1983 World Rally Championship

11th season of the FIA World Rally Championship 1983 World Rally Championship World Drivers' Champion Hannu Mikkola World Manufacturers' Champion Lancia 1982 1984 The 1983 World Rally Championship was the 11th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) World Rally Championship (WRC). The season consisted of 12 rallies. By this time, the schedule format had become generally stable, with only one or two changes to venues year to year. 1983 brought the return of Argentina to the schedule in place of Brazil. Audi's Hannu Mikkola beat the defending world champion Walter Röhrl and his Lancia teammate Markku Alén to the drivers' title. Lancia captured the manufacturers' title from Audi by just two points. Summary thumb|left|An ex-Bettega Lancia 037 Rally German Walter Röhrl, champion of the previous year despite his manufacturer's failed bid to capture the title, was tapped to drive for the Martini Racing team along with Finn Markku Alén in the new Lancia Rally 037 car. Audi Sport meanwhile carried forward from its successful title run in 1982 led by the same pair of drivers, Finn Hannu Mikkola and Frenchwoman Michèle Mouton, equipped with the Quattro A1 (later in the season upgrading to the A2 model). The team also included future champion Swede Stig Blomqvist. Rothmans Opel Rally Team tapped former champion Finn Ari Vatanen and fellow countryman Henri Toivonen to drive the Ascona 400 during the season. thumb|An ex-Mikkola Audi Quattro A2 Competition was fierce both for drivers and manufacturers. The works battle quickly centered on the Audi and Lancia, and over the course of the season the two cars won 10 of the 12 events and sit on 30 of the year's 36 podium positions. Lancia emerged on top, returning the manufacturer to glory for the first time since the company seized three consecutive titles in the mid-1970s, despite deciding not to participate in last two events. Audi's performance was impressive and the car was improved in the second half of the season, winning three of the final four events to nearly catch the Italian maker (who, of course, withdrew from two last events, leaving Audi with little competition). Driver competition was no less intense, with both of the Martini team-mates scoring well through the season. They were outpaced by Mikkola, who was able to garner four wins and seven podiums to take the title by a healthy margin in the end. While Mikkola appeared in all events, Röhrl and Alén only appeared in six and seven events respectively, which gave Mikkola clear path to the title. Mikkola teammate Blomqvist was impressive, finally winning in the last event of the year to place fourth overall, but Mouton's season was a disappointment, her fifth-place finish well off the pace. The Rothmans team meanwhile suffered an unimpressive season, the lone highlight being Vatanen's win in Kenya. This was the team's only podium finish, and Ari himself finished a distant sixth place on the year. As with previous seasons, while all 12 events were calculated for tallying the drivers' scores, only 10 of the events applied to the championship for manufacturers. The two events in 1983 that applied only to driver standings were Sweden and the Rallye Côte d'Ivoire. Calendar Rd.Start dateFinish dateRallyRally headquartersSurfaceStagesDistancePoints122 