Ситроен XM: Француздық инновация және тарихы

The Citroën XM is a front engine, front drive, five passenger, five door hatchback noted for its hydropneumatic suspension. Manufactured and marketed by Citroën from 1989 to 2000, with a minor facelift in 1994, XM production reached 333,405 over the course of 11 years. The XM was voted 1990 European Car of the Year.

Launched on 23 May 1989, the XM was the company's flagship saloon, replacing the Citroën CX. It went on sale in its native France immediately afterwards, and was available in right hand drive on the UK market from October 1989. The CX Break and Familiale remained in production until the spring of 1991, when the XM Estate launched. The XM did not enjoy the commercial success of its predecessors, the CX and the DS, which each raised the bar of automotive performance for other manufacturers. By the second half of the 1990s, sales were in sharp decline, and Citroën ended production in 2000. Total sales of the XM reached 333,405 in 11 years, of which 31,035 were of the Heuliez built Breaks (estates).

The XM offered active electronic management of its suspension; a partially galvanised body shell and the option of a 3.0 L V6 engine –  the first V6 in a Citroën since the Maserati engined SM ended production in the mid 1970s. The XM offered improved ventilation and rear accommodation, in width, legroom and height. In particular the rear passengers were seated higher than those in the front in order to afford a good view. To improve rear seat comfort when the hatch was opened, the car had an additional, interior rear window – a feature not picked up by anyone else since. The XM shared a floorpan with the Peugeot 605, and the two models fared similarly in both teething problems and market acceptance.

XM was intended to compete against prestige vehicles like the Mercedes Benz W124, Audi 100 and BMW's 5 Series in a sector that accounted for 14.2% of the European market. It also competed with cars from mainstream brands including the Ford Scorpio and Opel Omega. Citroën was quoted as saying that the car was supposed to "take what Citroën means and make it acceptable". The car's initial reception was positive. Some six months after its launch, The XM won the prestigious European Car of the Year award for 1990 (gaining almost twice as many votes as the second, the Mercedes Benz SL) and went on to win a further 14 major awards within a year of its launch. The anticipated annual sales of 450 cars a day in the first full year of production, or 160,000 units a year, never materialized. Sales never reached this ambitious level (higher than even its popular predecessor) for a variety of reasons. Like the CX, the XM did not have the worldwide distribution of competitors from BMW, Audi, and Mercedes Benz. Also, it was launched only a year before a major global recession began, impacting negatively on car sales across the world; a notable example being the UK, where more than 2.3 million new cars were registered in 1989, but that figure fell to less than 1.6 million in 1991 (a drop of more than 30% in just two years). In Japan the XM was sold through Mazda's Eunos dealership chain, part of an effort to minimize the appearance of Japan's automobile market being closed to imports. It was also offered by Citroën's traditional importer Seibu Motor, who kept selling the XM by themselves after the Eunos brand was discontinued in 1996. The market for executive cars made by volume manufacturers (Ford, Opel, etc.) was on the verge of decline as customers opted for offerings from more prestigious marques, a trend which saw Ford pull out of this market sector in 1998 and Opel/Vauxhall in 2003. Customers were placing a higher priority on speed and handling rather than ride comfort which was Citroën's specialty. The XM was underdeveloped at launch which resulted in reliability problems; the vehicle as designed was inconsistent in its abilities. The XM's styling was also controversial and alienated those who desired a more conventional three box sedan. The XM's sister car, the Peugeot 605, also proved a weak seller. Most subjective of all was the matter of the XM not living up to the expectations created by its forerunner the Citroën DS, despite that car having been launched in an era of national markets, of different demands and standards, an era when there was more scope for large advances in engineering and design than were possible in 1989. Export markets experienced lower sales from the outset, partly due to the XM's pricing. The least expensive XM was nearly 50% more expensive at the time of launch than the corresponding CX. Whilst strong at first home market sales also declined, after the mechanical issues of the first few model years became known. By early 1993, the XM was viewed as an "underachiever". Initial sales in the UK were at 3,500 units a year, making it Citroën's weakest seller. The 2.0 litre petrol engined variants were viewed as being the least competitive. As a result, Citroën restructured the range such that all but the base model petrols were fitted with low inertia Garret turbochargers to add an extra This made the cars more powerful than more expensive competitors such as the Rover 820, Vauxhall Carlton and Ford Granada 2.0 GLX.

