Finland's Mikko Hirvonen has driven his Ford Fiesta to victory in the Rally of Sweden in the season opening event of the World Rally Championship.
The Norwegian Mads Ostberg was just 6.5 seconds behind in second place and Finland's Jari-Matti Latvala finished third in a cleansweep for Ford.
The Rally of Sweden is the only rally on the calendar staged entirely on snow.
The seven time world champion Loeb had a weekend to forget, coming in sixth after mechanical problem.
While the WRC champion Petter Solberg had to let his co-driver Chris Patterson drive in the final stage after police confiscated his licence for speeding, outside of the competition.
