BMWM1

Andy Warhol BMW M1

BMW's fourth Art Car: a works Group 4 M1 that Andy Warhol painted himself in 1979, which raced once, at Le Mans that June, finishing sixth. BMW has kept it since, and in 2025 it joined the US National Historic Vehicle Register.

About the pictureA Procar in BMW Motorsport's works colours at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 1998, the same Group 4 shape in a plain livery.

A white BMW M1 racing car with blue, violet and red stripes and the number 24 on its door, cornering on a wet road with spectators blurred behind straw bales.
Stand-in A Procar in BMW Motorsport colours at Goodwood, 1998: the shape, not the car.PSParrot, CC BY 2.0

At Le Mans on 10 June 1979 a white Procar covered in broad strokes of red, green, blue and yellow finished the 24 Hours in sixth place, second in its class, after hours lost in the pits. It was No. 76, entered by the French racing driver Hervé Poulain, and the paint was Andy Warhol's: the fourth of BMW's Art Cars and, by BMW's account, the first whose artist painted the car himself. Le Mans was its only race. BMW quoted him in 2008 as saying "I love that car. It has turned out better than the artwork."⁠1​2​3​4

The Art Car programme before Warhol

Sources for Andy Warhol's BMW M1 Art Car

Hagerty Drivers Foundation (National Historic Vehicle Register), "1979 BMW M1 Art Car No. 4, Andy Warhol"⁠2; BMW M1 Register, "VIN Table"⁠5; racingsportscars.com, "BMW M1 – All Results"⁠6; racingsportscars.com, Race, results and car-data pages with BMW M1 entries, 1979–86 (group)⁠7; BMW Group (PressClub), "Homage to Andy Warhol on four wheels: His BMW Art Car with co-driver Frank Stella live at the Hockenheimring during the Formula 1 Grand Prix" (press release), 18 Jul 2008⁠3; Hagerty Drivers Foundation, "Andy Warhol Automotive Artwork Added to National Historic Vehicle Register", 14 Aug 2025⁠4; Automobile Club de l'Ouest (24h-lemans.com), "BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – BMW M1 by Andy Warhol: absolute icon", 16 Jan 2026⁠1

The Art Cars were Poulain's idea. With Jochen Neerpasch of BMW Motorsport he asked his friend Alexander Calder to paint the 3.0 CSL he was to race at Le Mans in 1975, and two more racing BMWs followed, Frank Stella's CSL in 1976 and Roy Lichtenstein's 320 in 1977, each also raced at Le Mans. Those three artists worked on a scale model, and their designs were transferred from it to the car. None was paid; of Warhol the ACO wrote in 2026, "Like his predecessors, he received no payment."⁠2​3​8​1

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From a 320 to the M1

Warhol's first design was for a 320, which Poulain was to race at Le Mans. It covered the windows and the headlamps, so that the car could not have been driven, and it was never built. BMW offered him the new M1 instead.⁠4​2

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Painting the car

Warhol painted the M1 himself, in thick colour applied in broad brushstrokes over its white base, and signed it with his fingers in the wet paint, BMW recounted in 2008. BMW's own account gives 28 minutes for the work, and the Hagerty Drivers Foundation's register repeats it, adding that "the camera crew sent to capture it nearly missed it". BMW has also written "less than half an hour", and the register "under 30 minutes". About 6 kg (13 lb) of paint went on. Motor Sport, in 2006, described the work as "coarsely patching it with green, maroon, blue and yellow, smudging and overlapping and using a stick to score through to the white underneath". Poulain watched, and BMW says he compared it to a live dance performance. He had expected something else:

I was expecting a livery based on Marilyn Monroe and cans of soup. Instead, Andy Warhol was most interested in the mixing of the colours. He wondered which colour would prevail over another at 300 kph.

Hervé Poulain, as quoted by the ACO, January 2026

Warhol's own explanation survives in several English wordings, none of them with its occasion; BMW's release of 2025 gives it as "I have tried to give a vivid depiction of speed. If a car is really fast, all the contours and colours will become blurred."

