BMW M5 E39

THE FIRST M5 to offer V8 power set new standards in design and performance delivery. This was a car not vastly different in size or concept from the E34 model it replaced, yet as a driving experience it went closer to perfection than any previous four-door BMW.

- WORDS CLIFF CHAMBERS ★ PHOTOS BMW

E39 versions of the M5 were displayed in 1998 at the Geneva Motor Show and the first cars sold seven months later in 1999.

The model was listed for Australian sale during 1999 at $198,500 and remained available here until 2003. By then the base price had dropped to $195,800, but the reduction was significant because the price by then needed to absorb 10 per cent GST.

The E39 was a very successful model for BMW, with 20,482 of all types produced. Build numbers for right-hand drive aren't exact but believed to exceed 5000 cars. Most would have gone to the UK and Japan, but Australia from 1999-2003 did sell 5327 Five Series sedans, so local deliveries are likely number more than 300.