| 1998 Safari Rally | |
| Native Name: | 46. Safari Rally Kenya |
| Round: | 3 of 13 |
| Championship: | 1998 World Rally Championship season |
| Previous Round: | 1998 Swedish Rally |
| Next Round: | 1998 Rallye de Portugal |
| Rallybase: |  Nairobi |
| Startdate: | 28 February |
| Enddate: | 2 March 1998 |
| Stages: | 16 |
| Stagekm: | 1063.49 |
| Overallkm: | 2339.21 |
| Surface: | Gravel |
| Driver1: |  Richard Burns Robert Reid |
| Team1: |  Team Mitsubishi Ralliart |
| Time1: | 8:57:34.0 |
| Teamsstart: | 49[1] |
| Teamsfinish: | 19 |
The 1998 Safari Rally (formally the 46th Safari Rally Kenya) was held between 28 February and 2 March 1998. It was the first World Rally Championship victory for Richard Burns and his co-driver Robert Reid after his teammate Tommi Mäkinen and fellow Briton Colin McRae both retired.
A total of 49 cars gathered in Nairobi for the Safari Rally of 1998. The young Briton, 27-year-old Richard Burns, won stage 1. But his more experienced teammate, Tommi Mäkinen, snatched the lead in stage 2. He was determined to win for the second time, as 1996's winner. But his hopes were dashed after his timing belt broke, causing him to retire. Burns retained the lead as a result, held it to the end, and won his first WRC rally in his career. It was the Ford Escorts of the Finns Juha Kankkunen and Ari Vatanen, both previous Safari Rally winners, who completed the podium in second and third respectively.
Luis Climent, in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III, had his first victory of the year. Manfred Stohl finished behind him in second, and the Kenyan Paul Bailey completed the podium.
| Pos | No. | Driver | Co-driver | Car | Time/retired | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Richard Burns | Robert Reid | Mitsubishi Carisma GT Evo IV | 8:57:34.0 | 10 | |
| 2 | 7 |  Juha Kankkunen | Juha Repo | Ford Escort WRC | +9:27.0 | 6 | |
| 3 | 8 | Ari Vatanen | Fred Gallagher | Ford Escort WRC | +9:52.0 | 4 | |
| 4 | 6 |  Didier Auriol | Denis Giraudet | Toyota Corolla WRC | +14:26.0 | 3 | |
| 5 | 11 | Harri Rovanperä | Voitto Silander | Seat Ibiza GTi 16V Evo2 | +2:05:38.0 | 2 | |
| 6 | 16 |  Raimund Baumschlager |  Klaus Wicha | Volkswagen Golf GTi 16V | +2:20:01.0 | 1 | |
| 7 | 18 |  Luis Climent | Álex Romani | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III | +2:28:03.0 | 0 | |
| 8 | 12 | Kris Rosenberger |  Per Carlsson | Volkswagen Golf Kit Car | +2:45:47.0 | 0 | |
| 9 | 19 | Marco Brighetti | Abdul Sidi | Subaru Impreza 555 | +2:56:01.0 | 0 | |
| 10 | 21 |  Karim Hirji | Frank Nekusa | Toyota Celica GT-Four | +3:03:29.0 | 0 |