Thomas Girst of BMW tells how Warhol painted the car himself, in BMW's account in 28 minutes; the story begins at 1:05.Video: BMW TODAY – Episode 16: The BMW Art Cars., BMW, 2020
A black and white photograph of Andy Warhol in a dark suit and striped tie, hands folded, beside a framed drawing on an easel, with two men behind him.
Andy Warhol at a White House reception in Washington on 14 June 1977, 2 years before he painted the M1.Jack E. Kightlinger (White House photographer), Public domain

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The car: serial 4301004

The car was not a road M1. The BMW M1 Register lists 4301004 as one of two "PROCAR Test" cars, through Italdesign on 7 September 1978 and with BMW that December, white, with no engine number in the table; the other, 4301005, was orange. At Le Mans it carried the full chassis number WBS59910004301004, racingsportscars records. The Foundation's register calls it a "factory race car" and describes it as a works Group 4 car built like the Procars, with the M1's racing six, a ZF gearbox with a limited-slip differential, BBS centre-lock wheels, a roll cage and one fire-retardant seat, and records the original engine still in it.

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Le Mans, 9–10 June 1979

Poulain shared the car with Manfred Winkelhock and Marcel Mignot, and it started 23rd, in the IMSA class for cars over 2.5 litres. The 1979 race was run on the 13.61 km (8.47 mile) circuit, through a thunderstorm in the night and a wet dawn. Dick Barbour's Porsche 935, driven by Rolf Stommelen, Barbour and Paul Newman, won the class and finished second overall. The M1 covered 285 laps, 3,874.8 km (2,407.7 miles) at an average of 161.451 km/h (100.32 mph), by racingsportscars' figures. It was the only M1 in the race: Walter Brun's entry, No. 54, did not arrive. J.C.T., reporting for Motor Sport, never mentioned the painter:

Another car to profit from simply keeping going in the face of adversity was the works run "Procar" style BMW M1 handled by Winklehock, Poulain and Mignot. It lost hours while clutch, gearbox and all four brake discs were changed, and misfired horribly throughout Sunday, yet it still finished sixth.

J.C.T., Motor Sport, July 1979⁠11​7​1

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Later life

BMW kept the car. For the M1's 30th anniversary, in July 2008, it ran at Hockenheim during the German Grand Prix, with Neerpasch at the wheel and Frank Stella beside him, and Karl Baumer, head of BMW Group Classic, explained the decision:

This is the fulfilment of a dream for us. Of course, we are fully aware of the responsibility towards the Art Cars as works of art. But Warhol's M1 really also belongs on the racetrack and we are very happy to make this exception on the occasion of the anniversary year

Karl Baumer, BMW Group, July 2008

It was there to lead the Procars round, Adam Cooper reported: on the Saturday Neerpasch's clutch failed at the start and the others went past and raced without him, and on the Sunday, before the Grand Prix, they followed him. BMW calls its museum in Munich "the home of BMW Art Cars", with some of them on show there while the rest travel, and the Warhol car has travelled to art exhibitions. It was shown at the Jehangir Art Gallery in Mumbai in 2007 beside Lichtenstein's car, at the India Art Fair in New Delhi from 31 January to 2 February 2020 and at Art Dubai from 16 to 20 April 2025, and then in the United States, at Pebble Beach in August 2025 and on BMW's Art Car tour. That August the Hagerty Drivers Foundation listed it as the 37th vehicle on the US National Historic Vehicle Register, documented under the Historic American Engineering Record, No. NJ-162, with drawings, photographs and its history kept in the Library of Congress, as, in its words, "one of the most significant intersections of an American artist and an automobile".

On 17 September 2025, as the car was being unloaded for the Cars at the Capital exhibition on the National Mall in Washington, a winch broke and a professional transport driver was killed. The Foundation cancelled the events planned for the days that followed.⁠3​12​8​9​4​2​13

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The other painted M1: Stella's car for Peter Gregg

Warhol's was not the only M1 an artist painted in 1979. The American racer Peter Gregg ordered a Procar from BMW Motorsport GmbH that year, built to the Group 4 specification, and Frank Stella painted it for him, outside BMW's series, with a grid in blue, rose and purple from his Polar Coordinates works, a series he made in homage to Ronnie Peterson, who had died after the Italian Grand Prix of 1978. Stella signed it on the louvred rear window. Motor Sport wrote in 2006 that it had been shown at historic meetings before it was given to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 1999, Neerpasch drove it with Stella as his passenger at a Procar event in 2003, and in May 2011 it was shown in the atrium of the IBM Building in New York. Motor Sport wrote in 2006 that it never raced.⁠14​10

