Citroën SM for sale
5 cars in stock right now, inspected in the European country where they are located, priced landed at a US port with the import paperwork done.
1973 Citroën SM
duty at rate in effect
1973 Citroën SM
duty at rate in effect
1972 Citroën SM Injection
duty at rate in effect
1972 Citroën SM Carburettor
duty at rate in effect
1972 Citroën SM 2.7 V6 (restored)
duty at rate in effect
The Citroën SM (1970–1975) is a front-wheel-drive grand tourer with a Maserati V6, hydropneumatic suspension and DIRAVI speed-sensitive power steering. Citroën did sell the SM in the United States, but only in a modified form: US rules of the period required sealed-beam headlights, so American cars lost the glass nose, the six-lamp cluster and the steerable lights that define the car in Europe. Citroën pulled out of the US market and the SM was gone by 1974. Every SM is now over 25 years old, so the European car can finally be imported exactly as it left Paris.
Why Americans want it
It is the most ambitious car Citroën ever built, and the only Citroën with a Maserati engine. The hydropneumatic suspension, the self-centring single-spoke wheel and the headlights that follow the road are the reasons to own one, and they are exactly the parts the US version had to give up. Prices in Europe are still a fraction of what an equivalent Italian GT of the period costs.
What the US never got
- The nose: the full-width glass panel with six lamps behind it. US cars used exposed sealed beams.
- The headlights: the inner pair turns with the steering. A federal rule in force from 1 January 1971 barred an exterior light whose direction is controlled from inside the car.
- The late cars: the 3.0-litre and the fuel-injected 2.7 of 1972–1975, after Citroën had already left the US.
Eligible years (25-year rule)
Every SM is eligible now. Production ran from 1970 to 1975 and all of it is more than 25 years old. The month on the build plate still has to be documented at entry; we photograph it on every car.
What to look for
- Hydraulics: LHM fluid (green), spheres, height correctors and the brake accumulator. A car that sinks overnight needs spheres, which is normal; leaking main pressure lines are a bigger job.
- Timing chains: the Maserati V6 uses chains, not a belt. Noise at idle on a cold start is the warning sign; the cam timing must be set correctly or the engine will not pull.
- Rust: front subframe mounts, the floor under the battery tray, the rear suspension arms and the base of the windscreen.
- Headlight mechanism: the self-levelling and steering linkage behind the glass is expensive to put right. We check it works before we buy.
- Documents: French carte grise or EU registration, chassis plate, service history. Parts and specialists are easy to find in France.
Typical landed price
Europe: roughly €30,000–€80,000 for a sound, running car, with concours and injection cars at the top. Landed at Newark or Baltimore with duty at the rate in effect on entry: roughly $51,000–$124,500. Projects and non-running cars cost far less and we list them as projects, with photographs of what is missing.
Registration notes
- California: built after 1967, gasoline; CARB lab certification applies, not guaranteed.
- Fuel: gasoline.
- Title: pre-1981 chassis number, not a 17-character VIN; states title these on the CBP 7501 package and the foreign registration. US title from Salvage Motors LLC.
Our take
Buy the car with the best hydraulics and the most paperwork, not the shiniest paint. A European SM with its glass nose intact is a different object from the US-specification cars that survive here, and that is the whole point of importing one.
FAQ
Was the SM sold in the United States?
Yes, in a modified form with exposed sealed-beam headlights, until Citroën withdrew from the US market in 1974. The European car with the glass nose and steerable headlights was never US-legal when new.
Can I register a European SM in the US today?
Yes. At 25 years or older it is exempt from the federal safety standards that kept it out, and it is imported as built.
Is the Maserati engine reliable?
It is reliable when the timing chains and carburettors or injection have been maintained. It is not a motor to neglect, and we check it before we buy.