Citroën bought the Maserati company in 1968, hoping to use Maserati's experience of high performance engines, to produce a sports version of the Citroën DS. Two years later the Citroën SM was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, and went on sale in France near the end of 1970.

Despite it's modern styling and innovative features, and a top speed of 220km/h (140mph), it was not a commercial success, perhaps because the comparatively large engine (for Europe) options of 2.7 or 3.0l V6, meant that they were heavily taxed in France.(They were also extremely complex, and so quickly became very expensive to maintain !!)

Maserati later used the same basic engine design in the Merak and Bi-Turbo, and Citroën used much of the technology in the more successful CX model. Production ended in 1975, when Peugeot SA took over the now bankrupt Citroën.

2.1 mPX Canon Digital Ixus, photofinished in Gimp.