Estimated Price: £65,000 - £70,000

Few motor cars have challenged convention quite so comprehensively as the Citroën SM. Conceived when Citroën was operating at the absolute height of its engineering ambition, the SM represented a remarkable fusion of French innovation and Italian performance. Launched at the Geneva Motor Show in 1970, it seemed to have arrived from another era entirely; dramatic, aerodynamic and technically revolutionary. More than half a century later, it remains one of the most charismatic and individual grand tourers ever built.

Developed following Citroën's acquisition of Maserati in 1968, the SM was designed to cover vast distances at sustained high speed whilst isolating its occupants from the imperfections of the road. Beneath its sleek bodywork lay self-levelling hydropneumatic suspension, speed-sensitive self-centring DIRAVI steering, swivelling directional headlamps, hydraulically operated brakes and a Maserati-designed V6 engine. It was a car unlike anything else on the road, then or now.

That uniqueness is perfectly illustrated by the fact that this is the actual Citroën SM chosen by Harry Metcalfe of Harry's Garage for his comprehensive road test of the model. As one of the most respected voices in the collector car world, Harry's choice of this particular example speaks volumes. Spending considerable time behind the wheel, he described the SM as representing 'peak craziness in the best possible way', effectively a 'DS++', combining Citroën's engineering brilliance with the character of Maserati's V6. He praised the remarkable precision of the DIRAVI steering once acclimatised, whilst the famous hydropneumatic suspension simply glides over broken surfaces, potholes and speed humps in a manner that remains astonishing by modern standards. It was this effortless ability to cover ground at speed, cocooning its occupants in supreme comfort, that established the SM as one of the great continental express cars of its era.

This exceptional, matching-numbers European-supplied example was completed on 15th September 1973 before being delivered new to its first owner in Amalfi, Southern Italy. Finished in elegant Or de Simiane (A326) with black leather upholstery, it was specified with virtually every desirable factory option including air conditioning and the wonderfully distinctive Continental Edison stereo system. Remaining with its original owner for almost two decades, it was used sparingly throughout its early life before passing to a Belgian Citroën enthusiast in November 1991.

Accompanying the car is an exceptional leather-bound history file documenting more than fifty years of careful ownership. Included are the original owner's handbook, the original service book recording its pre-delivery inspection in June 1973 together with subsequent servicing and inspections by Citroën Colosseo Angelo Azzaro in Italy, period literature including a 1972 Citroën SM price list, together with an extensive archive of restoration invoices, photographs and correspondence.

By the time the car left Italy, it had been converted from its original Bosch electronic fuel injection system to the earlier triple carburettor arrangement, a popular period modification, whilst the body had been refinished in black with a silver roof. It then spent the next 25 years in Belgium, carefully preserved in dry storage and seeing remarkably little use.

Recognising the quality and originality of the car, a noted London based SM enthusiast acquired it in 2016 and commissioned what can only be described as an extraordinary restoration by renowned specialists Garajul Francez in Bucharest. Commencing in 2017, the project ultimately consumed some 3,000 hours over four years. During dismantling, the original factory-applied Or de Simiane paint was discovered beneath the later black and silver finish, allowing the car to be faithfully returned to its original factory colour. Although the documented restoration invoices total in excess of €19,000, the specialist labour involved means an equivalent restoration undertaken in the UK would likely have represented an investment approaching £100,000.

The restoration proved just how original the car had remained. The bodyshell displayed no evidence of accident damage and remarkably little corrosion, requiring only minor repairs to the lower front wings. Every mechanical component was inspected, refurbished or renewed as necessary, whilst dismantling of the Maserati V6 revealed original sodium-filled valves, excellent compression figures and no evidence of previous engine disassembly. Together with its documented history and long periods of careful storage, this lends considerable weight to the belief that the indicated mileage of just over 10,000 kilometres may well be genuine. The restoration also benefitted from access to an extensive stock of genuine old/new stock SM components and is comprehensively documented by an impressive photographic archive.

Following completion in 2021, the SM entered a significant London Collection where respected specialists, Andrew Brodie Engineering, carried out a further programme of improvements including replacement of the sodium valves, renewal of the hydropneumatic spheres and optimisation of the cooling and air conditioning systems. A subsequent inspection by Bill McGrath Maserati ensured that every remaining detail had been attended to, allowing the car to perform exactly as its creators intended.

Following its appearance on Harry's Garage, the car was acquired by its current owner, a discerning collector known for assembling only the finest examples for his significant private collection. Having admired the model for many years, he recognised immediately that opportunities to acquire a Citroën SM of this calibre are exceptionally rare.

Beautifully presented, impeccably documented and independently endorsed by one of the motoring world's most respected enthusiasts, this extraordinary Citroën SM surely ranks amongst the finest examples currently available and represents a rare opportunity to acquire not merely an exceptional example of one of the 20th century's most innovative motor cars, but quite possibly one of the benchmark Citroën SMs in existence.