DS Automobiles has marked its tenth anniversary with an homage to one of France’s most beautiful cars – the Citroën SM.
Just unveiled at Chantilly Arts & Elegance work on the SM Tribute actually began in 2020 after DS posted several sketches on social media tagged #SM2020 to see what the public thought of brining back the gorgeous gallic machine.
“Our community sent us several strong messages during this sketch sharing,” says DS Design Director Thierry Metroz. “The first was that it was very attached to the iconic models from our heritage. The second was that it didn’t want the original design to be spoilt.”
The 1970s’ classic designed by Robert Opron was built as a halo car to celebrate Citroën’s short-lived ownership of Maserati. Under its shark snout sat a Maserati V6, re-engineered to drive the front wheels of Citroën’s coolest-ever coupe. Among the other styling standouts include the huge rear hatch and enclosed rear wheels, along with full-width glass across the front end to enclose the headlamps and numberplate. Inside the SM boasted seats that would suit a spaceship, together with a fabulously futuristic dash design.
These are the features that DS has been so keen to emulate and add to in its SM Tribute concept. The result is a car that’s similar in silhouette, though sitting taller on more sizeable wheels and tyres. It’s a little more upright overall, while it builds on key elements such as the rear-wheel enclosures (which now give a little peek at the top of the tyres) and the glass front which has become a 3D screen. The two-tone gold and black paintwork is both a throwback to deeper in Citroën’s history and a current DS motif.
“We wanted to build bridges between different eras: the 1930s, when the prestigious French brands showcased two-tone bodywork in concours d’elegance, the automotive icon of the 1970s that is the SM and our current designs with finishes such as the extended bi-tone paint, seen on the DS AERO SPORT LOUNGE concept. This treatment has really become a hallmark of DS Automobiles designs,” says Vincent Lobry, Head of Colour, Materials and Finishes (CMF) Design at DS Automobiles.
The interior updates those trademark seats and maintains the sweep of the dash and curve of the centre console, although now both are dominated by digital screens. The spectacular single-spoke steering wheel is replaced by a tiny quartic device to control a steer-by-wire system.
There’s no mention of powertrain, but with Citroën, DS and Maserati once again under the same owners (Stellantis) it would be amazing to find a Nettuno V6 under the hood, although what’s more likely is the Folgore electric system which is frankly even more potent. Either way we can but hope that this new SM makes it into production.
