Photo Credit: RallyCross.com

Heikkinen Wins Finish Rallycross Champion In Saab 9-3 yet again according to Mike Jager.

Heikkinen wins again in Finland!

At the second round of the Finish Rallycross championship in Hyvinkää, Toomas

Heikkinen took a very good start. He managed to stay ahead of his rivals and won again in a thrilling final.

Results:

1. Toomas Heikkinen (FIN), SAAB 9-3
2. Atro Määttä (FIN), Ford Focus
3. Harri Arola (FIN), Mitsubishi Lancer
4. Martti Simonen (FIN), Ford Fiesta
5. Jukka Lautamäki (FIN), Ford Escort
6. Janne Kanerva(FIN), Škoda Fabia

Photo Credit: Photo: © Lennart Pettersson

Mike Jager has recently covered Per Eklund’s protege, Toomas Heikkinen where he will participate in the first two events of the 2010 Finnish Rallycross Championship.

It was in March where we first learned that Heikkinen is being groomed by Eklund for future rallycross events with the Eklund team.

The Swedish Rallycross Championship, the ‘Rallycross Norden’ events and probably eight events of the 2010 FIA European Rallycross Championship is the plan for Per Eklund this year. Like Michael Jernberg yesterday, Andréas Eriksson this last saturday, and Kenneth Hansen last week, Eklund also attended Strängnäs Motorstadion for some testing before the season. He had this time only brought his “old” SAAB 9-3 with him. “Everything underneath is the same – it is only the model that is older – otherwise it is just as fast as my other Division 1 cars,”he explained.

The reason that Eklund is not attending the first two events of the 2010 European Championship this year is that he will be in Finland at the Finnish Rallycross Championship that kicks off at Hämeenlinna on May 8 – though, he will not be driving. This year, Eklund is taking young Finnish driver Toomas Heikkinen under his wings. Heikkinen, only 19 years old, is this year entering the Rallycross stage by renting one of Eklund’s Divison 1 SAAB’s, and has at the same time gained a mentor in Eklund. Eklund (64 years old in June) realizes the importance of getting young drivers into Rallycross and wants to support them as much as he can with his knowledge and experience. His first step is to act as a ‘teacher’ for Heikkinen, whom he sees much potential in. “This test is actually for Toomas, though I do of course get into the car as well,” Eklund says. Even no matter how experienced as Eklund is, he too needs testing before the season and sat yesterday both in the driver’s and co-driver’s seat.

He thinks that it is important to help “the new generation of young drivers” forward in their careers. And to be there as a mentor is something he really looks forward to. Even though Toomas Heikkinen has not yet competed in any Rallycross event, nor even driven a Rallycross car before coming to Strängnäs Motorstadion, Eklund sees a big potential in the young Finn. Heikkinen has a background in karting and Formula Renault, and has earlier teamed up with drivers such as Timmy Hansen (son of Kenneth Hansen) and Marcus Ericsson in karting. Yet a few laps on the track in a rented Group A Rally car (a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10) and Eklund’s Division 1 SAAB 9-3 Rallycross car, he soon learned more about how to make full use of the track, and even came down to laptimes faster than Michael Jernberg initially had yesterday. “He beat Michael!!!,” mentor Eklund shouted with a smile when the Finn got out of the car.

Toomas Heikkinen will focus on the Finnish Rallycross Championship in 2010, however he is already making plans for a European Rallycross season in 2011. (Photo: © Lennart Pettersson)

Heikkinen will this year drive in the SRC Finnish Rallycross Championship in a SAAB 9-3 SportSedan of Eklund Motorsport. The biggest difference from Formula Renault to Rallycross was not, as probably expected, the new wider driving style; “the seat is on the left side of the car!” Heikkinen laughed, as he is used to sit in a kart. He is also a little worried over the roughness that sometimes does occur in Rallycross. “In Formula Renault we drive with distance to each other, and you won’t get much damage on your car, however in Rallycross – you can,” Heikkinen says. Though the fear of rough competition and the trouble of a left-seated car, seem not to be too big problems for the young Finn who plans to have his first and second event as learning events, and then, during the rest of the season he hopes to be competitive in the ‘A’ finals. In 2011 Heikkinen plans to drive a full season in Division 1 in the European Rallycross Championship. Will he succeed? This is not known yet, however we will for sure keep our eyes on this new young driver.

Photo Credits: http://www.erc24.com/

Per Eklund appears to be grooming a young protege who will be joining Eklund Motorsport. A Finn, by the name of Toomas “Topi” Heikkinen who will be racing in this year’s Finnish rallycross according to enthusiast, Mike Jager

It’s nice to see experienced professionals realizing that for continuity sake, a younger generation needs to be transitioned in.

Finn Toomas “Topi” Heikkinen has made the move from circuit racing to Rallycross and will take part in this year’s Finnish ‘Super Rallicross’ championship in an Eklund Motorsport Saab 93 ERC.
Heikkinen (18) will contest a full season in the Finnish championship as well as driving the Saab in the Finnish round of the ERC in July. Further outings will be considered on the basis Heikkinen’s progress. Starts in the Swedish ERC round, and late season ERC events that fall after the end of the Finnish championship are under discussion.

Having raced karts since the age of eight, Heikkinen progressed to cars in a fairly conventional career path and drove in Formula Renault events in 2008 and ’09. The move to Rallycross is not unique; Finland’s most recent European champion, Jussi Pinomäki, was also an accomplished racer before switching codes.

“It is great to start taking part in a sport in which Finns have a fantastic history and several European champions. My team manager, Per Eklund, has also won the European championship, and Matti Alamäki, the living legend of Rallycross and a five-time European champion, is still driving in the Finnish championship. In company like that, you just have to grab the wheel like a man!” said Heikkinen, “Obviously there is a huge amount to learn. Just to start with, I’m not familiar with the high-powered engine and four-wheel drive of my car. During the winter I have been learning to drive a four-wheel drive vehicle in a Mitsubishi rally car on various Rallycross tracks. Rally driver Riku Tahko has been sitting beside me, and I’m starting to get the hang of it.” In kart racing Heikkinen was a contemporary of Timmy Hansen, Tom Blomqvist and Marcus Ericsson, he was a race winner during the 2009 Formula Renault NEC Cup season.

