notes

Is it possible to update a Citroën SM?

In 2014, a French tuning company tried to modernize a classic

michael banovsky

28 Mar 2026 — 1 min read

I'm assuming that, because you're here, I won't need to explain the majesty that is Citroën's SM. I'm also taking a leap assuming you're somewhat familiar with period-modified SMs, into convertibles, sedans, and at least one impossibly pretty shooting break…maybe another time.

For now, because I saw it, you also have to: the 2014 Parotech Citroën SM, a fully refurbished-yet-updated classic Citroën, clad in battleship-heavy grey paint that would look terrific in a scale model, cyberpunk kind of way, and maybe not in a full-scale rendition that makes me squint the longer I look.

To Parotech's credit, it was a restoration then modification, with more changes than you'd expect, down to a fully revised engine bay with new (more attractive) plumbing, totally different interior, lighting, fixtures, and gigantic alloy wheels that have somehow been made to fit.

This is why I love weird cars: not good or bad, this SM is…?