Before the BMW XM, There Was the Citroën XM

The debut of the BMW XM may have gone unnoticed by this point, were it not for the PHEV arriving with dramatic bodywork and an unusual name. Let's face it: a new plug-in hybrid crossover from BMW could have simply been folded into one of the current X models, in this age of EV debuts, and not many would have taken note. After all, BMW is close to launching a hydrogen-powered X5, and odds are few have even noticed this development. Munich choosing to make a stylistic splash with the XM makes sense in this context.

It just so happens that another automaker faced a similar dilemma three decades ago: How to launch an all-new model that, at its core, is a large and floaty sedan that would compete with a number of other large and floaty European sedans.

That model was the Citroën XM, and it ended up making a bold style statement that set the tone for the whole decade.

The Citroën XM, in effect, arrived to pick up the baton from the CX, which spent an inordinately long time in production even for a European flagship sedan, covering an entire epoch from 1974 until 1991. The sleek and low five-door was a successor to the equally futuristic DS, and it was easily one of the most memorable executive cars of its era, pairing a plush hydropneumatic ride with a futuristic interior and optional V6 power with 168 hp on tap.

The XM had big shoes to fill when it came time to replacing the CX, when it arrived in the spring of 1989.

Styled by Bertone, the XM paired angular bodywork with a profile made familiar by its predecessors, featuring a long front overhang, a truly spacious interior, and a magic carpet ride of a suspension. The wedge-shaped sedan was a collection of horizontal lines, but managed to be very aerodynamic, especially compared to the German sedans of the day. Its interior accommodations eclipsed just about everything else in production at the time, especially the W126 S-Class.