Petter Solberg, World Rally Champion
The two-time World Rally champ now spends most of his time in the passenger seat, but when the mood takes him he still takes the occasion detour to the forest tracks around his SWEDISH home.
“When I want to drive, I like to take out one of my cars on the gravel roads around my farm, far from everyone.”
Petter Solberg probably needs little introduction on any motoring website. You may consider that, as a former WRC champ, he knows more about the ‘road less travelled’ than most others. Over his long career at the forefront of world rallying he would have explored the dusty and lesser-known detours of many countries during countless special stages.
The Norwegian driver was dubbed ‘Mr Hollywood’ for his flamboyant style and his love for entertaining his fans. And he has plenty of those around the world, even to this day. He recently entertained the masses at the annual Simola Hillclimb in South Africa where he competed in an FIA RX-spec VW Polo.
Camera persona aside Solberg says: “I am not a city guy, I like being away from the city, in the quiet of the countryside. When I want to drive, I like to take out one of my cars on the gravel roads around my farm (in Sweden), far from everyone.”
When pressed on what he drives during these quiet excursions, he admits that his car collection totals 30 now. Among them are, fittingly, a (one of 555) Petter Solberg Edition Subaru WRX STi that was produced to celebrate his 2003 World Rally Championship Driver’s title. Incidentally, his car wears chassis number “000”.
Solberg has several other rally machines including a Volvo which netted him four Norwegian rallycross titles, his first WRC race-winning WRX (Rally GB 2002) and a few others. Among the collection are also his wife’s championship-winning Mitsubishi Evo, a Celica GT4, two Ford Escort Mk2s, a Lotus 7 as well as a McLaren. His wife, Pernilla Walfridsson’s family reportedly has a collection of 70 cars…
“I like to drive all the cars, so it can really be any one of them. But, if I have to say there is one it’ll be my Porsche (a 996-generation 911) to enjoy nature and cruise around in the forests.”
“These days more and more it’s my son Oliver who is doing the driving and I am in the passenger seat.” Of course, Oliver is, himself, rising through the ranks to emulate the feats achieved by his grandfather Per-Inge "Pi" Walfridsson, mother, father and uncle Henning. Oliver is currently competing in the WRC-2 category in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2.
A farm that houses a car collection, with many rally-spec machines, it’s no wonder that Solberg enjoys the deserted tracks and paths around his home in Mitandersfors, close to the Norwegian border. I can’t think of a better place for a retired rally driver to take the long route home…
Richard Porter – the Sniff in Smith and Sniff – describes two diametrically opposite drives that vie for the title of his Favourite Detour.