Engineering:Peugeot 206 WRC

Peugeot 206 WRC

Category	World Rally Car
Constructor	Peugeot
Predecessor	Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 E2
Successor	Peugeot 307 WRC
Technical specifications
Length	4,005 mm (157.7 in)
Width	1,770 mm (70 in)
Height	1,300 mm (51 in)
Wheelbase	2,486 mm (97.9 in)
Engine	2.0 L (122 cu in) 4-cylinder, 16-valve
Weight	1,230 kg (2,712 lb)
Tyres	Michelin
Competition history (WRC)
Notable entrants	Peugeot Sport
Debut	1999 Tour de Corse
First win	2000 Swedish Rally
Last win	2003 Rally Catalunya
Last event	2008 Tour de Corse
Wins Podiums Titles 24 65 5
Constructors' Championships	3 (2000, 2001, 2002)
Drivers' Championships	2 (2000, 2002)

The Peugeot 206 WRC is a World Rally Car based on the Peugeot 206. It was used by Peugeot Sport, Peugeot's factory team, in the World Rally Championship from 1999 to 2003. The car brought Peugeot the manufacturers' world title three years in a row from 2000 to 2002. Marcus Grönholm won the drivers' title in 2000 and 2002.

History

Juuso Pykälistö driving a 206 WRC at the 2003 Swedish Rally.

In 1999, Peugeot Sport unveiled the 206 WRC, and it competed for the first time in that year's World Rally Championship, with French tarmac veteran and long-time marque stalwart Gilles Panizzi narrowly failing, against a resurgent reigning champion in Mitsubishi's Tommi Mäkinen, to win the Rallye Sanremo. The car was soon a success, however, and won both the manufacturers' and drivers' championships in 2000, Peugeot's first such accolades since their withdrawal from the WRC after Group B was banned after the 1986 season, and achieved in the hands of Panizzi, Francois Delecour and Mäkinen's successor as drivers' world champion, Marcus Grönholm.

For 2001, Grönholm competed alongside two refugees of SEAT's exit from the championship at the end of 2000; compatriot Harri Rovanperä and the French 1994 world champion, Didier Auriol. Rovanperä and Auriol each contributed single wins, on Swedish Rally and Rally Catalunya respectively (the former to be a sole career win for the Finn, and the latter victory helped by assorted problems for the blisteringly quick debuting Citroën Xsara WRCs), before Auriol left the team at the end of the season. Grönholm, meanwhile, suffered sufficient reliability woes in the first half of the year such that he could manage no higher than fourth overall in the series, although Peugeot did fend off Ford, with a 1-2 result by the two Finns on the season-ending Rally of Great Britain to successfully defend the constructors' championship title.

Grönholm's 206 WRC from the 2003 season on display.

In 2002, Grönholm – despite now being paired in the factory line-up with defending 2001 champion from Subaru, the United Kingdom Richard Burns – led Peugeot to a repeat of the WRC title double aboard his 206 WRC. His dominance that year was compared to Michael Schumacher's dominance of Formula One. In summary, Peugeot won two drivers' championships, in 2000 and 2002, and three manufacturers' titles in a row between 2000 and 2002. However, by 2003 the 206 WRC was beginning to show its age and was less effective against the competition, notably the newer Xsara WRC and the Subaru Impreza WRC, so it was retired from competition at the end of the season, to be replaced with the 307 WRC, albeit, unlike its predecessor, based not on the production version's hatchback, but its coupé cabriolet body style.

The Peugeot 206 WRC was awarded the Autosport "Rally Car of the Year" in 2002, preceded by the Ford Focus RS WRC and followed by the Citroën Xsara WRC. Peugeot GB created a Peugeot 206 rally championship aimed at young drivers. The championship was created to help young drivers develop their careers. The cars were built by Vic Lee Racing and drivers such as Tom Boardman, Luke Pinder and Garry Jennings all drove in the championship.

WRC victories

No.	Event	Season	Driver	Co-driver
1	Swedish Rally	2000	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
2	Rally New Zealand	2000	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
3	Rally Finland	2000	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
4	Tour de Corse	2000	Gilles Panizzi	Hervé Panizzi
5	Rallye Sanremo	2000	Gilles Panizzi	Hervé Panizzi
6	Rally Australia	2000	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
7	Swedish Rally	2001	Harri Rovanperä	Risto Pietiläinen
8	Rally Catalunya	2001	Didier Auriol	Dennis Giraudet
9	Rally Finland	2001	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
10	Rallye Sanremo	2001	Gilles Panizzi	Hervé Panizzi
11	Rally Australia	2001	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
12	Rally of Great Britain	2001	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
13	Swedish Rally	2002	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
14	Tour de Corse	2002	Gilles Panizzi	Hervé Panizzi
15	Rally Catalunya	2002	Gilles Panizzi	Hervé Panizzi
16	Cyprus Rally	2002	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
17	Rally Finland	2002	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
18	Rallye Sanremo	2002	Gilles Panizzi	Hervé Panizzi
19	Rally New Zealand	2002	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
20	Rally Australia	2002	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
21	Swedish Rally	2003	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
22	Rally New Zealand	2003	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
23	Rally Argentina	2003	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen
24	Rally Catalunya	2003	Gilles Panizzi	Hervé Panizzi

WRC results

Year	Team	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Points	Pos
1999	Peugeot
			MON	SWE	KEN	POR	ESP	FRA	ARG	GRE	NZL	FIN	CHN	ITA	AUS	GBR	11	6
		Marcus Grönholm		Ret	4	8	5	Ret
		Gilles Panizzi	Ret		33	2		7
		François Delecour	Ret	Ret	9	Ret	Ret	Ret
2000	Peugeot
			MON	SWE	KEN	POR	ESP	ARG	GRE	NZL	FIN	CYP	FRA	ITA	AUS	GBR	111	1
		Marcus Grönholm	Ret	1	Ret	2	5	2	Ret	1	1	Ret	5	4	1	2
		Gilles Panizzi	Ret		Ret		6						1	1	Ret	8
		François Delecour	Ret	7		5	7	13	9	Ret	6	3	2	2	3	6
		Sebastian Lindholm									5
2001	Peugeot
			MON	SWE	POR	ESP	ARG	CYP	GRE	KEN	FIN	NZL	ITA	FRA	AUS	GBR	106	1
		Marcus Grönholm	Ret	Ret	3	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	1	5	7	Ret	1	1
		Didier Auriol	Ret	Ret	8	1	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	6	3	3	3	7
		Gilles Panizzi	Ret			2							1	2	9
		Harri Rovanperä		1	Ret		Ret	Ret	3	2	4	3			4	2
	HF Grifone SRL	Gilles Panizzi			12			Ret	Ret		14					Ret	0	-
		Harri Rovanperä											11	7
	F.P.F. Sport	Renato Travaglia											5				2	20
	Simon Jean-Joseph	Simon Jean-Joseph				9		Ret	8				10				0	-

External links

• Rally car statistics – juwra.com (World Rally Archive)
• Peugeot 206 WRC at ewrc-results.com

Awards
Preceded by Ford Focus RS WRC	Autosport Rally Car of the Year 2002	Succeeded by Citroën Xsara WRC