Eklund has high hopes for his young protege and is looking forward to the task of working with a young driver, “Toomas tested my car at the end of last year, it was just a short run but he drove well. He is going to come to Sweden now and we will work together, driving in the snow and on Rallycross tracks. I’m going to teach him like he was my own son,” said Eklund, “He has a lot of experience from karts and Formula Renault, has a very professional attitude and good backup. He’s not quite 19 yet and he wants to learn everything, I’m looking forward to working with him.”

Heikkinen’s switch to Rallycross is already viewed as a multi-year project by his father Jarmo, “We are by no means saying never again to the Formula classes, but for now we are seriously investing in Rallycross and aiming to move to the ERC in 2011,” he said, “We are happy to face the new challenges and delighted to have Per Eklund with his tremendous experience by our side, not forgetting the team and the fast, reliable car. Rallycross is very popular in Finland and Europe, and I’m convinced this colourful sport would surely be a hit in the United States too. It is also a splendid thing that both the Finnish and the European Championships will be broadcast on TV.”

Heikkinen Senior also pointed out the economic advantages of Rallycross: “After karting we drove in the Formula Renault class, and I must say that they are both excellent ways of draining your funds. When I started to find out about Rallycross as a sport last autumn and had discussions with Eklund Motorsport, I noticed that there is still some sense left in the ‘price tags’ of this sport. It is not exactly cheap either, but it is a lot more sensible compared to the prices in karting and Formula Renault, where the situation is rather overheated,” he said.

Eklund has yet to confirm his own programme of events for 2010, but is set to contest the Finnish championship rounds in Kauhajoki and Joensuu (Heikkinen’s home town) alongside his young team mate. Eklund Motorsport is the latest of the sport’s established operators to embrace the commercial team model, joining OlsbergsMSE and KHM in expanding its activities by running other drivers.

Finnish Rallycross Championship
May 8, Hämeenlinna
May 29, Hyvinkää
June 19, Oulu
July 17, Kauhajoki
August 7, Joensuu
August 21, Kouvola

Photo Credit: RallyCross.com

Per Eklund, long time Saab rally driver wins the Solberg Extreme Motor Show according to RallyCross.com

The first edition of the ‘Solberg Extreme Motor Show’ has come to an end at the Telenor Arena at Fornebu.

Tommy Rustad (SAAB 9-3 from Eklund) won the final of the ‘Golden League’ from Marcus Grönholm (Ford Fiesta Mk7) after Rustad won from P-G Andersson (Ford Fiesta Mk7) in the semi-final. Grönholm won his semi-final from Mikko Hirvonen (Ford Fiesta Mk7).

In the ‘Real Deal’ class Per Eklund beat Sverre Isachsen (Ford Focus ST) in the final after both drivers won their semi-final from respectively Morten Bermingrud (Citroën C4) and Camilla Antonsen (Ford Focus).

Andreas Mikkelsen (Ford Focus ST) succeeded on Anders Grøndal (Subaru Impreza) in the final of the ‘WRC’ class while Stian Haugan (Citroën Xsara) beat Terje Morstad (BMW M3) in the final of the Super National class.

Photo Credit: RallyCross.com

Per Eklund Wins FIA RallyCross Championship In Finland in his Saab 9-3 Sport Sedan.

Here are the details below thanks to Mike Jager.

Eklund wins in Finland!

This weekend (October 3-4) the third and final 2009 Candidate Event for the FIA European Rallycross Championship takes place at Kouvola in Finland. Greinbach (Austria – May 16-17) and Stjørdal (Norway – June 20) were the other Candidate Events that went underway earlier this season.
The evaluation of those three Candidate Events together with the evaluation of the past ten 2009 events will be discussed among the members of the FIA Off-Road Commission in order to be able to release the 2010 calendar. It is expected that the 2010 calendar will be announced on October 14 following the next FIA Off-Road Commission meeting.

The Finnish event was run in mixed weather conditions and won by Per Eklund who led home new Finnish champion Atro Määttä (Focus) and Harri Arola (Mitsubishi Lancer E6).

Results Division 1

1. Per Eklund (S), SAAB 9-3 SportSedan
2. Atro Määttä (FIN), Ford Focus
3. Harri Arola (FIN), Mitsubishi Lancer Evo
4. Jari Järvenpää (FIN), Mitsubishi Lancer Evo
5. Sami Pakkala (FIN), Honda Civic Type-R
6. Ilkka Kiviniemi (FIN), Toyota Corolla

Photo Credit: Per Eklund

Per Eklund, who was out of a few races due to a race accident recently, welcomes the Koenigsegg race car company as a buyer to Saab Automobile according to Mike Jager.

Motor legend Per Eklund, 62, has competed in a Saab since 1965. Today he runs SM-premiere in rallycross in Svampabanan. Eklund welcome mate Christian von Koenigseggs purchase of the Swedish biljätten. – Will it be we’ll be really funny, I can promise, “he says.

.

Per Eklund is out of the rallycross for a few races due to a recent accident during the first day of an Austrian European RallyCross Circuit.

Here are the details from Mike Jager, and for the replay of the actual video footage of the accident, take a look at this link as well.

I wish Per Eklund well in a recovery of his car and glad that he made it out alive.

The third of the five Division One races in the first qualifying heat was stopped after a crash involving Jussi Pinomäki, René Münnich and the car of Per Eklund.
The incident has brought the first day of the Austrian ERC event to a premature end, the Stewards of the Meeting suspending racing in the wake of the crash and holding over the re-run of the third race as well as the last two races in the heat until tomorrow.

There was pushing and contact between several cars in the first corner of the race, the result of which was that Per Eklund’s Saab was left stranded in the middle of the track just at the end of the downhill gravel section.

