Rally Sweden - Preview & Program

Rally Sweden, the only true winter rally on the FIA World Rally Championship calendar, takes the contenders to the frozen forests of both Sweden and Norway for one of the fastest events in the series.

Running for the 61st year, Rally Sweden is once again based in Karlstad with the service park located 85 kilometres away at Hagfors airport. Friday and Saturday run traditional stages in the host country and this year the event crosses the border into Norway for the final day, before returning to Sweden for the closing Power Stage at Torsby.

Rally cars powering over ice and snow in sub-zero temperatures provides spectacular action against the backdrop of a winter wonderland, but also demands specific preparation and places huge demands on man and machinery. Tyres, as always, play a huge role and hundreds of tungsten-tipped steel studs protrude from narrow winter tyres, providing amazing grip as they bite through the frozen road surface. Add the extra layers of clothes, anti-glare sunglasses and heated driving boots, and Rally Sweden shapes up to be one of the more unusual events on the calendar.

— Round: 2/13
— Base: Karlstad
— Service Park: Hagfors airport
— Surface: snow and ice.
— Weather: wintry conditions, with sub-zero temperatures that can reach -30°C!
— Sunrise and sunset on the first day of the rally: 8.07am/4.34pm
— Local time: UTC+1
— Currency: Local currency is the Swedish Krona (EUR 1 = SEK 8.6).
— Website: www.rallysweden.com
— Technical information: Spare parts (transmission, subframes, steering racks and turbochargers) are to be shared with the Mexico and Argentina rallies.
— Tyres: 32 Michelin X-Ice North 2 tyres.
— Reconnaissance: Tuesday, 5 February from 8am to 6pm and Wednesday, 6 February from 8am to 8.30pm.
— Free practice and qualifying stage: Thursday, 7 February from 8am on a 3.99km-long stage in Råda, 8km south-east of the service park.
— Route: 22 special stages (12 different stages). 338.91km of timed sections. Total distance: 1,589.78km.

THURSDAY 7 FEBRUARY
8.00am: Free practice
10.33am: Qualifying stage (3.99km)
2.40pm: FIA Pre-Event Press Conference (Media Centre - Karsltad)
7.00pm: Selection of start order and ceremonial start (Karlstad)
8.04pm: SS1 - Karlstad 1 (1.90km)

FRIDAY 8 FEBRUARY
6.10am: Cars leave parc fermé (Karlstad)
7.20am: Service Park A (Hagfors - 15 min)
8.39am: SS2 - Lesjöfors 1 (15.00km)
9.33am: SS3 - Värmullsåsen 1 (23.77km)
10.43am: SS4 - Vargåsen 1 (24.63km)
11.47am: Service Park B (Hagfors - 30min)
1.21pm: SS5 - Lesjöfors 2 (15.00km)5
2.15pm: SS6 - Värmullsåsen 2 (23.77km)
3.25pm: SS7 - Vargåsen 2 (24.63km)
4.19pm: Service Park C (Hagfors - 45 min)
6.29pm: Regroup (Karlstad - 21 min)
7.00pm: SS8 - Karlstad 2 (1.90km)
7.40pm: Parc fermé (Karlstad)

SATURDAY 9 FEBRUARY
6.15am: Cars leave parc fermé (Karlstad)
7.25am: Service Park D (15 min)
8.47am: SS9 - Sågen 1 (14.23km)
9.52am: SS10 - Fredriksberg 1 (18.15km)
10.39am: SS11 - Rämmen 1 (22.76km)
11.20am: SS12: Hagfors Sprint 1 (1.87km)
12.01pm: Service Park E (Hagfors - 30 min)
1.38pm: SS13 - Sågen 2 (14.23km)
2.43pm: SS14 - Fredriksberg 2 (18.15km)
3.30pm: SS15 - Rämmen 2 (22.76km)
4.11pm: SS16 - Hagfors Sprint (1.87km)
4.42pm: Service Park F (Hagfors - 45 min)
5.27pm: Parc fermé (Hagfors)

SUNDAY 10 FEBRUARY
6.00am: Service Park G (Hagfors - 10 min)
7.54am: SS17 - Mitandersfors (27.07km)
9.11am: SS18 - Finnskogen 1 (16.82km)
10.06am: SS19 - Kirkener 1 (7.16km)
11.19am: SS20 - Kirkener 2 (7.16km)
11.54am: SS21 - Finnskogen 2 (16.82km)
1.29pm: Service Park H (Torsby - 15 min)
2.12pm: SS22 - Torsby - Power Stage (19.26km)
3.02pm: Service Park I (Hagfors - 10 min)
4.27pm: Podium (Karlstad Main Square)
5.45pm: FIA Post-Event Press Conference (Karlstad)