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Where it has been

  1. 1978

    The Register's Italdesign date for a works Group 4 car

    7 September 1978. Serial 4301004 (VIN WBS59910004301004), listed as a "PROCAR Test" car, white, with BMW's date of 5 December 1978

    BMW M1 Register, "VIN Table"⁠5; Hagerty Drivers Foundation (National Historic Vehicle Register), "1979 BMW M1 Art Car No. 4, Andy Warhol"⁠2

  2. 1979

    Painted by Andy Warhol as the fourth BMW Art Car

    He painted the car himself, the first artist in the series to do so. BMW's own account gives 28 minutes and about 6 kg of paint

    Hagerty Drivers Foundation (National Historic Vehicle Register), "1979 BMW M1 Art Car No. 4, Andy Warhol"⁠2; BMW Group (PressClub), "Homage to Andy Warhol on four wheels: His BMW Art Car with co-driver Frank Stella live at the Hockenheimring during the Formula 1 Grand Prix" (press release), 18 Jul 2008⁠3; BMW Group Middle East (PressClub), "For the first time in the region: BMW Group Middle East brings Andy Warhol's iconic BMW M1 Art Car to Art Dubai 2025" (press release), Apr 2025⁠9

  3. 1979

    Sixth overall and second in the IMSA class at the Le Mans 24 Hours

    10 June 1979. No. 76, entered by Hervé Poulain and driven by Poulain, Manfred Winkelhock and Marcel Mignot; 285 laps, after hours lost to clutch, gearbox and brake changes. Its only race

    racingsportscars.com, Race, results and car-data pages with BMW M1 entries, 1979–86 (group)⁠7; J.C.T., "Les Vingt-Quatre Heures du Mans", Motor Sport, July 1979, p. 31⁠11; Automobile Club de l'Ouest (24h-lemans.com), "BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – BMW M1 by Andy Warhol: absolute icon", 16 Jan 2026⁠1; racingsportscars.com, "BMW M1 – All Results"⁠6

  4. 2008

    Led the Procars round Hockenheim before the German Grand Prix, for the M1's 30th anniversary

    20 July 2008. Jochen Neerpasch drove it with Frank Stella beside him. On the Saturday its clutch failed at the start and the other Procars raced without it; on the Sunday they followed it round

    Adam Cooper, "One for the pros", Motor Sport, Oct 2008, p. 54⁠12; BMW Group (PressClub), "Homage to Andy Warhol on four wheels: His BMW Art Car with co-driver Frank Stella live at the Hockenheimring during the Formula 1 Grand Prix" (press release), 18 Jul 2008⁠3

  5. 2020

    Shown at the India Art Fair, New Delhi

    31 January 2020

    BMW Group India (PressClub), "Rolling Sculptures: BMW brings Andy Warhol's Art Car to India" (press release), Jan 2020⁠8

  6. 2025

    Shown at Art Dubai

    16 April 2025

    BMW Group Middle East (PressClub), "For the first time in the region: BMW Group Middle East brings Andy Warhol's iconic BMW M1 Art Car to Art Dubai 2025" (press release), Apr 2025⁠9

  7. 2025

    Listed on the US National Historic Vehicle Register

    14 August 2025. The 37th vehicle on the register, documented for the Library of Congress (HAER No. NJ-162)

    Hagerty Drivers Foundation, "Andy Warhol Automotive Artwork Added to National Historic Vehicle Register", 14 Aug 2025⁠4; Hagerty Drivers Foundation (National Historic Vehicle Register), "1979 BMW M1 Art Car No. 4, Andy Warhol"⁠2

  8. 2025

    A planned exhibition in Washington cancelled after a fatal accident

    17 September 2025. A transport driver died when a winch broke as the car was being unloaded for the Cars at the Capital exhibition; the events of 18–23 September were cancelled

    Elliott Hughes, "Man killed in Washington DC while unloading Andy Warhol BMW M1 Art Car", Octane, 19 Sep 2025 (online)⁠13

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Results

  • 1979

    Le Mans 24 Hours 1979

    9 June 1979, Le Mans, France. No. 76, Marcel Mignot, Hervé Poulain and Manfred Winkelhock: 6th overall, 2nd in IMSA +2.5⁠7​6​1​11

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Sources

Sources are given as plain text; their addresses are on the sources page.