“Someone hit me in the first corner, it broke the steering and the car was stopped in the middle of the track. I couldn’t move it so I got out and ran away. When they come round again, Walfridsson and Procter just missed it but then there was dust and Pinomäki had no chance. He hit my car flat out and then Münnich hit Pinomäki. My car is complete finished. There should have been a red flag when I stopped there, it’s crazy,” said Eklund.

The incident happened in full sight of many competitors from Divisions One-A and Two, as well as team members who had gathered to watch the race at the point.”I was watching from the top of the hill and half-a-lap before the cars came back here I knew this was going to be a big accident,” said D2 racer Knut Ove Børseth, “The race should have been stopped immediately that Eklund stopped, his car was in the middle of the track.

“The crash followed a controversial incident in the fourth D1-A race in which Johan Larsson rolled in the long gravel corner at the end of the lap. “I told the organiser that they are not thinking about our safety because it was the same in our race,” said D1-A racer Timur Timerzyanov, “Larsson’s car was left in the middle of the track, it was on the racing line and we had to drive round it. And then this…

“Clerk of the Course Karl Staudinger denied that a red flag had been necessary in the D1 race. “The marshal said that the car [Eklund's Saab] was outside the racing line so I let the race continue but with two yellow flags on that post,” he said.

Münnich got out of his car by himself but then collapsed on the ground where he was treated by the medical team who fitted a neck brace before removing him on a stretcher. Pinomäki was kept in his car talking with the medics until they were ready to move him to a stretcher.

Photo Credit: (C) 2009 by www.erc24.com

Our Per Eklund fan, Mike Jager has some new coverage of Per Eklund’s finish at a European Championship in Hungary.

EC Hungary: 10th place for Eklund!

Eklund is working hard in the economic circumstances and has been hit by the troubles surrounding General Motors and the impact that has had on Saab.“There’s nothing from Saab this year, that is a mess. It looks like it might get sorted out in a few weeks but the Swedish government does not want to give any money to GM, so perhaps Saab will go bust and then start again as a new Swedish company,” said Eklund.

“We improved the car a little bit in the winter, but everybody else has moved forward too. We could do more, there is more power to come from the engine but you need a really big budget to do that and this year we are just happy to continue.”

At the fourth race for the European championship in Hungary, Eklund qualifies for the C-final. With an 11th, 12th and an 11th overall time in the qualification heats, Eklund starts at the third position in the C-final. And the old Swede from Arvika managed to win this c-final and and secured himself a ticket for the Division 1 B-final.
In this B-final he finish on a 5th position, a 10th place overall! A good result for this weekend!

Photo Credit: Jakob QBA Nitka

Longstanding Saab rally driver, Per Eklund has made it to 10th place in the European Rallycross Championship recently.

For more information on these standings, please visit Mike Jager’s Per Eklund site.

Photo Credit: TTELA

This past weekend, our friend Erik “On the Roof” Carlsson celebrated his 80th Birthday on Saturday, March 14th, 2009 at the Saab Car Museum in Trollhättan, Sweden.

TTELA has provided an incredible report, of this joyous celebration for this legendary personality for Saab Automobile.

Carlsson ‘On the Roof “filled 80

TROLLHÄTTAN Mr. Saab – Erik Carlsson “On the Roof” – has gone and been 80 years. This was celebrated on Saturday with an open house at the Saab Car Museum where lots of friends, fans and Saab Enthusiasts came to pay tribute to rally legend.

- I believe in the Saab. Do not worry, it will be all right, “ said a noticeably moved Erik.

One of many for Erik in the celebrations was to be invited to a delicious oysters from Grebbestad.

Lots of friends and admirers who came to celebrate Erik Carlsson “On the Roof”. One of these was the friend Gösta Karlsson. “We have known each other in 50 years, he is a good friend,” said Gösta.

Saab’s CEO Jan-Ã…ke Jonsson was in place to pay tribute to Mr. Saab.

- I can not understand why so many have taken the time to come and celebrate me. It is not wise! Erik said while he was busy with the hugging, cheek KISS and sign books.

Already a 11.00 in the celebration began, the ring a long queue to the table where Erik was to receive the tribute. It was old and young, acquaintances, admirers and friends.

Gösta Karlsson, known Erik for many years, presented with Bertil Stener a big beautiful orchid and shook hand with his friend.

- Here’s a little flower Erik. It is almost to the day 50 years ago that we met the first time. Do you remember where?
- Yes, said Erik.

Gösta began to tell and both log:

- We pulled a isbanetävling in Vilhelmina, Erik won and I finished third. After the race when I was about to wrap stuff in the car, Erik came up and said: “You can call me a week and I’ll arrange for you to buy a car at discount prices. Then we became friends. “

- I am old racing driver who drove for Saab 1960-1966 and was drivng with Eriks cars. Erik and I have also run the midnight sun races together Рhe is a very nice and good old friend, said G̦sta and smiled at Erik.

Then it was time for the birth of the child’s next surprise.

- Can Erik imagine a little light brunch? said Per Olofsson, site manager for Saab restaurants, and put up a big dish with delicious oysters.
- Oh, yes! Is the Irish or what?
- No they are from Grebbestad, said Per and opened oysters while Erik on a conveyor belt devoured itself.
- They were really fine you. Many thanks.

Per Olofsson told that Erik is a big oyster lover and that over the years talked a lot about this common interest.
- I took me five and Erik had easily consumed five to. I promised to take me ten, when he turns 85.

After that it was time for the anniversary that is canvassed by Saab’s Managing Director, Jan Ã…ke Jonsson, and the management team.
- Hey. Did you have time to go here? said Erik.
- Yeah, good to see that Erik had to eat oysters, “said Jan Ã…ke Jonsson and told a little anecdote:
- At a meeting in Ireland decided to Erik for the two of us would eat oysters. Erik ordered in 20 pieces. I had two – he is about 18!

