Citroën SM History

Following Citroën's acquisition of Maserati in 1968, the company set out to build a grand touring flagship coupé that combined Italian performance engine technology with French suspension and steering wizardry. The SM — 'S' for sportive, 'M' for Maserati in Citroën's internal coding — was first shown at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1970 and went on sale in France later that year. Its front-wheel-drive layout was unusual for a GT of its era and was made possible by the Maserati-designed 2.7-litre V6, kept below 2.8 litres to avoid French road-tax penalties on larger engines.

The SM offered the Citroën family's complete ride and handling arsenal: hydropneumatic self-levelling suspension, the DIRAVI ('centring return') power steering (which returned the wheel to centre automatically), and inboard front disc brakes. Despite earning the 1971 European Car of the Year award, the SM suffered from the Maserati engine's unreliability — particularly the fragile rear timing chains — and from the 1973 oil crisis's impact on long-distance GT sales. Citroën's financial collapse in 1974 and the subsequent sale of Maserati ended the SM's future; production ceased in 1975 with approximately 12,920 built.