Timo Salonen
Timo Salonen (born 8 October 1951) fitted no one’s picture of a top athlete. He smoked, wore thick glasses, was hardly slim and often steered with one hand. In Finland they called him ‘Löysä’ — the relaxed one. But in 1985 nobody was faster.
Episode 3 — The Peugeot Revolution: 205 Turbo 16, Todt & Vatanen (1984–85)
The most laid-back world champion of them all.
From Nissan to Peugeot
Salonen drove for Datsun/Nissan for years, mainly on the long-distance rallies, with Seppo Harjanne beside him from 1979. In the early Group B seasons he was fourth in New Zealand and Finland in 1982, and in the Nissan 240RS he finished second in New Zealand in 1983 and fourth there in 1984. For 1985 he joined Peugeot Talbot Sport as Ari Vatanen’s team-mate.
The championship year
While Vatanen won the first two rounds, Salonen was third in both and then won Portugal. He followed up with wins on the Acropolis and in New Zealand. When Vatanen crashed heavily in Argentina, Salonen took over as the team’s leader, won that rally and then the 1000 Lakes, and finished second on the Sanremo in the new 205 T16 E2. With 127 points he became world champion, well clear of Stig Blomqvist (75). See 1985 season.
1985 world champion with five wins. Calm, bespectacled, often steering with one hand — and with seven wins, the most successful driver of 1983–1986.
1986
In 1986 he finished second in Monte Carlo and won the 1000 Lakes and the RAC Rally, ending the year third in the championship behind team-mate Kankkunen and Alén. After Group B he won the 1987 Swedish Rally for Mazda. In total he won eleven world championship rallies.
Wikipedia calls Salonen ‘the most successful driver of the Group B era (1983–1986)’. If 1982 is included, Stig Blomqvist has more wins (eight). See statistics.
Career in the Group B years
World Rally Championship podiums of the driver, year by year (1982–1986). win 2nd 3rd
7 WRC wins · 12 podium finishes, 1982–1986
In pictures 3 photos
Further resources
- Motorsport.com (FR): Timo Salonen, l'outsider FR · article
French feature on how Salonen won the 1985 title for Peugeot. - Pirelli: Timo Salonen, accidental hero EN · article
Profile of the relaxed Finn who won the 1985 world title. - WRC.com: Timo Salonen EN · archive
The WRC's official champion profile of Timo Salonen, with career statistics.
More from Drivers
Sources
- Wikipedia (EN), Timo Salonen — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timo_Salonen
- Wikipedia (EN), 1985 World Rally Championship — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1985_World_Rally_Championship
- eWRC-results — https://www.ewrc-results.com/
All text is original writing for Grouve Sports Management Group, based on the sources above. Facts checked on 21 October 2026.
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