Editing Group B (section)

=== 1982–1983 ===
{{Main|1982 World Rally Championship|1983 World Rally Championship}}
The existing Groups 1–4 were still permitted in the World Rally Championship during the first year of the new groups.<ref>{{Cite web |title=juwra.com Rule changes 1982 |url=http://juwra.com/rules_1982.html |access-date=2022-05-30 |website=juwra.com}}</ref> Although some freshly homologated Group B cars were entered from the first round in Monte Carlo, no car from the group made podium at any of the season's 12 rallies.

Although the [[Audi Quattro]] was still in essence a Group 4 car, it carried [[Hannu Mikkola]] to the driver's title in 1983. [[Lancia]] had designed a new car to Group B specifications, but the [[Lancia Rally 037|Lancia 037]] still had [[rear-wheel drive]] and was thus less stable than the Quattro over loose surfaces. Nevertheless, the 037 performed well enough for Lancia to capture the manufacturers' title, which was generally considered more prestigious than the drivers' title at the time, with a win to spare. In fact, so low was Lancia's regard for the Drivers Championship that they did not enter a single car into the season finale RAC Rally, despite the fact that driver [[Walter Röhrl]] was still in the running for the title. This may have been, in part, because Röhrl "never dreamed of becoming a world champion."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Porsche Röhrl in Review – Porsche AG |url=https://www.porsche.com/international/aboutporsche/christophorusmagazine/archive/380/articleoverview/article02/ |access-date=2024-05-20 |website=Porsche HOME – Porsche AG |language=en-EN}}</ref>

[[File:Rétromobile 2017 - Opel Manta 400 - 1983 - 002.jpg|thumb|[[Opel Manta|Opel Manta 400]]]]
The lenient homologation requirements quickly attracted manufacturers to Group B. [[Opel]] replaced their production-derived [[Opel Ascona|Ascona]] with the Group B [[Opel Manta|Manta 400]], and [[Toyota]] built a new car based on their [[Toyota Celica|Celica]]. Like the Lancia 037, both cars were rear-wheel drive; while proving successful in national rallying in various countries, they were less so at the World Championship level, although Toyota won the 1983 [[Ivory Coast Rally]] with [[Björn Waldegård]] behind the wheel.