Wyman’s Majesty

May 10, 2015

Section:

Former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman sends his 1971 Citroën Maserati SM to auction with a guide price of just £35,000 to £40,000

At the height of the Rolling Stones’ success, their then bassist, Bill Wyman, bought a Citroën Maserati SM coupé new in 1971 after falling in love with its unique, aerodynamic design. After owning it for 44 years, he has decided to sell it and has submitted it to the forthcoming Bonhams Festival of Speed Sale on 26^th June.

Produced as a sports variant of the Citroën DS, the Maserati SM was conceived after Citroën purchased Maserati in 1968. It has been described as a “true grand tourer” and combines Citroën’s sophisticated DS suspension system with a powerful Maserati V6 engine. The vehicle’s model name, ‘DS’, has been variously been asserted as meaning Systeme Maserati or Sports Maserati but it has also been claimed that it was an abbreviation for Sa Majeste (Her Majesty in French).

Of his car, which he is reluctantly selling as he feels it “should now go to people who will love and take care of [it] as much as [he] has”, Wyman has stated:

“The minute I saw the [Citroën] Maserati [SM], I thought, this is it! It looked so beautiful. They showed me that incredible engine and the double headlights, and I thought, incredible! I fell in love with it”.

“I’d drive it to Keith Richards’ place, miles away in Cap Ferrat, to record Exile on Main Street album, and I’d drive to Paris and back, an eight-hour journey each way”.

“It was so easy to drive… I became great friends with Marc Chagall, Cesar, and James Baldwin over the years, and I’d drive over to their homes on the Côte d’Azur. I’d also drive to Monte Carlo to hang out with Ringo and Spiros and Philip Niarchos of the Greek shipping family”.

“I drove it to Spain too. And to Marseilles, Portofino in Italy, and back to England a few times. Oh, and of course to Switzerland. I went there twice to play at the Montreux Jazz Festival. The first time was with Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, Junior Wells and Pinetop Perkins. Then three years later I again drove there to play with Muddy Waters again”.