Jan Ã…ke Jonsson was then a tribute speech in which he told me about Erik, and how he has been extremely significant for Saab through the years.
- The gift you get this picture and a general overhaul of the property you think so much about, “said Jan Ã…ke Jonsson, aimed at Eriks little red Saab 96 he was 50th birthday of Saab.

After century, it became so may he live, and a generally smooth in the room cheered.
- The most important thing is not that I live a hundred years without light that Saab continues to live long after that! Many thanks to all Saab Employees. I believe in the Saab, it will go. It probably makes most of those who are here, otherwise, you had not come here! said Erik and received applause and smiles said everything.

Congratulations Erik, how does it feel to be 80 years?
- I am 80? No, now you all kidding. Thank you it is incredibly nice to be canvassed in this way. I never thought so many would take the time to come here.

And there is certainly no doubt that you believe in a future for Saab?

- Not a second. We have good cars, good people and an incredibly talented director, Jan Ã…ke Jonsson. This will go.

Photo Credit: Saab Automobile AB

Peter Bäckström, curator of the Saab Car Museum, has for the first time, posted a press release this time celebrating Rally Legend Erik “On The Roof” Carlsson’s 80th Birthday!

Happy Birthday or in Swedish (Bra Födelsedagen) Erik!

Here is the press release below:

2009-03-02

Rally Legend Erik Carlsson Celebrates 80th Birthday

Erik ‘Mr Saab’ Carlsson is 80 years young this week (March 5) and still employed by Saab, making him the Swedish manufacturer’s longest-serving employee.

As international rallying’s first real superstar, Erik’s career with Saab spans six decades and today he remains actively involved as an international ambassador for the brand, attending Saab launches, dealer and customer events around the world.

The names of Carlsson and Saab are inextricably bound together. Born and bred in Saab’s home town of Trollhättan, Erik first sprang to fame in the early Sixties, as ‘the big man in a little car’, taking two back-to-back victories in the Monte Carlo Rally (1962-63) and a hat-trick of wins in the British RAC Rally (1960-62). His ‘David and Goliath’ exploits against more powerful cars were the springboard for launching Saab as a global car brand.

As a young boy, Erik used to stand on the perimeter of the local airfield in Trollhättan and admire the aerobatics of Saab aircraft flying overhead. Little did he know that Saab would soon start manufacturing cars, and that he would play such a key role in promoting its products.

He bought his first car, a second-hand Saab 92, in 1955 and it was a development of this car, the Saab 96, which took him to his most famous rally victories. Over the years, he has driven thousands of Saab cars and been involved in the development and testing of many of the models. There is probably no man on the planet who has driven more Saabs than Erik.

He currently drives a Saab 9-3 Aero SportCombi and, in celebration of his 80th birthday, Saab Switzerland is launching an uprated ‘Erik Carlsson’ edition of the 9-3 SportCombi and Sport Sedan, both featuring Saab’s widely-acclaimed XWD, all-wheel-drive system.

An ebullient character, full of stories and anecdotes laced with a Swedish charm for understatement, Erik continues to ‘live his dream’. He is still in great demand as a celebrity guest and entertaining speaker. His extraordinary memory for faces and names is as sharp as ever and almost as legendary as his exploits behind the wheel. Very much a ‘people person’, Erik is never happier than when meeting and sharing his experiences with enthusiasts.

“I’ve had a wonderful time with Saab,” he says. “We started off by producing real drivers’ cars with a distinctive character and this is as true today as it was when I first joined the company. Design and technology may have developed a great deal over the years, but the qualities that make a Saab a Saab are still same.”

“I’ve travelled the world as a driver and ambassador for the company and I plan carrying on just as long as I am able. I’ve been very lucky because my career with Saab has been a passion every bit as much as a job.”

Erik will enjoy his birthday at home with close family and friends. And on Saturday, March 14, he will attend a special Open Day at the Saab Car Museum in Trollhättan to be held in his honor.

“Erik is a truly charismatic figure, part of Saab’s living heritage,” says Jan-Åke Jonsson, Saab Automobile’s Managing Director. “As we move forward, he will continue to symbolize the enthusiastic, fun-to-drive tradition that inspires the development of our brand.”

CONTACT(S):

Peter Bäckström
Tel: +46 (0)520 859 43
Mob: +46 (0)703 95 37 32
peter.backstrom@gm.com

Photo Credit: Eklund Racing

Per Eklund, longtime Saab rally driver, who said he was determined to rally again in 2009 earlier this month, is now reported to be engaged in the Nordic RallyCross.

According to the Per Eklund fan site run by enthusiast, Mike Jager, this event will be held on four tracks, crossing Norway and Sweden beginning on May 16th and ending on August 22nd.

For more information, please visit the site directly.

Here is the calendar below of the dates:

The racing calender 2009:

1. May 16, Arvika, Sweden
2. June 20, Trondheim Norway
3. July 25, Strägnäs Sweden
4. August 22, Lyngas

For the latest news, see the official homepage: http://www.rallycrossnorden.se/

Photo Credit: Per Eklund / Trollspeed

Per Eklund, 62, has been rallying since 1968, is determined to rally again this year according to Mike Jager’s website. If he is able to get the financing this year during the economic crisis, it will mark his 41st anniversary as a rally driver.

This past fall, Per received an award from the Saab Club of the Netherlands.

As Saab Automobile announced that they would be returning to racing in 2009, I wonder if they would be the official sponsor for Per Eklund once again, or if he would need to find funding elsewhere, because currently, Jens Edman, is the official driver in that officially sanctioned program.

This article goes on to say that Per Eklund needs to have something substantial because he plans on attending the Nordic Cup which begins as soon as May 16 in Arvika, Sweden. As it is now, he says that being a rally driver is almost akin to NHL hockey plays paying just for the opportunity to play in the sport, which is complelely wrong.

I wish him well in this pursuit, I hope for him and Saab Automobile, get all of the funding they need.

Photo Credit: Saab Club Netherlands Pictured L-to-R (Esther Smith, Per Eklund and Caroline de Greeff

The Saab Club of the Netherlands has created the “Per Eklund Trophy” this year, which was given to the best Saab Rally Driver in four events this past year.

