The SEAT Córdoba WRC is a

World Rally Car A World Rally Car is a racing automobile built to the specific regulations set by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and designed for competition in the World Rally Championship (WRC). The cars were introduced in 1997 as a repl ...

built for the

SEAT Sport Cupra Racing, formerly known as SEAT Sport, is the high-performance motorsport subsidiary of the Spanish automobile manufacturer SEAT, founded in 1985, succeeding the "SEAT Special Vehicles department" which had been formed in 1971 with the mi ...

by SEAT in the

World Rally Championship The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and t ...

. It is based upon the

SEAT Córdoba The SEAT Córdoba is the saloon, estate and coupé version of the SEAT Ibiza supermini car, built by the Spanish automaker SEAT. It was manufactured between 1993 and 2010, and was related with the second and third generations of the Ibiza. ...

road car, and was debuted at the 1998 Rally Finland. __TOC__

Competition history

The Córdoba WRC was SEAT's official rally car in the

from to . It featured a 2.0 litre turbocharged engine. The Córdoba WRC competed in the top category of the championship, as SEAT had homologated a

version of the Córdoba 16v for competition in the FIA

and other international rallies. 1994 World Drivers' Champion

Didier Auriol Didier Auriol (born 18 August 1958) is a French former rally driver. Born in Montpellier, and initially an ambulance driver, he competed in the World Rally Championship throughout the 1990s. He became World Rally Champion in 1994, the first driv ...

, of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, and

Toni Gardemeister Toni Gardemeister (born 31 March 1975) is a Finnish professional rally driver in the World Rally Championship. After previously competing for SEAT's, Mitsubishi's, Škoda's and Ford's factory teams, as well as for privateer teams, he joined the ...

and

Harri Rovanperä Harri "Rovis" Rovanperä (; born 8 April 1966) is a Finnish rally driver who competed in the World Rally Championship from 1993 to 2006. He drove for SEAT (1997– 00), Peugeot (2001– 04), Mitsubishi (2005) and Red Bull Škoda Team ( ...

, both of

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, were among those to drive the factory cars. It made its debut at the 1998 Rally Finland, with

as the main driver. The car achieved podiums at the 1999 Rally New Zealand, driven by

, the 1999 Rally GB, driven by Rovanperä, as well as in the 2000 Safari Rally, driven by

. The works programme concluded at the end of the season of 2000, with the third evolution of the rally car. However, the Córdoba WRC continued to compete with successful results in national championships in different countries. In Spain, the Córdoba won the national title of all the rallies on gravel with Pedro Diego and Marc Blázquez, and wins in tarmac rallies with Salvador Cañellas Jr.

References

External links

* {{SEAT All-wheel-drive vehicles Córdoba WRC World Rally Cars