January28 JanuaryMON 51st Rallye Automobile Monte-CarloMonte CarloMixed31776.80 kmDrivers & Manufacturers211 February13 FebruarySWE 33rd International Swedish RallyKarlstad, Värmland CountySnow25476.10 kmDrivers only32 March5 MarchPOR 17th Rallye de Portugal - Vinho do PortoEstoril, LisbonMixed43671.39 kmDrivers & Manufacturers430 March4 AprilKEN 31st Marlboro Safari RallyNairobiGravelN/A5035 kmDrivers & Manufacturers55 May7 MayFRA 27th Tour de Corse - Rallye de FranceAjaccio, CorsicaTarmac321066.10 kmDrivers & Manufacturers630 May2 JuneGRC 30th Rothmans Acropolis RallyAthensGravel46843.30 kmDrivers & Manufacturers725 June28 JuneNZL 14th Sanyo Rally of New ZealandAucklandGravel331071.09 kmDrivers & Manufacturers82 August6 AugustARG 3rd Marlboro Rally ArgentinaBuenos AiresGravel181275.29 kmDrivers & Manufacturers926 August28 AugustFIN 33rd Rally of the 1000 LakesJyväskylä, Central FinlandGravel50472.63 kmDrivers & Manufacturers102 October7 OctoberITA 25th Rallye SanremoSanremo, LiguriaMixed58775.89 kmDrivers & Manufacturers1125 October30 OctoberCIV 15th Rallye Cote d'IvoireAbidjanGravelN/A4498 kmDrivers only1219 November22 NovemberGBR 39th Lombard RAC RallyBath, SomersetGravel59835.33 kmDrivers & ManufacturersSources:WRC 1983 https://www.ewrc-results.com/season/1983/ 11 September 2025 eWRC-results.com1983 WRC calendar https://www.juwra.com/calendar_1983.html 11 September 2025 Jonkka's World Rally Archive Teams and drivers Team Constructor Car Tyre Drivers Rounds ITA Martini Racing Lancia Rally 037 Pirelli DEU Walter Röhrl 1, 3, 5–7, 10 FIN Markku Alén 1, 3, 5–6, 8–10 FRA Jean-Claude Andruet 1, 5 ITA Adartico Vudafieri 3, 8 ITA Attilio Bettega 5–7, 10 ARG Francisco Mayorga 8 FIN Pentti Airikkala 9 DEU Audi Sport Audi Quattro A1Quattro A2 MichelinPirelli FIN Hannu Mikkola All FRA Michèle Mouton 1–10, 12 SWE Stig Blomqvist 1–3, 6–10, 12 FIN Lasse Lampi 2, 9, 11–12 AUT Franz Wittmann 3, 6 KEN Vic Preston Jr 4 KEN Shekhar Mehta 8 ARG Rubén Luis di Palma 8 SWE Per Eklund 9 FRA Bernard Darniche 10 USA John Buffum 12 DEU Rothmans Opel Rally Team Opel Ascona 400Manta 400 Michelin FIN Ari Vatanen 1–2, 4, 6, 9–10, 12 FIN Henri Toivonen 1, 6, 9–10, 12 FRA Guy Frequelin 1, 5 FIN Rauno Aaltonen 4 GBR Jimmy McRae 6, 12 GBR Phil Colins 12 GBR Clinton Smith 12 GBR Alastair Sutherland 12 GBR Alex Jackson 12 FRA Renault Elf Renault 5 Turbo Michelin FRA Jean Ragnotti 1, 5–6 FRA Jean-Luc Thérier 1, 3, 5 FRA Bruno Saby 1, 5 FRA Dany Snobeck 1 FRA Philippe Touren 1, 5 FRA Gilbert Sau 1 POR Manuel Pereira 3 FRA François Chatriot 5 FRA Jean-Pierre Manzagol 5 JPN Team Nissan Europe Nissan 240RS Dunlop FIN Timo Salonen 1, 3–4, 6–7, 9, 12 GBR Terry Kaby 3 KEN Shekhar Mehta 4, 6–7 KEN Mike Kirkland 4 KEN Jayant Shah 4 GBR Tony Pond 5 GRC George Moschous 6 NZL Reg Cook 7 FIN Erkki Pitkänen 9 FIN Peter Geitel 12 GBR Automobiles Talbot Talbot Sunbeam Lotus Michelin GBR Chris Lord 1 ESP Antonio Zanini 3 USA Jon Woodner 12 GBR David Keating 12 FRA Alain Truchet 12 GBR Colin Barrell 12 FRA Citroën Compétitions Citroën Visa Michelin FRA Maurice Chomat 1, 3, 6, 12 FRA Alain Coppier 1, 3, 5–6, 9–10, 12 FRA Christian Dorche 1–3, 5–6, 12 POR Francisco Romãozinho 3 FRA Philippe Wambergue 3, 6, 12 FRA Christian Rio 3, 6, 12 FRA Olivier Tabatoni 3, 5–6, 9 POR Rufino Fontes 3 