According to Mike Jager’s website, this club’s historic rally team has added this trophy to their annual rally which has been given to Henri Dommerholt and Jens HÃ¥kansson, with a Saab 96 TT Monte Carlo from 1965.

Results Per Eklund trophy 2008 :

1. Henri Dommerholt and Jens HÃ¥kansson, Saab 96 tt, 34 points
2. Kjel Postema and Nittert Postema, 28 points
3. Michiel Klinge and Jurryt Jannink, 22 points
René Hut and Cobi ten Wolde, 22 points

Photo Credit: Mr. Saab / Saab Automobile

It is my sad duty to report that Patt Moss, legendary rally driver and wife of Erik “On the Roof” Carlsson has passed away on Thursday, October 16th at the age of 73.

Here is a well written report of her incredible life in the U.K. Telegraph.

Please let’s pause and give respects to her passing and wish Erik Carlsson and family, our deepest condolences.

Pat Moss, who died on Thursday aged 73, became one of Britain’s leading horsewomen and factory-team rally drivers, winning the European Ladies’ Rally Championship five times, the Coupe des Dames on the Monte Carlo Rally eight times, and scoring the Mini Cooper’s first big rally victory in the Tulip Rally of 1962.

Taught to drive at the age of 11 by her elder brother, the great motor racing driver Stirling, in the family Jeep, Pat Moss was a confident driver of Land Rovers on the family farm by the time she was 17, when her father treated her to her first car, a 1936 Morris Ten.

She enjoyed factory drives with all the major teams of the day for 20 years, starting in 1954 in a local car club rally near her home at Tring, Hertfordshire, in her own Triumph TR2, accompanied by her groom, Ann Riley. They won the event, the pair being the only crew to find both a worm and a feather.

With the success of this treasure-hunt behind her, she offered her services to all the major car companies – she badly wanted to drive for Triumph, as the two-litre TR2 was winning all the club rallies of the day, and was a major contender on the international scene.

When she was turned down by Triumph’s motor sport manager Ken Richardson – rudely, in her view – she tried out her persuasion on Marcus Chambers, of MG, who had been charged with trying to beat the Triumph team.

Chambers took Pat Moss under his wing and gave her the encouragement she needed. She drove in the RAC Rally at the end of 1955 in an MG TF, finishing the third-best woman, before riding in the back seat of a three-girl team’s Austin Westminster in the Monte Carlo Rally in January 1956.

The car ran out of brakes on a mountain hairpin, crashed over the edge and finished upside down: not a great start. Drives in a Morris Minor nicknamed “Granny” followed, Pat Moss finishing fourth overall in the 1958 RAC, the BMC team’s best rally result to date.

Patricia Moss was born on December 27 1934 at Thames Ditton, where her father practised as a dentist and – with his wife – was a keen competitor in car rallies and trials.

As an eight-year-old Pat won a string of pony events, competing against her brother Stirling. Both were presented to King George VI after winning the Victor Ludorum at the 1945 Windsor Cup horse trials. Pat’s success on horseback continued with a victory at the Horse of the Year Show in 1950, and in 1953 she was presented to the Queen after winning the Queen Elizabeth Cup at White City.

As well as show jumping, Pat began rallying, insisting on being paid a cash fee by the British Motor Corporation (like all the other drivers), as well as on having the use of a company car and of a BMC truck converted into a horse-box. Pat Moss’s major achievement was winning outright the toughest rally in Europe, the 1960 Liège-Rome-Liège, behind the wheel of the fearsome Austin Healey 3000, then regarded as a particularly difficult car to tame. It was the first time any female driver had won an international rally.

Her successes continued with a second in the Alpine Rally the same year, and another in the 1961 RAC Rally. Pat reckoned she would have won the latter outright had she not stopped to lend the Swedish driver Erik Carlsson a tyre; such was the camaraderie in rallying at the time that stopping to help rivals was regarded as the natural thing to do. She was third in the 6-cylinder Austin-Healey on the RAC the following year, but the crowning achievement of 1962 was her victory in the Tulip Rally in the newly-introduced Mini Cooper.

This was the first big win for a car that was about to change the face of international rallying, but Pat Moss could not disguise her dislike for the car, which she found “twitchy, and pretty unruly on the limit”.

In 1963 Pat Moss and her fellow Healey driver David Seigle-Morris were persuaded to join Ford with the promise that a Lotus-tuned Cortina would soon be coming along that would help them win events. In the meantime, the best she could manage was sixth in Greece on the Acropolis Rally. She married Erik Carlsson in the same year.

Things looked up in 1964 when she switched to the Saab team for a full season. She finished fifth in that year’s Monte Carlo rally, one of 11 internationals in which she drove that year. And in 1965 she came third in the Monte, an event she rated as one of her toughest-ever drives: a blizzard hit the rally before Chambéry, which suited the Saab as Pat Moss put in a string of rapid times on the final night. She was beaten only by Timo Mäkinen’s Mini Cooper, and the factory racing special Porsche 904 of Eugen Bohringer; both cars were substantially lighter and more powerful than the Saab.

Now at the peak of her powers, Pat Moss was persuaded to join Lancia to drive the new Fulvia, but she found the steering over-heavy and disliked the strong understeer. Her best results with Lancia were a second overall in the San Remo in 1968; an outright win the same year in the Sestriere; and a third, with Susan Seigle-Morris navigating, in Italy’s 999 Minutes. An eighth on the rough goat tracks of the Acropolis and a seventh on the twisty Tarmac roads of Corsica underlined her versatility.

Drives with Renault Alpine followed, with a 10th overall in the 1972 Monte Carlo. By now all her contemporaries from the 1950s had either retired or were in team management, and by the mid-1970s she was driving for Toyota in the Monte Carlo; it was when she was with that team that she finally decided, in 1974, to retire.

In later life she settled down with her husband (who kept up a managerial role at Saab), travelled the world, kept horses, and found room in the back of her garage for a Morris Minor, in its original livery of almond green. She never slowed down, and recently collected a speeding ticket while towing a horse-box.

