2005 BMW 545

Few people know a 4. 4-litre V8-engined BMW 5 Series Touring exists. Fewer still realise that the 545i Sport Touring existed only for a short window between the 5 Series' 2004 introduction and 2005, before the engine grew to 4. 8 litres and the car was renamed 550i.

It combines the 5 Series Touring's practicality with 333 PS, a genuine 155 mph and the kind of quiet, unhurried competence that only a V8 in a heavy car can provide.

Few were delivered to the UK between 2004 and 2005, fewer still were specified this well, and fewer still have covered so little distance. This example, with only four private keepers since new, comes with a paper trail thorough enough to answer almost any question a buyer might ask.

The E60/ E61 generation of 5 Series, styled under Chris Bangle's BMW design leadership and unveiled in saloon form in 2003, introduced construction that mixed an aluminium front structure with a steel passenger cell, a departure for the segment at the time. The Touring estate followed a year later.

At the top of the non-M range sat the 545i, powered by the N62B44 4. 4-litre V8: 333 PS at 6, 100 rpm and 450 Nm of torque, driving the rear wheels through a six-speed automatic gearbox.

It was replaced within the same model cycle by the 550i, whose enlarged 4. 8-litre engine arrived in 2005, which means the 545i occupied BMW's showrooms for a comparatively brief period. The Touring version, lower volume again than the saloon, is correspondingly harder to find today.

LD05 NFA is a UK-supplied, right-hand drive 545i Sport Touring, first registered on 31 March 2005 and supplied new through Park Lane BMW in Mayfair. It is finished in Carbon Black metallic over beige Dakota leather, a combination that photographs almost blue in certain light but is, on the build record, Carbon Black throughout.

The specification is a strong one. Alongside the M Sport Package, M Aerodynamics Package and M leather steering wheel, the car carries 18-inch M double-spoke alloy wheels, a sliding panoramic glass roof, adaptive Xenon headlights with headlamp cleaning, Navigation System Professional, BMW Assist, the Hi-Fi speaker system with six-disc CD changer, electrically adjustable and memory-equipped sports seats, cruise control, Park Distance Control, Servotronic power steering and the visibility pack. The car is supplied with two keys.

The car has had four registered keepers since first registration, this being a genuinely low figure for a 21-year-old car of this type. The first change of keeper came in July 2014, after nine years with the original owner. A second change followed in December 2020, at which point the car passed through Hexagon Classics, who retailed it at 23, 280 miles, a figure that sits precisely between DVLA odometer readings from January and December of that year. Between January 2021 and January 2026 the car carried a private registration, SY05JOX, reverting to its original LD05 NFA plate with it's present owner in March 2026.

The interior presents cleanly throughout, the beige Dakota leather showing no significant wear to the bolsters despite its age. Exterior paintwork carries only the light, honestly-described marks one would expect of a car this age that has been used rather than laid up: a small mark to the front bumper corner and a minor chip to a door edge finisher, neither of which affect the panel beneath. The car holds a valid MOT until February 2027.

The DVLA-sourced service and inspection record is continuous and unbroken since 2007, with stamps from Park Royal BMW (2009, 2011, 2013), a further BMW dealer, Speedy Motors, Hexagon Classics and, most recently, West Harrow Garage in January 2024 at 31, 227 miles, a figure that matches the independently logged odometer reading for that date exactly.

4. 4-litre N62B44 V8, 333 PS / 450 Nm. Six-speed automatic gearbox, rear-wheel drive. M Sport Package, M Aerodynamics Package, M leather steering wheel. 18-inch M double-spoke 135 alloy wheels. Sliding panoramic glass roof. Adaptive Xenon headlights with headlamp cleaning. Navigation System Professional, BMW Assist. Hi-Fi speaker system with six-disc CD changer. Electric, memory-equipped sports seats in beige Dakota leather. Cruise control, Park Distance Control, Servotronic steering, visibility pack.

We don't see many examples of the 545i Touring, and fewer still with a history this legible. Four keepers, the supplying dealer's stickers still on the car, an unbroken service record and a sub-40k mileage all point to a car that has been looked after rather than merely owned. It is, quite simply, one of the more usable pieces of early-2000s BMW engineering you can still find in this condition.

Sleeper usually means quicker than it looks. This one is also rarer than it looks, and better value than some noisier competition. Put it beside a Mercedes E55 AMG estate or an Audi RS6 Avant and it won't win the drag race, but it's cut from the same cloth: a proper V8 dressed like old money, not new. Those cars trade at two to three times the money. The market hasn't caught up with this one. Yet.

Marketed on Behalf of our Client at Auto Classica Storage - Viewings by Appointment.