Group B 1982–1986

Other Group B cars

Škoda 130 LR, Lada VFTS, Talbot Samba, Alméras Porsches and the other Group B cars of the World Championship, with links to the Nissan, Citroën, Mazda and Ferrari pages.

Photo: Carlo Marzetti via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0

Beyond the big names, Group B attracted a colourful cast: tough Japanese cars for the long rallies, a French outsider with hydropneumatic suspension, a rotary engine from Hiroshima, privately entered Ferraris and small cars from Eastern Europe.

Grouve Sport documentary

Episode 7 — The Underdogs: Toyota, Opel, Nissan, Mazda, Renault, Citroën, Porsche & Ferrari

The outsiders and might-have-beens of the Group B era.

Cars with their own pages

• Nissan 240RS – naturally aspirated and rear-wheel drive; second in New Zealand in 1983.
• Citroën BX 4TC – three rallies in 1986 and a best of sixth.
• Mazda RX-7 Group B – rotary power and third on the 1985 Acropolis.
• Ferrari 308 GTB – privately entered 308s, including Group B entries from 1982 to 1985.

More Group B

• Škoda 130 LR – a compact rear-engined Group B car from Czechoslovakia, strong in the smaller classes.
• Lada VFTS – the Group B version of the Lada 2105, popular in Eastern Europe.
• Porsche 911 SC (Alméras) – privately entered 911s; Jean-Luc Thérier finished third on the 1982 Monte Carlo Rally in one. See Porsche 911 SC RS.
• Talbot Samba Rallye – a small Group B car from Peugeot-Talbot, frequent in the lower classes of the early 1980s.
• Mitsubishi Starion and Daihatsu Charade Turbo – each started world championship rounds as Group B cars in small numbers (Starion: 1985 RAC Rally; Charade Turbo: 1985 Rally New Zealand). Their four-wheel-drive Group B evolutions (Starion 4WD, Charade 926R) never started a world championship round.

Subaru

Subaru ran the Leone (and later the RX) in Group A in these years, not in Group B. Its world championship successes came later, with the Legacy and Impreza.

In pictures 3 photos

More from Cars

Audi Quattro, Sport Quattro and S1 E2The car that taught rallying four-wheel drive: from the Quattro A1 and A2, via the short Sport Quattro, to the winged S1 E2.Read more →Lancia Rally 037The last two-wheel-drive car to win the manufacturers' title. Light, supercharged, engineered by Abarth with Dallara and Pininfarina — and in 1983, faster than the Quattro.Read more →Lancia Delta S4A turbo and a supercharger, a mid-mounted engine, four-wheel drive and a Kevlar body. The Delta S4 won on its debut and on its first Monte — and is forever linked with Toivonen and Cresto.Read more →Ferrari 308 GTB (rally)Charles Pozzi’s privately entered Ferrari 308 GTB, second in Corsica in 1982.Read more →Mazda RX-7 Group BRotary power and a podium on the 1985 Acropolis: Mazda Rally Team Europe’s RX-7.Read more →Citroën BX 4TCThree rallies, one sixth place and 86 buyers: Citroën’s brief Group B adventure.Read more →

Sources

1. Jonkka's World Rally Archive (juwra.com), results 1982–1986 — https://www.juwra.com/
2. Wikipedia (EN), Nissan 240RS — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_240RS
3. Wikipedia (EN), Citroën BX 4TC — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citro%C3%ABn_BX_4TC
4. Wikipedia (EN), Ferrari 288 GTO — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrari_288_GTO
5. Wikipedia (EN), Achim Warmbold — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achim_Warmbold
6. 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.

Thumbnail photos on this page: Jiří Sedláček (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0); Miloslav Rejha (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0); Calreyn88 (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0); Thesupermat (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0); TTTNIS (Wikimedia Commons, CC0); Croquant (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0).