Rally Argentina 1985
Round 8 of the 1985 World Rally Championship · 30 July – 3 August 1985
Ari Vatanen crashed heavily on stage 2 and was badly injured. Timo Salonen won, and former Formula One driver Carlos Reutemann finished third in a second Peugeot.
Episode 3 — The Peugeot Revolution: 205 Turbo 16, Todt & Vatanen (1984–85)
The Rally Argentina 1985 features in this episode of our documentary series.
At a glance
The podium
Photo: Jiří Sedláček via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Calreyn88 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0Photo: Calreyn88 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0Car photos are representative pictures of the model, not of this event.
Route and surface
Gravel and rock in the hills and valleys around Córdoba.
Key entries
The leading seeded crews (start numbers 1–8):
- #1 Carlos Reutemann / Jean-François Fauchille — Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 (Peugeot Talbot Sport)
- #2 Shekhar Mehta / Yvonne Mehta — Nissan 240RS (Shekhar Mehta)
- #3 Timo Salonen / Seppo Harjanne — Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 (Peugeot Talbot Sport)
- #4 Ari Vatanen / Terry Harryman — Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 (Peugeot Talbot Sport)
- #5 Stig Blomqvist / Björn Cederberg — Audi Sport Quattro S1 (Audi Sport)
- #6 Jorge Recalde / Jorge del Buono — Renault 18 (Renault Argentina)
- #7 Wilfried Wiedner / Franz Zehetner — Audi Quattro A2 (Wilfried Wiedner)
- #8 Jayant Shah / Lofty Drews — Nissan 240RS (Jayant Shah)
Ari Vatanen crashed heavily on stage 2 and was badly injured. Timo Salonen won, and former Formula One driver Carlos Reutemann finished third in a second Peugeot.
How the rally unfolded
Vatanen led after stage 1 but crashed on stage 2. He and Terry Harryman were taken to hospital; Vatanen’s injuries were serious and he did not compete again until 1987. Salonen led the rest of the way and won by almost 14 minutes from the Austrian privateer Wilfried Wiedner’s Quattro.
Reutemann, a hero in his home country and co-driven by Jean-François Fauchille, made it two Peugeots on the podium. Blomqvist’s new Sport Quattro S1 retired with engine failure on stage 8.
The decisive moment
Vatanen’s crash shocked the sport. For Peugeot, Salonen’s fourth win of the season brought the title within reach.
Result — top 10
| Pos. | No. | Crew | Car | Entrant | Gp. | Time / gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Timo Salonen / Seppo Harjanne | Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 | Peugeot Talbot Sport | B | 10:04:33 |
| 2 | 7 | Wilfried Wiedner / Franz Zehetner | Audi Quattro A2 | Wilfried Wiedner | B | +13:56 |
| 3 | 1 | Carlos Reutemann / Jean-François Fauchille | Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 | Peugeot Talbot Sport | B | +31:14 |
| 4 | 2 | Shekhar Mehta / Yvonne Mehta | Nissan 240RS | Shekhar Mehta | B | +1:00:13 |
| 5 | 16 | Ernesto Soto / Martin Christie | Renault 18 | Renault Argentina | A | +1:06:25 |
| 6 | 10 | Mario Stillo / Daniel Stillo | Renault 12 | Mario Stillo | A | +1:45:09 |
| 7 | 8 | Jayant Shah / Lofty Drews | Nissan 240RS | Jayant Shah | B | +1:57:43 |
| 8 | 19 | Sady Bordin / Joaquim Cunha | Chevrolet Chevette | Sady Bordin | A | +2:09:13 |
| 9 | 39 | Federico West / Gregorio Assadourian | Ford Escort RS | Federico West | A | +2:26:42 |
| 10 | 35 | Luis Etchegoyen / Luis Borrallo | Ford Escort RS | Luis Etchegoyen | A | +2:32:32 |
Retirements of note
- #4 Ari Vatanen / Terry Harryman (Peugeot 205 Turbo 16) — accident, stage 2
- #5 Stig Blomqvist / Björn Cederberg (Audi Sport Quattro S1) — engine, stage 8
- #6 Jorge Recalde / Jorge del Buono (Renault 18) — head gasket, stage 6
- #9 Miguel Torras / Fernando Stella (Renault 12) — excluded (over-size exhaust valves), post-event
Details of Vatanen’s injuries and recovery are given on his driver page.
Results, retirements, stage wins and leaders are taken from Jonkka’s World Rally Archive. Names are given with their correct spelling; the archive itself omits diacritics.
Related pages
- 1985 season overview
- All 1985 rallies
- Previous round: Rally New Zealand 1985
- Next round: 1000 Lakes Rally 1985
- Cars: Peugeot 205 T16, Audi Quattro
- Teams: Peugeot Talbot Sport
- Iconic moments · Timeline · Statistics
All rounds of 1985
In pictures 4 photos
Photos from this event where free-licensed pictures exist; otherwise the podium cars, photographed on the occasion stated in each caption.
Further resources
- Motor Sport (September 1985): Rally review EN · article · subscription
Contemporary report from Motor Sport magazine's September 1985 issue, written as the season unfolded. - Rallye-Magazin: Wie Vatanen dem Tod von der Schippe sprang DE · article
German feature on Ari Vatanen's 1985 Argentina crash and recovery. - WRC.com season archive 1985 EN · archive
Official summary of the 1985 season: calendar, winners and both championship tables. - Storie di Rally: Ari Vatanen and the 1985 Rally Argentina crash IT · article
Italian account of the accident and what followed. - Wikipedia: Rally Argentina EN · archive
History of the Rally Argentina with its list of winners over the decades.
The same rally in other Group B years
Sources
- Jonkka's World Rally Archive (juwra.com), Rally Argentina 1985: event page — https://www.juwra.com/argentina_1985.html
- Jonkka's World Rally Archive, results — https://www.juwra.com/argentina_1985_results.html
- Jonkka's World Rally Archive, entry list — https://www.juwra.com/argentina_1985_entries.html
- Jonkka's World Rally Archive, stage winners and leaders — https://www.juwra.com/argentina_1985_stage_winners.html
- Wikipedia (EN), 1985 World Rally Championship — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1985_World_Rally_Championship
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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