  • Primarymade at the time, by the maker or by people who were there
  • Referenceserious later work: clubs, specialists, magazines, books
  • Databaseresults and listings, entry by entry
  1. Automobile Club de l'Ouest (24h-lemans.com), "BMW Art Cars at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – BMW M1 by Andy Warhol: absolute icon", 16 Jan 2026, paras. 4–5, Le Mans 1979; "Like his predecessors, he received no payment"; para. 4: 28 minutes, nearly 6 kg; Poulain's words; para. 5, the grid and the IMSA category; para. 5; the #76 car, its three drivers Hervé Poulain, Marcel Mignot and Manfred Winkelhock. Reference
  2. Hagerty Drivers Foundation (National Historic Vehicle Register), "1979 BMW M1 Art Car No. 4, Andy Warhol", narrative: the fourth Art Car; the painting; narrative: Poulain, Calder and the models; narrative: the 320 design; narrative, the camera crew; "Paint and exterior", 28 minutes and the paint; VIN; "Engine", "Drivetrain" and "Original engine"; foot of entry, NHVR No. 37, HAER No. NJ-162; VIN; narrative; "Paint and exterior"; foot of entry. Reference
  3. BMW Group (PressClub), "Homage to Andy Warhol on four wheels: His BMW Art Car with co-driver Frank Stella live at the Hockenheimring during the Formula 1 Grand Prix" (press release), 18 Jul 2008, Warhol's words; the car's only race; the Art Car programme; the first artists' models; the brushwork, the colours and the signature in the wet paint; Hockenheim, 19–20 July 2008; Karl Baumer's words. Primary
  4. Hagerty Drivers Foundation, "Andy Warhol Automotive Artwork Added to National Historic Vehicle Register", 14 Aug 2025, dateline, the listing; the 320 design and the M1; the listing, the Library of Congress, Pebble Beach and Cars at the Capital; dateline. Reference
  5. BMW M1 Register, "VIN Table", row 4301004; rows 4301004 and 4301005, PROCAR Test. Reference
  6. racingsportscars.com, "BMW M1 – All Results", 10.6.1979 row; 10.6.1979, Le Mans, No. 76, chassis; 10.6.1979 row (chassis); 10.6.1979, 24 h Le Mans, No. 76, 4301004, 6th. Database
  7. racingsportscars.com, Race, results and car-data pages with BMW M1 entries, 1979–86 (group), Le Mans 24 Hours 1979; Le Mans 24 Hours 1979, results: No. 76 and the class winner; Le Mans 24 Hours 1979 results, 6th; Le Mans 1979, results page, 6th, No. 76, 285 laps. Database
  8. BMW Group India (PressClub), "Rolling Sculptures: BMW brings Andy Warhol's Art Car to India" (press release), Jan 2020, the Art Cars in order, 1975–79; para. 1, "less than half an hour"; Mumbai 2007; the India Art Fair, 2020; the BMW Museum. Primary
  9. BMW Group Middle East (PressClub), "For the first time in the region: BMW Group Middle East brings Andy Warhol's iconic BMW M1 Art Car to Art Dubai 2025" (press release), Apr 2025, para. "The 4th BMW Art Car": 28 minutes, the paint, Poulain watching, Warhol's words; "the prototype BMW M1"; Art Dubai, April 2025; para. "The 4th BMW Art Car". Primary
  10. Motor Sport, "Painted to the road", Mar 2006, p. 58, p. 58, "reportedly spending 23 minutes"; the brushwork; p. 58, Gregg's Procar: the historic meetings; "never raced". Reference
  11. J.C.T., "Les Vingt-Quatre Heures du Mans", Motor Sport, July 1979, p. 31, p. 31, the circuit, the weather and the M1's race; p. 31; p. 31, the M1 "still finished sixth". Primary
  12. Adam Cooper, "One for the pros", Motor Sport, Oct 2008, p. 54, p. 54, Neerpasch and Stella in the car; the clutch on the Saturday; the Sunday run; p. 54. Reference
  13. Elliott Hughes, "Man killed in Washington DC while unloading Andy Warhol BMW M1 Art Car", Octane, 19 Sep 2025 (online), para. 1, 17 September 2025; para. 1. Reference
  14. Phil Patton, "BMW M1, Painted by Frank Stella, Heading to Auction", The New York Times (Wheels blog), 9 May 2011, the order, the design, the signature, the Guggenheim, the 2003 drive and the 2011 showing. Reference

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