1974 Citroën SM I.E.

Here is my 1974 Citroën SM “Injection Électronique” (IE or EFI). I bought this car to be able to drive a SM without having to wait for the completion of my other SM’s slow restoration. That’s cheating, I know, but that’s so good 😉

In fact I was initially searching for a Citroën DS, but I quickly changed my mind because I now know the SM pretty well, I have all the required documentation and two SM would mean that I would be able to “play” with parts, for example by installing on this ’74 SM IE some parts restored for the ’72 SM, if needed.

I quickly forgot the idea of finding a nice SM here in Canada. There are some but the average condition of this type of car is usually pretty bad if no serious restoration has been done. The goal was to find a car in excellent shape. I asked my father to inspect some cars for sale in France during summer 2006. I fixed myself a “reasonable” budget but as usual I had to go slightly over this budget to find a really nice car.

To read the incredible adventure this car went thru when it was shipped from France to Canada, click here.

Here is one of the pictures my father sent me before buying this car. This picture has made a good part of the decision to chose this particular car.

Main characteristics

  • Manufacturing date : October 1974
  • Version : SM IE, France
  • Serial number : 00SC3599
  • Mileage : 47 000 km (indicated when bought)
  • Body color : Beige Tholonet
  • Upholstery : “Tabac” (tobacco) leather
  • Engine : Maserati V6, 2.7 liters
  • Engine type : C114.03
  • Engine serial number : 303.402
  • Supply : Bosch electronic fuel injection (D-Jetronic)
  • gearbox : 5-speed manual
  • Options : air conditioning, tinted windows, radio

Color codes

  • Body : “Beige Tholonet” AC 085
  • Body base color : grey AC 092
  • Hydraulic parts : green AC 502
  • Front grill : “Gris nacré” AC 095
  • Air filters : grey AC 140
  • Various metal sheet parts : “Brun chocolat” RAL 8017

The car in its initial condition

The car after a partial restoration

Here are some pictures showing the engine compartment after its restoration

Posts related to this car

SM IE: Repair of the interior heater

SM IE: Repair of the interior heater

During winter 2011-2012 I finally started working on the interior heating system, which was not working. I don't use this car during winter but during the fall season a working heating system is useful and any ways I like when everything works. When I removed the...

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SM IE: Replacement of the brake accumulator

SM IE: Replacement of the brake accumulator

Since I have this car, I can't get rid of some vibrations I feel some times on the brake pedal, when I brake. After a few bleeding operations and because I don't know how old is the brake accumulator, I thought it should be a good idea to replace it, hoping it could...

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SM IE: End of reassembling

SM IE: End of reassembling

Continuation and end of what started as a "primary timing chain work", which eventually went a lot farther than that, you probably noticed ;-)So this is the end of a few months of efforts and bas surprises, but this is also a happy ending. I'll now be more confident...

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SM IE: Reassembling, continued

SM IE: Reassembling, continued

There is still a lot of work to do, dozens of hours in facts for the following steps. My parents were in Montreal for a few days so my dad helped my, thanks.The conclusion of this chapter is that the car has not been ready for Saratoga. What a shame 😉 I went to this...

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SM IE: Reassembling begins

SM IE: Reassembling begins

The parts I was waiting for arrived quite quickly, with special thanks to the French SM Club. I'm far but I'll have to finally find a way to meet these people who help us to maintain and restore our cars. Thanks again for your support.At this point, I still hope the...

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SM IE: Work on the primary timing chain, finally

SM IE: Work on the primary timing chain, finally

Cleaning is not over yet, I still have to clean the engine and gearbox, of course, before starting the timing chain work, which was the initial goal of this long operation, remember ;-)Now that everything is clean and I have all the required parts (I hope), I call my...

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SM IE: More work on the primary timing chain

SM IE: More work on the primary timing chain

I call my friend Philippe for help to remove the engine and gearbox. They came out without too much trouble. I just thought I could let the first exhaust pipes in place but we had to remove the right side pipe, this part was quite difficult.Now that the drivetrain is...

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SM IE: Work on the primary timing chain, continued

SM IE: Work on the primary timing chain, continued

Still on the same timing chain intervention, my main goal is to remove this annoying water pump cover. After a few "soft" solutions, I then tried more "violent" ones. Here are some of them with pictures:So what can I do? The tiny space I have behind the engine reduces...

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SM IE: Work on the primary timing chain

SM IE: Work on the primary timing chain

Winter is here so I forget the air conditioning system for a while to do some more consequent work. In fact, even after the replacement of both secondary timing chains and the valve adjustment done last year (see previous page), this SM still makes a annoying noise...

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SM IE: Work on the air conditioning system, continued

SM IE: Work on the air conditioning system, continued

Because of the leak discovered earlier when testing the circuit, and following the advice of the specialist I saw, I decided to replace all the pipes, hoping to fix the leak and increase the system reliability.Modern air conditioning pipes are a lot more rigid than...

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SM IE: Work on the air conditioning system

SM IE: Work on the air conditioning system

As planned, I worked on the air conditioning system. The goal was to replace the original compressor by a modern and more gentle one (for the timing chains), replace the drying cartridge and then try to put the system back in working order.I also had a problem with...

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SM IE: Rear height adjustment

SM IE: Rear height adjustment

The rear suspension needed a height adjustment because the driving height was too high. I knew it and then Marcel and Othello told me about that when we were driving to the Saratoga's RendezVous, it finally motivated to do the adjustment.Here is a job that, for once,...

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SM IE: Replacement of the injection wiring harness

SM IE: Replacement of the injection wiring harness

Following the electrical difficulties I had in September 2007, I ordered a new injection wiring harness. So here comes the moment to install this new wiring harness, this is early June 2008.This intervention took me 4 or 5 evenings of work. I complete this work on a...

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SM IE: Suspension buffers and boots

SM IE: Suspension buffers and boots

Suspension buffers are important. When this car first arrived in Canada, I had problems because of these buffers. It was difficult to move the car manually because the rear wheels were touching inside the wheel arches. I initially suspected brake problems but it...

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SM IE: Valve adjustment and suspension noise

SM IE: Valve adjustment and suspension noise

During September 2007, my mechanic can finally work on the car. The goal is to adjust the valves, replace the secondary timing chains and track and fix the annoying suspension noise I have for a long time now. It will be a good occasion to do an interesting...

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SM IE: Replacement of a drive shaft, as a try

SM IE: Replacement of a drive shaft, as a try

By the summer of 2007, I frequently use the car, I drove about 2500 km from May to August, but I still have a very bad noise coming from the front of the car. I think about 3 possible causes: the anti-roll bar, a drive shaft of a ball pin. I begin by greasing...

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2007 “Citroën Rendezvous” in Saratoga Springs

2007 “Citroën Rendezvous” in Saratoga Springs

By June 2007, the SM in not mechanically perfect but she's working pretty well, so I can enjoy this car and take part to some meetings, from my local club and others. By June 16th, I take part to to the 2007 Citroën Rendezvous in Saratoga Springs, in the...

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SM IE: Adjusting tension of the timing chains

SM IE: Adjusting tension of the timing chains

The engine is noisy and this noise is, I think, coming from the secondary timing chains. The professional mechanics who could fix this problem are not available, so I decide to check myself the timing chains tension. I can easily do it myself, and that way I will know...

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SM IE: The Official Technical Verification

SM IE: The Official Technical Verification

In Québec, there is no periodical technical verification for regular vehicles. However, there is a mandatory one for cars coming from another province of Canada and, of course, for imported cars like this SM. The inspection, as it is called, must be done...

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