Pat Moss is survived by her husband and their daughter.

Source: The Telegraph

Per Eklund, legendary Saab rally driver has completed the entire 2008 European RallyCross season.

Eklund finished 6th overall at the last race of the season.

For more information on this race, please visit Mike Jager’s website directly.

Photo Credit: Mike Jager

According to Saab Enthusiast Mike Jager, legendary Saab rally driver, Per Eklund finished 9th overall at the recent European Rallycross last weekend in the Czech Republic.

For more details including photos and even a video taken behind Per Eklund’s Saab 9-3 BioiPower on the track, please visit Mike Jager’s website.

Photo Credit: Per Eklund / Trollspeed

Per Eklund, legendary Swedish Saab rally driver, has made it to 4th place in the Strägnäs, Sweden rally event.

Here is the news thanks to Per Eklund Saab Enthusiast, Mike Jager .

After almost 3 weeks after Höljes, the 4th race fr the Swedish championship rallycross was held at the Strägnäs Motorstadion.

Eklund drove in the qualification heat a 5th, a 3rd and a 7th time. The last qualification he had a puncture. The times equals a 4th in the A-final.

In the A-final, Norwegian Sverre Isachsen started the A final from pole ahead of Michael Jernberg who set fastest time in the second heat. Andréas Eriksson and Per Eklund qualified third and fourth

Hedström then made a remarkable start and grabbed the lead of the A final away from Isachsen with Eklund initially running third. Eriksson passed Eklund to gain a podium finish, Eklund holding on to fourth place ahead of Croon and Jernberg, the latter retaining the championship lead ahead of Eriksson.

Results:

1. Peter Hedström, Ford Fiesta ST, 30
2. Sverre Isachsen, Ford Focus ST, 27+3
3. Andréas Eriksson, Ford Fiesta ST, 25+1
4. Per Eklund, SAAB 9-3 SportSedan, 23
5. Tony Croon, Ford Focus, 22
6. Michael Jernberg, Å koda Fabia, 21+2
7. Stig-Olov Walfridsson, Renault Clio, 20
8. Stefan Jansson, Hyundai Accent, 19
9. Silvo Viitanen, Ford Focus, 18
10. Guttorm Lindefjell, Å koda Fabia, 17
11. Frode Holte, Volvo S40, 10

Erik “pÃ¥ taket” Carlsson, or “pÃ¥ taket” in Swedish meaning “on the roof”, was born March 5, 1929 in Trollhättan, Sweden.

The nickname On the roof, apparently originated by from the children’s book, “Karlsson pÃ¥ taket” by Astrid Lindgren. In this book,the Karlsson character lived on the roof of an apartment building. This “on the roof” name was given to Erik Carlsson because he had the infrequent habit of rolling his Saab rally car on its roof.

Erik joined SAAB as a rally driver, just after the first SAAB 92 model was produced and participated in his first rally with it, the Rikspokalen in 1955. Carlsson, married to Pat Moss on March 3rd, 1963, began a relationship that expanded well beyond the homefront. Patt Moss, a younger sister of legendary rally driver, Stirling Moss eventually became Erik Carlsson’s co-pilot through most of his successful rally career.

The early SAABs that Erik Carlsson drove were significantly underutilized two-stroke vehicles that required the driver to keep the high revolutions up while moving, which meant high speeds at all times. When driving these “strokers” at high speeds at all times, Erik Carlsson developed what was called “left foot” braking where you use your left foot to brake while in the same instance, your right foot to maintain the speed at all times.

While Erik Carlsson maintained 1st place in most of his rally circuits, the most notable rally he participated in was the 1964 Monte Carlo Rally where he was victorious.

The year following this victory, both Erik Carlsson and Pat Moss wrote a book called “The Art & Technique of Driving”.

The most recent book on Erik Carlsson’s career was published in 1999, titled “Mr. Saab”. The Mr Saab title was given to Erik “On the Roof” Carlsson by Saab Automobile as he ended his rally career to continue a public relations career for the Swedish car company.

Today, Erik Carlsson has been known to make appearances at various Saab Festivals and Saab Conventions all over the world, and with any luck maybe you will get a chance to meet this legendary Saab rally champion to thank him for all of the recognition, attention and history he has brought to the Saab Automobile brand ever since.

I leave you with his list of lifetime rally achievements.

Saab Enthusiast, Mike Jager has recently reported on the status of legendary Saab rally driver, Per Eklund

According to Mike Jager, that in spite of some significant repair work that has delayed Per Eklund’s team, he has managed to at least get things up and running again. Here is the press release in Swedish:

Anyone want to fully translate to English?

Per Eklund var sist till presskonferensen. Men snabbast på banan.
– Allt kan vi inte ha gjort fel i alla fall, säger den 62-årige nestorn från Arvika.

Toppförare och hemmahopp i division I var samlade till torsdagens presskonferens med tillhörande uppvisningskörning (2×3 varv) pÃ¥ banan.”Men var är Per Eklund”, undrade alla.

När de andra förarna gick ut från pressrummet kom herr Eklund med andan i halsen.

– De var färdiga fem i morse med bilen i Trollhättan, pustade han. Man kan tro att Saaben var uppe i varv efter all stress, för det blev sannerligen åka av.

Nestorn från Arvika och tävlande för Finnskoga åkte ifrån alla de andra och lämnade storfräsare som Sverre Isachsen, trefaldig segrare i Höljes, Ludvig Hunsbedt, trea i årets EM-serie, EM-ledaren Kenneth Hansen, EM-tvåan Michael Jernberg, ”Stecka”, fransmannen Jean-Luc Pallier och EM-fyran Andreas Eriksson bakom sig.

Eklund avverkade snabbaste varvet på 45.83. Isachsen var tvåa med 45.99 och Hunsbedt hade 46.31.
Tiderna på ett pressrace har kanske ingen avgörande betydelse.
Men Per var klart nöjd med körningen.Han har inte varit tillfreds med bilen hittills och ligger bara tia i EM-tabellen, med blott en A-final (första tävlingen i Portugal).

