Solberg retires on final road section

The 2003 World Rally champion's car had started to develop the problem near the end of the Cimetiere de Vassieux to Col de Gaudissart stage. Although he reached the flying finish, Solberg then had to nurse the Peugeot through the final 40-kilometre road section back to the service area in order to be classified, and the car came to a halt with 13km to go.

Solberg's late retirement moves Nicolas Vouilloz up to seventh, with Jan Kopecky now eighth, Giandomenico Basso ninth, and Toni Gardemeister picking up the final point in 10th after all - having previously lost the spot to Basso on the penultimate stage. Ex-Formula 1 driver Alex Caffi gets 11th place on his rallying debut.

In the early stages of the rally Solberg had looked like he might challenge for victory, as he steadily settled into the S2000 Peugeot and moved up to second place behind Juho Hanninen.

But a decision to use intermediate tyres on what proved to be extremely snowy Thursday afternoon stages cost him several minutes, and he spent the final day of the rally in a lonely seventh.