JPN Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer 2000 Turbo Yokohama AUT Georg Fischer 3, 9 FIN Harri Toivonen 9, 12 FRA Peugeot Sport Peugeot 504 Pick-up V6 Michelin KEN John Hellier 4 KEN Basil Criticos 4 FRA BMW Motul BMW M1 Pirelli FRA Bernard Béguin 5 ITA Jolly Club Lancia Rally 037 Pirelli Italia Adartico Vudafieri 5, 10 Italia Miki Biasion 10 Italia Tonino Tognana 10 JPN Toyota Team Europe Toyota Celica TCT Pirelli SWE Björn Waldegård 9, 11–12 FIN Juha Kankkunen 9, 11–12 SWE Per Eklund 11–12 ITA Pro Motor Sport Ferrari 308 GTB Michelin SWE Björn Waldegård 10 ITA Federico Ormezzano 10 ITA Maurizio Cavalli 10 GBR GM Dealer Sport Vauxhall Chevette 2300 HSR Michelin GBR Russell Brookes 12 GBR Terry Kaby 12 GBR George Hill 12 Events Map 800px Black = Tarmac Brown = Gravel Blue = Snow/Ice Red = Mixed Surface Schedule and results Round Rally name Stages Podium finishers Rank Driver Co-driver Team Car Time 1 MCORallye Automobile Monte Carlo(22–29 January 1983) 30 stages709 km onTarmac1FRG Walter RöhrlFRG Christian GeistdörferITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 0377:58:572FIN Markku AlénFIN Ilkka KivimäkiITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 0378:05:593SWE Stig BlomqvistSWE Björn CederbergFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A18:10:15 2 SWESwedish RallyEvent not included in the Manufacturers' Championship(11–13 February 1983) 24 stages466 km onSnow/Ice1FIN Hannu MikkolaSWE Arne HertzFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A14:28:472SWE Stig BlomqvistSWE Björn CederbergFRG Audi SportAudi 80 Quattro4:29:343FIN Lasse LampiFIN Pentti KuukkalaFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A14:32:51 3PRTRallye de Portugal(2–5 March 1983) 40 stages642 km onGravel/Tarmac1FIN Hannu MikkolaSWE Arne HertzFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A17:17:242FRA Michèle MoutonITA Fabrizia PonsFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A17:18:193FRG Walter RöhrlFRG Christian GeistdörferITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 0377:19:14 4 KENSafari Rally(30 March – 4 April 1983) 87 controls5035 km onGravel1FIN Ari VatanenGBR Terry HarrymanFRG Rothmans Opel Rally TeamOpel Ascona 400+3:96 pen2FIN Hannu MikkolaSWE Arne HertzFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A1+4:02 pen3FRA Michèle MoutonITA Fabrizia PonsFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A1+4:55 pen 5 FRATour de Corse(5–7 May 1983) 28 stages1008 km onTarmac1FIN Markku AlénFIN Ilkka KivimäkiITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 03712:43:382FRG Walter RöhrlFRG Christian GeistdörferITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 03712:45:273ITA Adartico VudafieriITA Luigi PirolloITA Jolly ClubLancia Rally 03712:50:08 6 GRCAcropolis Rally Greece(30 May – 2 June 1983) 45 stages836 km onGravel1FRG Walter RöhrlFRG Christian GeistdörferITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 03711:12:222FIN Markku AlénFIN Ilkka KivimäkiITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 03711:18:423SWE Stig BlomqvistSWE Björn CederbergFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A211:26:18 7 NZLRally New Zealand(25–28 June 1983) 33 stages1069 km onGravel1FRG Walter RöhrlFRG Christian GeistdörferITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 03712:10:132FIN Timo