Loeb takes early Germany lead

Sebastien Loeb holds his habitual lead in Rally Germany, but it took the eight-time event winner three stages to reach the front. Ford's Jari-Matti Latvala was quickest on the dry first stage, but both the Finn and his team-mate Mikko Hirvonen lost a lot of time when rain hit on SS2. They had gone with hard tyres, while the Citroens used softs - which proved much better suited to the increasingly damp roads.

Nicolas Kiesa Leo Kinnunen Danny Kladis