|
 Citroën purchased Maserati in 1968 with the intention of
harnessing Maserati's high performance engine technology to produce a true Gran Turismo
car, combining sophisticated Citroën suspension with a Maserati power unit. The result
was the SM (Série Maserati), first shown at the Geneva
Salon of March 1970 and first launched in France in August of the same year.
The SM was Citroën's
flagship vehicle competing with other high performance GTs of the time from manufacturers
such as Facel Vega, Jaguar, Lotus and Porsche.
The SM was also Citroën's way of
demonstrating just how much power and performance could be accommodated in a front wheel
drive design.
Designed in-house by Citroën's chief designer Robert Opron
the SM is very much a Citroën in design and
execution, particularly with its wider track at the front and emphasis on the front wheels
and 'glasshouse' of lights. In addition, many of the details reflect M. Opron's American
background, notably the truncated 'fins' at the rear.
The SM combined many
unusual features - lights that swivelled with the steering, unique self centering and
fully powered steering, self levelling headlamps, wiper mechanism that is 'sensitive' to
rain, and many other features that are now common place on cars of today. In fact
sitting in an SM today apart from the 70's interior
styling there is nothing that makes you feel that the car is old or out of date.
Much of the technology of the SM was carried forward to the CX - the DIRAVI steering being
the most obvious example. The engine (in enlarged 3 litre form - also used in some
SMs) was used in Maserati's own Merak which, together with
the Khamsin used Citroën's high pressure hydraulics.
The SM was never produced in right hand
drive although a few prototypes were constructed by Hertfordshire Citroën dealer,
Middleton Motors. One of these still survives in the UK and there are a
couple of pictures of it on our Gallery page.
In 1970 it was a car of the future, the fastest front wheel
drive car to be made. It was an example of the car as a symbol of optimism and progressive
technology, before the fuel crises of the middle seventies and more recent problems of
congestion and awareness of the environment caused the large, powerful motor car to fall
from favour.
In the USA (one of the main markets for the car), the SM's six headlamp set up was illegal and US specification
cars were fitted with four fixed round exposed lamps.
There is a story that the first SM imported for a motor show was sent by air freight and on landing during the customs
inspection a light exploded due to the changes in air pressure thus the shrouded lights
were banned.
Production totalled 12,920 cars and the year by year production figures
were as follows:
| Year |
Citroën Paris |
Ligier Abrest |
 |
| 1970 |
868 |
|
| 1971 |
4988 |
|
| 1972 |
4036 |
|
| 1973 |
2619 |
|
| 1974 |
273 |
21 |
| 1975 |
1 |
114 |
 
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