SalonenFIN Seppo HarjanneJPN Team Nissan EuropeNissan 240RS12:26:113ITA Attilio BettegaITA Maurizio PerissinotITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 03712:41:42 8 ARGRally Argentina(2–6 August 1983) 18 stages1274 km onGravel1FIN Hannu MikkolaSWE Arne HertzFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A210:18:542SWE Stig BlomqvistSWE Björn CederbergFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A210:21:283FRA Michèle MoutonITA Fabrizia PonsFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A210:25:35 9 FINRally Finland(26–28 August 1983) 50 stages473 km onGravel1FIN Hannu MikkolaSWE Arne HertzFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A24:23:442SWE Stig BlomqvistSWE Björn CederbergFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A24:24:053FIN Markku AlénFIN Ilkka KivimäkiITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 0374:24:33 10 ITARallye Sanremo(2–8 October 1983) 58 stages775 km onGravel/Tarmac1FIN Markku AlénFIN Ilkka KivimäkiITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 0378:50:172FRG Walter RöhrlFRG Christian GeistdörferITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 0378:52:263ITA Attilio BettegaITA Maurizio PerissinotITA Martini RacingLancia Rally 0378:55:27 11 Ivory CoastRallye Côte d'Ivoire(25–30 October 1983) 54 controls4600 km onGravel1SWE Björn WaldegårdSWE Hans ThorszeliusJPN Toyota Team EuropeToyota Celica TCT+5:18 pen2FIN Hannu MikkolaSWE Arne HertzFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A2+5:29 pen3SWE Per EklundGBR Dave WhittockJPN Toyota Team EuropeToyota Celica TCT+6:58 pen 12 GBRRAC Rally(19–23 November 1983) 57 stages790 km onGravel/Tarmac1SWE Stig BlomqvistSWE Björn CederbergGBR Audi Sport UKAudi Quattro A28:50:282FIN Hannu MikkolaSWE Arne HertzFRG Audi SportAudi Quattro A29:00:213GBR Jimmy McRaeGBR Ian GrindrodFRG Rothmans Opel Rally TeamOpel Manta 4009:12:19 Standings Drivers' championship Rank Driver Event Totalpoints MCOMON SWESWE PRTPOR KENKEN FRAFRA GRCGRC NZLNZL ARGARG FINFIN ITAITA Ivory CoastCIV GBRGBR 1 FIN Hannu Mikkola (10) 20 20 15 – – – 20 20 – 15 15 125 2 FRG Walter Röhrl 20 – 12 – 15 20 20 – – 15 – – 102 3 FIN Markku Alén 15 – 10 – 20 15 – 8 12 20 – – 100 4 SWE Stig Blomqvist 12 15 – – – 12 – 15 15 – – 20 89 5 FRA Michèle Mouton – 10 15 12 – – – 12 – 4 – – 53 6 FIN Ari Vatanen 8 6 – 20 – 10 – – – – – – 44 7 ITA Attilio Bettega – – – – 10 8 12 – – 12 – – 42 8 FIN Lasse Lampi – 12 – – – – – – 4 – – 10 26 9 KEN Shekhar Mehta – – – – – 6 10 10 – – – – 26 10 SWE Per Eklund – – – – – – – – 10 – 12 – 22 11 SWE Björn Waldegård – – – – – – – – – – 20 – 20 12 ITA Adartico Vudafieri – – 8 – 12 – – – – – – – 20 13 FIN Timo Salonen – – – – – – 15 – 3 – – – 18 14 FIN Henri Toivonen 6 – – – – – – – – 10 – – 16 15 GBR Jimmy McRae – – – – – 3 – – – – – 12 15 16 SWE Kalle Grundel – 8 – – – – – – – – – 3 11 17 KEN Jayant Shah – – – 10 – – – – – – – – 10 FRA Alain Ambrosino – – – – – – – – – – 10 – 10 19 FIN Juha Kankkunen – – – – – – – – 6 – – 4 10 20 FRA Bruno Saby 1 – – – 8 – – – – – – – 9 21 KEN Johnny Hellier – – – 8 – – – – – – – – 8 NZL Reg Cook – – – – – – 8 – – – – – 8 FIN Pentti Airikkala – – – – – – – – 8 – – – 8 ITA Miki Biasion – – – – – – – – – 8 – – 8 Ivory Coast Eugène Salim – – – – – – – – – – 8 – 8 GBR Russell Brookes – – – – – – – – – – – 8 