XM suffered from poor resale value, which affected sales of new cars. Quentin Willson predicted in 1990 that the XM's residuals would be better than the outgoing CX by the end of the car's life, its resale value was far below average, further denting the car's appeal. By the mid 1990s, it was apparent that the XM's image meant it was less desirable than German products such as the BMW 5 Series. The view of the XM as commercially unsuccessful is reported by Compucars, the used car website, along with numerous other period commentaries.

In mid 1994, the XM received a minor facelift with revisions including a driver's airbag (ending the single spoke steering wheel), belt pretensioners, a redesigned dashboard and upper door casings. The suspension was redesigned to reduce roll, pitch and dive and the design incorporated a passive rear steering system similar to that on the Citroën Xantia. Power from the turbocharged engines increased to from at 4400 rpm. In the United Kingdom, demand slowed significantly by the late 1990s.

The angular Bertone design was a development of Marcello Gandini's Citroën BX concept. Citroën's design chief, Art Blakeslee, believed "the XM is a modern and dynamic shape, with unique styling elements such as the very long, low hood, the extensive use of glass and the kick up in the belt line". Another Citroën designer, Daniel Abramson, explained: "We lowered the belt line to give the shape a stronger image. It is purely a 'design statement' that is not functional and does nothing for the aerodynamics of the vehicle. We wanted a car that looks good from every angle". Abramson is also reported as saying that they "picked three areas to emphasise: 1) A very aggressive look ("Almost sinister"), 2) Lots of glass to create a greenhouse effect, and 3) An aerodynamic accent based on fact (low drag). In 2013 Car magazine described the XM as one of Bertone's seven most significant designs. The standard 5 door models were called "Berline". The XM was also available as a "Break" (station wagon) – and in France, Tissier continued a tradition begun with the DS and CX, converting many to be used as ambulances and specialised delivery vehicles including their distinctive twin rear axle conversions. When introduced, lower end and upper end models looked largely identical. The main difference was in wheel design, while the most expensive models also received colour coded rear view mirrors. The Hydractive system was somewhat "ahead of the curve" when the car was launched and early versions were sometimes unreliable. Many problems stemmed from the sensitive electronics controlling the car's hydraulic system, often caused by the poor quality of the multipoint grounding blocks – one on each front inner wing, one at the rear, and one under the dashboard. These tended to corrode (especially the ones in the engine compartment), causing all manner of intermittent faults which were hard to diagnose. On later cars, these were changed to screw terminals bolted through the bodywork, and most of the older cars have been modified in a similar way. When the Hydractive system worked, the result was a big car with a smooth "magic carpet" ride, and better handling than many smaller, lighter, sports cars. When it didn't work, it was quite harsh and bumpy, although no worse than any contemporary high performance sports sedan. Although the Hydractive suspension coped superbly with undulations and driving at speed, it could be unexpectedly harsh if a sudden change in road height was encountered at moderate speed e. g. lateral ridges or speed bumps. Citroën finally addressed this, and for Xantia (which shared the Hydractive system with XM) came up with a modified design of the suspension (centre sphere) regulator valves, which made them immune to hydraulic impulses produced by the road surface, and which could push the older type valves into Firm mode, just when this wasn't needed. The modified valves were fitted to production Xantias from 8 March 1999 (and were available as replacements), but were not fitted to XM, which was nearing end of production. Interest in these new type valves has led to a good few XM owners successfully fitting them, and benefiting from a noticeable improvement in smoothness and consistency of ride. Some production models of the XM were not equipped with the Hydractive system, but had a 'conventional' hydropneumatic suspension closer to that of the Citroën BX. These lower specification vehicles were all built for markets in mainland Europe.