Teamet hade jobbat med elektroniken på Saaben, men hann inte riktigt klart till Momarken.
Nu blev det färdigt i sista momangen i verkstaden i Trollhättan. Sju på morgonen var bilen i Arvika och då skulle skärmar och annat sättas på.
Enligt Per beror tidsbristen på att Trollspeed haft fullt upp med Steckas och Jernbergs bilar och att han själv hjälpt irländaren George Tracey med dennes WRC Peugeot.

Det handlar också om ekonomiska resurser.

– Jag har inte råd, svarar Per på frågan om varför han halkat efter konkurrenterna.
Det lär ha fattats 40-50 hästar i toppeffekt och och en del fattas fortfarande.
Pressracet gav dock ett värdefullt kvitto på att teamet är på rätt väg.Att Per Eklund inte hunnit träna på favoritbanan inför årets EM-lopp kompenserar han med otaliga års praktik.
– Jag körde här innan de andra var födda. Jag var med när banan byggdes, säger han.
Är det lika roligt nu när du inte är med i toppen?
– Jag ska vara med i toppen bara jag får ordning på motorn.Är det här roligaste tävlingen?
– Ja, det är ju tätt med folk här redan på torsdagen. Det kokar. Det är som Arvikafestivalen

Photo Credit: ERC24.com

Saab Enthusiast, Mike Jager has recently captured the results from legendary Saab rally driver Per Eklund who competed in EC Austria.

In the time practice, Eklund could drive a third time overall.

The first heat, It was Eklund with the best start in dry conditions. In the first lap he could hold of Eriksson, but not for long. Eriksson could set the fastest time overall, Eklund took the 9th position overall.

To check out the complete results, I urge you to visit Mike Jager’s page directly.

Photo Credit: (c)Mikael Persson

Legendary Saab Rally Champion, Per Eklund, comes in at 4th place overall at the recent Swedish Championship.

Below are the details thanks to Saab Enthusiast, Mike Jager

Stig-Olov Walfridsson, who was on the innerside as pole sitter Eriksson opted for the outerside of the grid, went into the lead when the green(!) light was showen ahead of Eklund and Hedström. Eriksson faced some issues during the start and joined the field in sixth position. Already in the first corner Eklund went off the track as Peter Hedström was too enthousiastic to try to gain second place in the race. Eventually Hedström was blackflagged by the Clerk of the Course for pushing on Eklund. Eklund on the other hand lost a lot of time with this incident but continued racing and joined the track again in last position. By the end of the first lap Walfridsson was leading the field ahead of Tony Croon, Eriksson, who worked his way up to third place after missing the start, Jernberg and Eklund. During the second lap, Walfridsson who was chased by Croon and Eriksson slowed down. Croon was forced to brake and Eriksson hit Croon by accident. Eriksson damaged the turbo and intercooler of the Fiesta and his final was reduced to driving the remaining laps at a very low speed. By the end of that second lap Walfridsson went to the startgrid again. “I noticed a red flag and i supposed the race was stopped. Therefore I went back to the startgrid,” Walfridsson declared afterwards. “Yeah, i also saw a red flag,” said Croon. “I was forced to brake behind Walfridsson, but then i realised that the race still was going on, so I continued,” he said. Racing went on with Croon in the lead while Jernberg climbed to second place. Jernberg went into the joker lap in the penultimate lap while Croon passed through it in the last lap. However, the joker lap didn’t change the positions anymore. Croon came in first and won surprisingly his first Division one event of his career. Jernberg, with a puncture (back left), was second while Eriksson and Eklund finished the race on places three and four.

Report A-final by http://www.rallycross.com/

Results:

1. Tony Croon Ford Focus 30

2. Michael Jernberg Skoda Fabia 27

3. Andréas Eriksson Ford Fiesta ST 25+3

4. Per Eklund SAAB 9-3 ASS 23

5. Stig-Olov Walfridsson Renault Clio RS 22+2

6. Peter Hedström Ford Fiesta ST 21+1

7. George Tracey Peugeot 307 CC 20

8. Jakob Teil Hansen Ford Escort RS 19

I highly suggest you read this interview below, it covers a great deal of his early beginnings in the rally scene.

The Great Per-Suader

Per Eklund is 61, but still has plenty of passion for the sport

The British and European rallycross championships need a father figure like David Richards or Bernie Ecclestone. That is the opinion of Swedish motorsport legend Per Eklund. The 1999 European rallycross champion is entitled to voice his opinions after contesting more than 1500 events in his illustrious 43-year career. His tally includes 83 world rally championship starts and 20 Swedish national titles in rallying, rallycross and hillclimbs.

Even now, the 61-year-old Arvika resident shows no sign of hanging up his helmet. The former works Austin Rover, Nissan, Subaru, Toyota, Volkswagen and Saab driver now dedicates his time to rallycross as both a driver and a preparation expert. He is also highly enthusiastic about his chosen category. “We have the product,” he says. “It is a bit like ice hockey, because it is so spectacular. There are six 600bhp cars fighting for position. ” It is a tough game, but we need someone to promote it better. Rallycross in France is very big and some meetings attract 30,000 spectators. It is time to have European round in England again. The Irish and English boys are coming to Europe more now, but everything in motorsport comes from England. It is a motorsport mecca. The British championship rules must come closer to European rules to make this happen. And we need a clever guy to promote it and gt it to the public and on to television.”

Shortly after his 18th birthday Eklund made his competitive debut at the wheel of a borrowed Volvo in a local rally. He won his class. Later that year he spent the equivalent of 50 pounds in today’s money on his first car, a Volkswagen Beetle. But he admits having gained some early experience on the roads near his Skönnerud home.

