CARDIFF -- Subaru's Petter Solberg made rally history on Sunday as the first Norwegian to win the world championship after securing an emotional second successive victory in Britain.

While Citroen celebrated winning the manufacturers' title in their first full season in the sport, the ecstatic Solberg was almost lost for words.

"I can't get (take) it in yet, it's too much at a time," gasped the 28-year-old after pipping French rival Sebastien Loeb to the championship by one point.

It was his fourth victory of the season and came a year after the first rally win of his world championship career against the same Welsh backdrop.

The Norwegian finished in style, setting the fastest time on the 12.6 km final stage that plunged downhill through the forests to open parkland.

Scrambling out of the car, he was hugged first by Finnish teammate Tommi Makinen who capped his last race before retirement with a podium finish in third place.

Solberg then donned a Viking horned helmet and fell into the throng of cheering fans after leaping unsteadily on to metal crowd barriers to applaud his audience while waving the Norwegian national flag.

The Norwegian had dominated the rally, winning every stage on Saturday after Citroen put team interests before personal ambition and ordered Loeb to ease off to make sure of the manufacturers' title.

The Frenchman, the only other driver to win stages in Britain, finished 43.6 seconds behind Solberg to end the season with 71 points to the Norwegian's 72.

"It could have been (mine) but Petter is world champion this year," said Loeb. "It was important for the team to be manufacturers' world champion and that's okay now and I am very happy for the team.

"For me, I would prefer to lead and win the championship but I hope it will be for next year.

"During the race it was very difficult. I had to push for my championship but stay on the road for the manufacturers'. It was hard to stay concentrated in some places."

Citroen ended the year with 160 points to Peugeot's 145.

They had tightened their grip on the title in the morning when Peugeot's Harri Rovanpera retired with transmission problems.

But they still had a scare on the last stage when Briton Colin McRae, in fourth place, picked up a puncture.

The former champion, in what may have been his final world championship appearance having failed to secure a drive for 2004, hurriedly changed the wheel with co-driver Derek Ringer and pressed on to preserve his position.

"I don't know what happened but all of a sudden the tyre was down," he said. "I thought something had broken at the front but it was a straightforward puncture."