Where will Ogier go after VW's exit?

Nobody will ever find out. How can they? It'll be fine. Pass me the computer. What's the limit for the test? How much do we want this Polo to chuck out?

Sebastien Ogier would, no doubt very much like a chat with those Volkswagen colleagues who had a conversation roughly along those lines a few years ago. Not only has that dialogue and the subsequent fiddling left Volkswagen with 15 billion reasons to wish it had never heard of dieselgate, it's also left the four-time World Rally champion without a car and without a job for next season.

Where will he go? What will he do?

If you'd put this whole scenario to Ogier in the middle of last season, it's quite possible he would have knocked the whole thing on the head and gone gardening. Or fishing.

Fortunately for him, the World Rally Championship Commission has decided to lessen his load in terms of road sweeping; the championship leader will now only be expected to run at the front of the field on one day rather than two. If the rule stayed the same as this year, Ogier was talking retirement. His former boss Jost Capito was pretty convinced he'd go.

But then, as has happened on so many occasions, Ogier undid his own perfectly valid argument by being too good. Winning this year's championship with two rounds to spare was hardly cause for change.

Anyway, he's staying. Carlos said so.

Sainz knows Ogier well - the respect between the men and their six world titles is huge - and the Frenchman is cut from same cloth as the Spaniard.

"I'm sure he will see this as a new challenge," says Sainz. "He will be surprised and he will be disappointed for the whole team. But he will stay [in the WRC]."

Now we've established that, where will he go? Let's look at the options. Just to be clear, I'm presenting the cases in alphabetical order...

BACK TO THE BEGINNING WITH CITROEN?

Could you ever genuinely discount a return to the team that made it all happen for Ogier? I don't think so.

Ogier's arrival in rallying tied in fortuitously with Olivier Quesnel's desire to make his mark on Guy Frequelin's team. Quesnel backed Ogier from the start, but when push came to shove the pair of them lost out to Sebastien Loeb and the Citroen board. Ogier's departure from the Versailles team wasn't the most harmonious at the end of 2011.

Current Citroen team principal Yves Matton has been very quick to point out that those days - and those folk - are all behind them.

To many, Citroen's the most obvious destination for Ogier: French world champion returns to returning French world champion team. There are, however, questions over how Matton would finance the deal with speculation that the wallet's not quite what is once was.

Whether Citroen CEO Linda Jackson is prepared to dig a little deeper and find the money to bring the two back together remains to be seen. There is, of course, the small matter of Citroen's incumbent superstar. The one from Dungannon.

Kris Meeke's just about the only driver - with the exception of Hayden Paddon from time to time - with the consistent ability to get under Ogier's skin and wind him up. Surprisingly, Meeke's up for it.

"From a personal perspective," reasons Meeke, "I'd maybe prefer to have him in the same team rather than in a car which might be perceived to be better. It would be a more level playing field, if you like."

Game on. Maybe.

HYUNDAI: NO ROOM AT THE INN

This is probably the easiest and swiftest option to deal with.

For Ogier, it's not going to happen. Michel Nandan has already told us he's got his three frontline drivers Thierry Neuville, Paddon and Dani Sordo under contractual lock and key for the next two years.

And those agreements will be binding and complete - all rallies until the end of 2018 - with very little room to wriggle on either side.

Regardless of where Ogier and his two Volkswagen team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Andreas Mikkelsen are scattered, you'd have to say the Hannover squad's departure puts the WRC's other German-based manufacturer on pole in next season's makes' race.

A SECOND CHANCE FOR M-SPORT?

No disrespect to those who followed Marcus Gronholm through the doors of Dovenby, but I haven't seen Malcolm Wilson so excited about the prospect of a new signing since the tall Finn put pen to paper among the beautiful oak panels.

Wilson came close to signing Loeb in 2005 (he's still got the gloves the Alsatian wore to test his Ford Focus RS WRC in that year) and he almost got Ogier six years later. He's determined not to let a French Seb slip through his fingers for a third time.

If funding's an issue at Citroen, it's certainly a sticking point in Cumbria. But... just like the potential for Ogier in a C3 could loosen the Parisian purse strings, could there be potential that Ford could see the benefit of such an alliance?

"I'm convinced we have the car for him to take a fifth world championship," says Wilson, who has already opened discussions with Ogier.

There's no doubting M-Sport's engineering ability, the 2017 Fiesta RS WRC has drawn compliments from across the board and right around motorsport - with aero-mastermind Mattias Ekstrom taking time to call Wilson and tell him he things he's got his wings and splitters in the right place.

On top of that, there's genuine warmth and mutual admiration between Ogier and Wilson.

And, let's not forget, Ogier likes to do a bit of racing from time-to-time. If only M-Sport had some sort of GT programme going on at the moment...

TOYOTA: AN UNLIKELY OPTION

This has to be the workable option furthest left of field...

Lots of folk have said lots of things about Toyota's return this year. It's been on, it's been off, it's been ahead of schedule and miles behind.

The Yaris WRC has been slower than a 2016 car and it's been the quickest thing Gap service park bound in January.

Who knows? In truth, nobody.

For Ogier, Toyota would probably be the biggest gamble. But it could well turn out to be the best-paid and potentially longest-term offering on the table.

One possibility could be that he goes there with some of the VW engineering genius that'll be kicking its heels in Hannover post-Rally Australia.

Team principal Tommi Makinen is undoubtedly interested, but maybe taking the world champion's a little bit too much in year one of Toyota's return.

SO WHERE DOES HE GO?

Head? Citroen. Heart? M-Sport.

Hang on a minute... if Linda Jackson doesn't sign off on the much-needed millions, is that a deal-breaker? In all honesty, it probably is. Red Bull has confirmed Ogier will keep his personal deal and VW will pay him for another year, but Ogier knows his own value and will, rightly, question why he should drive for a cent less than his worth.

What about Red Bull coming back to Citroen? Well, head of international motorsport Thomas Ueberall has told us the Austrians are not thinking about putting the VW cash elsewhere. At the moment.

Red Bull funding at Citroen? Might be a tricky one, given Abu Dhabi's position as principal backer and title sponsor. Can't really see Red Bull playing second fiddle when it comes to putting stickers on the C3 WRC.

Red Bull M-Sport World Rally Team? It's possible. Wilson has worked with the energy drink firm before (think Raimund Baumschlager in a Focus 15 years ago) and he has everything to offer. Right now, the 2017 Ford Fiesta RS WRC is a genuine blank canvas when it comes to backing.

That's it, I'm in: head and heart have spoken. Ogier's off to M-Sport. Done deal.

In fact, he's probably testing the Fiesta as you're reading this.