Peugeot on top after Rally Australia win.

Peugeot's reigning World Rally Champion Marcus Gr?nholm has taken the French manufacturer to the top of this year's series with a stunning victory on the penultimate round, the Telstra Rally Australia.

The Finn's 206 WRC finished over 40 seconds ahead of Richard Burns and with the similar cars of Didier Auriol and Harri Rovanper? finishing third and fourth respectively, Peugeot has moved into the lead of the world manufacturers championship with just the final round in Britain remaining.

Gr?nholm and navigator Timo Rautiainen - winners in Australia last year as well - started today's final leg in a relatively comfortable lead (more than half a minute) after setting fastest times on all of yesterday's stages.

Gronholm had been able to choose a starting position well down the running order, so the front crews swept clear the loose gravel allowing him better grip. He thus concentrated on not making mistakes and consolidating his advantage. He secured the win in a spectacular TV special, played out in front of thousands of enthusiastic spectators at the massive SOTICO forest complex 100km from Perth.

Gronholm said: "I'm delighted. We came here with the target of winning and giving Peugeot a good chance in the manufacturers' championship and to come away with 14 points for the team is a fantastic result. As for myself, I've been very pleased with my driving and the car's been very reliable. We only had one small steering problem on the first day but once that was sorted, it was the perfect car for the conditions and I knew I could push hard. Despite this win I can't regain my crown in Britain but I'll be pushing hard to make sure Peugeot wins the title for the second year in succession."

Didier Auriol and Harri Rovanper? made no mistakes during today's four stages to finish third and fourth, but with Auriol unregistered for the makes series Rovanpera scored for Peugeot, taking the team's haul from the event to 14 points. Only an alternator problem in the penultimate stage gave the Swedish Rally winner any cause for concern, since it allowed Colin McRae to close to within 12 seconds, but Rovanpera held off the Scot in the short final test.

Auriol said: "It's been a tricky rally but I've been quite happy with my performance and the car's been reliable. Australia is always a very close rally so to get three cars in the top six - and four in the top ten - is a good result for the team."

Harri Rovanpera added: "I've been pushing really hard all event but everyone else has been driving really quickly and some of Marcus's times yesterday were just amazing! I'm pleased to get some points for the team, though, because it gives us a good chance of winning the manufacturers' series in Britain."

Team Peugeot Total Director Corrado Provera concluded: "For some time I've had two wishes - that the championships will be decided in Britain, and that Marcus would win here. We've never stopped believing it could happen and now it has. Furthermore, we're going to Britain in the lead of the manufacturers' championship which is just fantastic for the whole team. Didier has done everything we asked of him here and our two Finns, Harri and Marcus, have been exemplary. I'm very proud of everyone."

The world championship now looks set for a thrilling climax in the treacherously muddy, slippery forests of south Wales on November 22nd to the 25th. Four drivers will start the Rally GB with a chance of winning the world title, while Peugeot still has to fight off two other makes before it can celebrate a second manufacturers' crown in a row.