“My father ran a driving school and my brother Lars, who is three yeras older, and I used to ‘borrow’ cars from the garage while he slept,” he says. “We would drive around on the snow-covered roads at night and sometimes the cars would come back damaged and we were not very popular. I started co-driving for Lars when I was 15 in small local rallies. He was very good but he had to stop because he did not have the money.” From that small start, Eklund carved a name for himself in a career that spanned five decades, five continents and included 13 podiums in world championship rallies. Eklund became synonomous with the Saab brand as a works driver from 1970 until 1979, taking his only WRC win on Rally Sweden in 1976 driving a 96 V4. “I was racing my biggest rival Stig Blomqvist,” he recalls. “Stig was my best friend and it seems both our father’s had one son that was made. He was also in a Saab and our team manager Bo Helleberg warned us to stop racing each otehr and bring the two cars home or he would fire us. But it was a race and neither of us knew how to give up in a fight. In the end I won the rally by a couple of seconds and the third-placed car was more than 20 minutes behind. We were lucky to stay on the road and lucky to still have work”

Although this was his only WRC win, he stood on the podium a further 12 times, the last in 1988 when he was third on Safari Rally in a Nissan 200SX. He also took fourth overall on the Swedish Rally in 1982 in a privately entered Saab 99 Turbo, on a significant result on an event that really heralded the start of the four-wheel-drive, flame spitting Group Bera. In the intervening years he spent time with Toyota, British Leyland/ Austin Rover, Subaru, Nissan, Volkswagen, Lancia and Audio. Fittingly, his last WRC appearance was on the 1997 RAC Rally in a works-run Saab 900, although he unfortunately retired from the event. Still, he believes he got out of rallying at the right time and has little respect for the current spring-style event format.
“Today rallies are just a drive around the hotel, “he says. “I hear drivers complaining about conditions and potholes. I remember the Safari Rally when there was no road. We had to build the road ourselves. The first time we did the Ivory Coast Rally not one car made the finish.”
That is not his only concern about modern rallying, as Eklund reckons that young drivers get it far too easy these days.

“When I started I had no money at all but I always found it, “he says. “Old friends would help out with entry fees. Today, rich fathers spend the money and driver’s don’t know what it is like to be hard up. Money destroys the youngsters. Marcus Grönholm learned the hard way – his father was killed in a rally and Marcus was nearly 30 before he made the big time.
“i hated school, as did Stig, but I learned mechanics and understood the workings of a car. If I damaged a car I would have to spend house in the workshop fixing it myself and on longer rallies we never gave up. We would work on the car ourselves at the side of the road just to get to the finish. I know what it is like to destroy a car and then help repair it. Today, driver’s just call up the team and get towed back to service and then rejoin under SupeRally rules. They have no mechanical knowledge.”

After he scaled down his rallying career a switch to full-time rallycross was no surprise. He won Sweden’s first rallycross event in Hedemora in October 1971, and his career switch opened a floodgate and encouraged a host of top-flight rally drivers to move across. He says: “I was in rallying all my life but turned to rallycross as I got older. The WRC was too expensive and you need a suitcase full of money. A driver can buy a top rallycross car and contest the whole European championship for the same money as it costs to hire a World Rally Car and do one round of the WRC. The sport also takes less time than rallying. “That is why you will see rally drivers like Ollie O’Donovan and Andrew Nesbitt entering more rallycross events in the future.

There are no big teams, which helps keep the cost down and the rules are quite easy going. People like Nesbitt and O’Donovan run big businesses. They can arrive at an event on Friday and can be back to work on Monday.”
The switch to rallycross led to one of Eklund’s greatest achievements. In 1996, he built a Saab 900 Turbo in which he won the folllowing season’s Swedish Rallycross title. The same car took him to his only European Rallycross Championship title in 1999. As a reward Saab paid for him to entre the legendary Pikes Peak hillclimb in Colorado in 2000. “I had built a 540bhp Saab 9-3 for rallycross in 1996,” he says. “I had no factory support. I started it myself. Afterwards I was invited to the factory and Saab gave me a free entry to Pikes Peak. I had only three months to build a new 800bhp car using parts from the rallycross car.” Eklund won the Open class of the event on his debut – setting a class record that still stands – and went on to claim an outright win in an even more powerful Saab in 2002.

Eklund is still employed by Saab and spends February and March 120 miles North of the Arctic Circle teaching corporate clients the nuances of driving on ice. ” I would change nothing and I would be very happy to do it all again the hard way,” he says. “I have been very lucky as I have been all around the world. My only regret was that I bought the Rothmans Subaru Legacy that Colin McRae used to to win the British Rally Championship in 1992 from ProDrive – and I then stupidly sold it to some guy in Norway…

Source: Motor Sport News

Swedish rally legend, Per Eklund has officially won the London RallyCross mentioned earlier last week.

Eklund won the London masters today!

After qualifying 2nd despite not having the ideal tyre (Avon cross-ply heavy wet pattern) Per made a fantastic start with London-based Irishman Ollie O`Donovan the pole-sitter also getting off the line with a good start, the two cars alongside eachother into the first left-hand kink.

Both cars were launched skyward and contact was made in mid-air, fortunately Pers Saab 9-3 4x4t landed better than O`Donovan who`s Tony Bardy prepared Peugeot 306 4x4T16 ended up hitting the barriers and sustaining damage to front and rear right-hand suspension and stranded just off the racing line.

The race continued with Tony Proctor (Yorkshire) in his Harry Hockley prepared Ford Puma 4x4t taking up the chase to catch Per Eklund with Dublin Based Irishman Dermot Carnegie Fiesta ST4x4T and Steve Hill Mitsubishi Evo 9 also in hot persuit.

Proctors chase ended a few laps later after spinning-out and stalling, leaving Carnegie to pick up 2nd place and Hill to complete the honours with 3rd.

After the race Per picked-up hitch-hiker Ollie O`Donovan, who then drove Pers Saab with the 61 year old Eklund standing proud out of the side of the drivers door to enjoy the cheers of the crowd, whilst the other drivers enjoyed a feast of donuts, Carnegie in particular who managed to treat Tommy Grahams Escort to a sand-blasting.