I hope rather strongly that they will recover as soon as possible,' he said in an interview with national broadcaster NHK. Nissan Motor Co has said it will suspend part of its production from Friday at two of its three plants in Japan until next Monday, while Suzuki Motors and Fuji Heavy Industries, the maker of Subaru vehicles, are also reducing output. The problems have highlighted the industry's heavy dependence on one supplier and the fragility of the 'just-in-time' inventory system, where parts arrive at a plant just when they are needed so as to keep costs down. -- AFP

Leon Sinks Its Teeth Into Hatchback Rivals east your eyes on the next SEAT Leon. The Spanish car maker used all the razzmatazz of the Geneva Motor Show to unveil its new small family hatchback, and freely admitted that this 'prototipo' is virtually the real deal. It's the closest model yet in appearance to the Salsa concept, which wowed crowds at the same event five years ago. Insiders have told us the final version of the new Leon will be unveiled at September's Frankfurt show. Based on VW's Golf chassis, the newcomer has been developed to have a sportier character. That means it gets a low roofline and a swooping nose, while its wide arches, hidden rear door handles and small glass areas give it a coup