8 27 AUT Franz Wittmann – – 4 – – 4 – – – – – – 8 28 ESP Antonio Zanini – – 6 – – – – – – – – – 6 FRG Wolfgang Stiller – – – 6 – – – – – – – – 6 GBR Tony Pond – – – – 6 – – – – – – – 6 NZL Possum Bourne – – – – – – 6 – – – – – 6 AUT Franz Wurz – – – – – – – 6 – – – – 6 ITA Dario Cerrato – – – – – – – – – 6 – – 6 USA John Buffum – – – – – – – – – – – 6 6 35 FRA Jean Ragnotti 4 – – – – – – – – – – – 4 SWE Sören Nilsson – 4 – – – – – – – – – – 4 KEN Manoj Shah – – – 4 – – – – – – – – 4 FRA Jean-Sébastien Couloumiès – – – – 4 – – – – – – – 4 NZL Michael Bish – – – – – – 4 – – – – – 4 ARG Ernesto Soto – – – – – – – 4 – – – – 4 41 FRA Jean-Claude Andruet 3 – – – – – – – – – – – 3 SWE Mikael Ericsson – 3 – – – – – – – – – – 3 GBR Terry Kaby – – 3 – – – – – – – – – 3 KEN Paul de Voest – – – 3 – – – – – – – – 3 FRA Alain Coppier – – – – 3 – – – – – – – 3 NZL Peter Watt – – – – – – 3 – – – – – 3 ARG Jorge Recalde – – – – – – – 3 – – – – 3 ITA Lucky – – – – – – – – – 3 – – 3 49 FIN Mikael Sundström – – – – – – – – 1 – – 2 3 50 FRA Francis Serpaggi 2 – – – – – – – – – – – 2 SWE Lars-Erik Walfridsson – 2 – – – – – – – – – – 2 FRA Christian Dorche – – 2 – – – – – – – – – 2 FRA Jean-Michel Guyot – – – – 2 – – – – – – – 2 FRA Philippe Wambergue – – – – – 2 – – – – – – 2 NZL Mike Cameron – – – – – – 2 – – – – – 2 ARG Carlos Celis – – – – – – – 2 – – – – 2 FIN Erkki Pitkänen – – – – – – – – 2 – – – 2 FRA Bernard Darniche – – – – – – – – – 2 – – 2 59 SWE Ola Strömberg – 1 – – – – – – – – – – 1 BEL Marc Duez – – 1 – – – – – – – – – 1 FRA Jean-Louis Ravenel – – – – 1 – – – – – – – 1 FRA Maurice Chomat – – – – – 1 – – – – – – 1 ARG Gerardo del Campo – – – – – – – 1 – – – – 1 ITA Gabriele Noberasco – – – – – – – – – 1 – – 1 SWE Mats Holmbom – – – – – – – – – – – 1 1 Manufacturers' championship Rank Manufacturers Event Totalpoints MCOMON PRTPOR KENKEN FRAFRA GRCGRC NZLNZL ARGARG FINFIN ITAITA GBRGBR 1 ITA Lancia 18 14 – 18 18 18 (10) 14 18 – 118 2 FRG Audi 14 18 16 – 14 – 18 18 (6) 18 116 3 FRG Opel 10 (9) 18 12 12 – – 9 12 14 87 4 JPN Nissan – 4 12 8 8 16 – 4 – – 52 5 FRA Renault 6 – – 10 – – 11 – – – 27 6 JPN Toyota – – 10 – – – – 8 – 6 24 7 JPN Subaru – – – – – 13 – – – – 13 8 GBR British Leyland Cars – – – – – 11 – – – – 11 FRG Volkswagen – – – – – – – – – 11 11 10 FRA Peugeot – – 10 – – – – – – – 10 GBR Vauxhall – – – – – – – – – 10 10 12 JPN Mazda – – – – – 9 – – – – 9 ITA Alfa Romeo – – – – – – – – 9 – 9 14 FRA Citroën – 2 – 5 2 – – – – – 9 15 GBR Talbot – 8 – – – – – – – – 8 16 JPN Mitsubishi – – – – – 7 – – – – 7 Pointscoring systems Drivers' championship Points awarded by finish 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 20 15 12 10 8 6 4 3 2 1 Manufacturers' championship Overallfinish Group finish 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 18 – – – – – – – – – 2 17 16 – – – – – – – – 3 16 15 14 – – – – – – – 4 15 14 13 12 – – – – – – 5 14 13 12 11 10 – – – – – 6 13 12 11 10 9 8 – – – – 7 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 – – – 8 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 – – 9 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 – 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 References External links FIA World Rally Championship 1983 at ewrc-results.com World Rally Championship Category:World Rally Championship seasons