100th event not important

More important to the 33-year-old Frenchman is collecting a large handful of points in a bid to help his quest for a fifth straight world title.

"It's a nice round figure, but it's not that important to me," said Loeb, who leads the championship after his victory in Monte Carlo. "Our objective is to try to win, which won't be easy.

"Sure, it would be nice to celebrate our 100th start with a win, but scoring points in both championship will also be important and I will base my pace on the way the rally unfolds."

The Citroen driver has won in Sweden before - on the way to his first world title in 2004 - but has consistently come off second best to Marcus Gronholm since then.

With Gronholm now retired, his biggest challenge comes from Ford's Mikko Hirvonen, who trails him by two points in the world championship.

As he heads the points, Loeb will run first on the road on the opening day of the Karlstad-based event, and he believes this will be a major disadvantage, with any fresh snow meaning grip levels will be worse than for those following in his wheeltracks.

"For one thing, we will start the weekend running first on the road and that can often be a handicap in Sweden," Loeb added. "Our rivals will also be out to draw level after the Monte Carlo Rally and I'm expecting a close fight."

Loeb's team-mate Dani Sordo has never gone well in Sweden with 12th place last year his best result on the event.

"It can be great fun in Sweden, but if a coating of snow prevents the studs on the tyres from digging in, it can be very difficult to be precise with your driving. Add in the high speed and clearly this is not an easy event.

"You need real experience of the conditions to challenge for a win, so my objective is just to finish and score points."

Sordo is yet to score a point this season after retiring with engine problems in Monte Carlo.