Seppo Harjanne
Encyclopedia
Seppo Harjanne is a Finnish
former rally
co-driver
. He is best known for co-driving for Timo Salonen
from 1979 to 1988
and for Tommi Mäkinen
from 1990
to 1997. With Salonen, Harjanne took ten World Rally Championship
victories for the factory teams of Datsun
, Peugeot
and Mazda
, and the 1985
drivers' world championship title in a Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 E2
. With Mäkinen, competing mainly for the Team Mitsubishi Ralliart, he won ten more WRC events along with the 1996 and 1997 drivers' titles in a Lancer Evolution
.
Harjanne retired after the 1997 season and Mäkinen went on to take two more titles with Risto Mannisenmäki
. At the time of his retirement, Harjanne held the co-driver records for most wins and most titles (tied with Juha Piironen) in the WRC. His record for most wins has since been surpassed by Luís Moya
, Nicky Grist
, Daniel Elena
and Timo Rautiainen
, and his record for most titles by Elena.
Since 2000, Harjanne has worked as a Deputy Clerk of the Course of Rally Finland
and assisted in organising several other international rallies.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
former rally
Rallying
Rallying, also known as rally racing, is a form of auto racing that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars...
co-driver
Co-driver
Co-driver is the term given to the navigator of rally car in the sport of rally racing, who sits in the front passenger seat. The co-driver's job is to navigate, by reading off a set of pacenotes to the driver, often over a radio headset, due to the high level of noise in the car...
. He is best known for co-driving for Timo Salonen
Timo Salonen
Timo Salonen is a Finnish former rally driver and the 1985 world champion for Peugeot. It was commented of him that he stood out from other drivers, because he was overweight, wore thick glasses and smoked heavily, but still remained one of the fastest and most competitive drivers in the sport...
from 1979 to 1988
1988 World Rally Championship season
The 1988 World Rally Championship season was the 16th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile World Rally Championship...
and for Tommi Mäkinen
Tommi Mäkinen
"Turbo" Tommi Antero Mäkinen , tied with Juha Kankkunen and behind Sébastien Loeb , and fifth in wins .He is a four-time World Rally Champion, a series he first won, and then successfully defended, continuously throughout 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999, on all occasions driving the Ralliart Mitsubishi...
from 1990
1990 World Rally Championship season
The 1990 World Rally Championship season was the 18th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 12 rallies. The drivers' world championship was won by Carlos Sainz in a Toyota Celica GT-Four, ahead of Didier Auriol and Juha Kankkunen...
to 1997. With Salonen, Harjanne took ten World Rally Championship
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver's world championship and manufacturer's world championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. The series currently consists of 13...
victories for the factory teams of Datsun
Datsun
Datsun was an automobile marque. The name was created in 1931 by the DAT Motorcar Co. for a new car model, spelling it as "Datson" to indicate its smaller size when compared to the existing, larger DAT car. Later, in 1933 after Nissan Motor Co., Ltd...
, Peugeot
Peugeot
Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...
and Mazda
Mazda
is a Japanese automotive manufacturer based in Fuchū, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.In 2007, Mazda produced almost 1.3 million vehicles for global sales...
, and the 1985
1985 World Rally Championship season
The 1985 World Rally Championship season was the 13th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile World Rally Championship . The season consisted of 12 rallies following the same schedule as the previous season. Peugeot Sport's Timo Salonen beat Audi Sport's Stig Blomqvist and Walter...
drivers' world championship title in a Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 E2
Peugeot 205
The Peugeot 205 is a supermini produced by the French car manufacturer Peugeot between 1983 and 1998. It was declared 'Car of the Decade' by CAR magazine in 1990. The 205 won 1984 What Car? car of the year.-History:...
. With Mäkinen, competing mainly for the Team Mitsubishi Ralliart, he won ten more WRC events along with the 1996 and 1997 drivers' titles in a Lancer Evolution
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, colloquially known as the Lancer Evo or Evo, is a high-performance sedan manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. There have been ten official versions to date, and the designation of each model is most commonly a roman numeral...
.
Harjanne retired after the 1997 season and Mäkinen went on to take two more titles with Risto Mannisenmäki
Risto Mannisenmäki
Risto Mannisenmäki is a former rally co-driver and two-times world champion with driver Tommi Mäkinen.Mannisenmäki begun his career in 1982 and was co-driving for various drivers such as Tommi Mäkinen, Sebastian Lindholm and Ari Mökkönen in local rallies...
. At the time of his retirement, Harjanne held the co-driver records for most wins and most titles (tied with Juha Piironen) in the WRC. His record for most wins has since been surpassed by Luís Moya
Luís Moya
Luis Rodríguez Moya, better known as Luis Moya is a now-retired rally co-driver, synonymous with the driver Carlos Sainz...
, Nicky Grist
Nicky Grist
Nicky Grist is a Welsh former rally co-driver, born in Ebbw Vale. His factory team career in the World Rally Championship lasted from 1993 to 2002. He won 21 rallies and one World championship titles, with more than one driver....
, Daniel Elena
Daniel Elena
Daniel Elena is a Monegasque rally co-driver, currently working with Sébastien Loeb. Between them, the pair have won the World Rally Championship eight times, and currently compete with the Citroën DS3 WRC...
and Timo Rautiainen
Timo Rautiainen (co-driver)
Timo Rautiainen is a Finnish former rally co-driver. He is best known for co-driving for Marcus Grönholm from 1995 to 2007. Rautiainen and Grönholm drove for Peugeot and Ford in the World Rally Championship, and won 30 world rallies and two drivers' world championship titles together...
, and his record for most titles by Elena.
Since 2000, Harjanne has worked as a Deputy Clerk of the Course of Rally Finland
Rally Finland
The Neste Oil Rally Finland is a rally event driven in the Jyväskylä area in Central Finland. It is the biggest annually organised public event in the Nordic countries, gathering over 500,000 spectators every year....
and assisted in organising several other international rallies.