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A 2001 BMW M5 with just 11,000 miles on the clock has resurfaced for sale, and this time it's being offered at no reserve. Currently listed on Bring a Trailer, the Imola Red sedan has already drawn a bid past six figures with several days still left on the clock, a strong signal for where the E39 M5 market currently sits.
This isn't the car's first trip through the auction world. The sedan previously changed hands on BaT back in September 2022, then reappeared in listings during November 2023 and again in May 2025, before a dealer in New York picked it up this year. That kind of paper trail, three separate BaT appearances in under four years, shows just how often desirable E39 M5s are getting flipped as buyers chase clean, low-mile examples.
Under the hood sits the S62 4.9-liter V8, a naturally aspirated masterpiece with individual throttle bodies and double-VANOS variable valve timing that made 394 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque from the factory. Power still runs through a Getrag six-speed manual and a limited-slip differential, exactly how BMW's engineers intended a driver's sedan to behave. Notably, an aftermarket exhaust and a set of coilovers were both removed at some point in the car's life, with the factory suspension and exhaust components reinstalled, a detail that should appeal to purists chasing originality over modification.
The car's paperwork backs up its story. A Carfax report shows no accidents or reported damage, along with 17 logged service history entries and four previous owners. It's most recently been registered in Connecticut, a state that doesn't issue titles for vehicles this old, so the sale is being conducted on that registration. Inside, the cabin pairs black and Imola Red Nappa leather with heated front seats, dual-zone climate control, navigation, and the factory M audio system, while the exterior wears Shadowline trim, xenon headlights, and the quad exhaust tips that separate an M5 from a garden-variety 5 Series.
Hagerty's valuation tools help put the current bidding in context. As of this summer, Hagerty pegs a #3-condition, "Good" example of a 2001 M5 at roughly $42,200, with a range stretching from about $32,767 up to $62,800 depending on condition. What stands out is the trajectory: Hagerty's data shows the E39 M5 has climbed by roughly 27.5 percent over the past year and better than 10 percent over three years, one of the stronger moves among 2000s German performance cars. Hagerty's tracked sales for the 2000-2003 M5 generation also show real depth in the market, with dozens of cars changing hands in the last year alone and results ranging from the high $20,000s for higher-mile or rougher cars up toward six figures for the best documented, lowest-mile examples. A no-reserve, 11,000-mile car with a clean history and this level of documentation is about as close as it gets to the top of that range.
The E39 M5 isn't the only BMW performance icon showing this kind of strength. We recently covered a special-order 1994 BMW 850CSi that highlighted similar momentum in the manual E31 market, and a rare 1979 BMW M1 that reminded everyone where the M badge's mid-engine roots began. For buyers priced out of six-figure M5s, we've also looked at value plays like a no-reserve 2012 BMW Z4 sDrive35is, proof that BMW's turbocharged and naturally aspirated performance cars both have room to run in today's market.
Bidding on this M5 continues on Bring a Trailer, with the auction set to end September 10.