A function much missed by Citroën enthusiasts was the "DIRAVI" System, previously present in the SM and CX. This option was only available for the French or LHD Export market and then only on the 3.0 V6 models. The functionality varied from car to car, but simply put the system affects steering control, at lower speeds less steering centering force aids parking and make city driving easier, but at higher speeds the system makes the steering heavier keeping you in a straight line on highways and suppressing the "sneeze" factor inherent to fast steering ratios. Another helpful function of DIRAVI is its ability to return the steering wheel to its central or neutral position when let go by the driver, even when the car is stationary. This is especially helpful when parking as the driver can be assured that his or her wheels will be in the correct position when the ignition is turned off; again this function also aids high speed, straight line driving on highways etc. Although an odd sensation to start with, most Citroën drivers become accustomed to DIRAVI in a very short time, only appreciating its unique abilities when they let go of the steering wheel in a car without DIRAVI, only to find nothing happens. DIRAVI makes the tendency of all cars' steering to return to center constant in DIRAVI equipped Citroëns, rather than being affected by tire adhesion, road tilt, tire pressure, tire failure, etc.

The XM's reliability became suspect due to a problem with the quality of electrical connector used. Cost cutting on the components was needed since the parent company was in financial difficulty at the time of the design of the XM. Between 1980 and 1984 the company lost $1.5 billion. Poor connections would stop the car, and require extensive investigation by a trained mechanic to repair. This point was driven home in one of the final reviews of 2000, when Richard Bremner's polemical "Parting Shot" essay in Car emphasized these electrical faults. Bremner paid less attention to the remediation of the problem and to the fact that changed market conditions meant demand for the XM was never going to be the same as for its predecessor.

Components supplier Valeo designed the XM's lamps and a similar design was used on the Eagle Premier. The goal of the design was to reduce the size of the lamps and to increase their output. The XM's new "complex surface" headlamps were not powerful enough on dipped beam, though main beam was perfectly adequate. This could be traced to the use of a plastic optical element between the bulb and the outer lens, which yellowed with age. The XM was not alone here; the pre facelifted first generation Ford Mondeos suffered from the same problem. Series 2 (from mid 1994 onwards) LHD XMs had improved light units without the plastic element, but slow United Kingdom sales meant these were never fitted to RHD forms. Headlamp retrofit kits using dual or triple round optics are available from third party suppliers, though this changes the aesthetics of the car. Series 1 cars can be fitted with series 2 headlights.

The XM was imported into the United States by CXA, a company that had imported several hundred CX25 GTi and Prestige model cars for Citroën loyalists in the USA. These cars can be recognized by small filler plates at the headlights, as CxAuto installed the slightly narrower headlight units from the 1988–1993 Pontiac Grand Prix. CxAuto presented the XM at the 1991 New York Motor Show, in the spring of 1991 and began converting and selling the XM Pallas (combined with the 2.0 injection engine) and the XM Vitesse (combined with the 3.0 V6 engine). In 1993, the XM Exclusive was added to the range. Unfortunately, the XM cost 40 percent more than the CX Prestige, with a price in excess of $50,000 due to the costs needed to modify the cars for US approval and only a few examples were sold. As a result of newer, tougher US anti pollution standards, the import of these cars ceased in 1997. XM parts must be sent over from Europe.

The Citroën XM, along with the Citroën Xantia were assembled in a form of CKD in Huizhou, Guangdong province. This venture lasted for only two years in 1996 and 1997 and production numbers were extremely low. The cars were imported to China more or less fully assembled with only minor additions done in China as a way to avoid the high import tariffs on cars that existed at the time. The two models were given the same name: Fengshen Xietuolong XM.