2006 Alpina B5 (E60) 4.4 V8 Saloon

Property of a Gentleman.

Alpina Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH & Co. KG or simply 'Alpina' - the official BMW tuning partner - has had a long and celebrated association with the Munich carmaker, celebrating its 50th Anniversary in 2015. Credited with re-engineering some very special cars over the years, Alpina's approach is often to refine and build on the latent driving and styling characteristics of a standard car, adding a certain Alpina 'magic' that only they can bestow on a BMW. Their reputation and following are very strong, appealing to discerning buyers who want a special, rare, and characterful car. Such are their credentials that Alpina are now recognised by the German Ministry of Transport as an automobile manufacturer in their own right.

The car presented here is a 2006 BMW Alpina B5 (E60) Saloon, one of only 21 examples built for the UK market in 2006. It's based on the 545i but powered by a modified version of that car’s 4.4-litre V8, with an Alpina-specific engine block, forged crankshaft and low compression Mahle pistons mated to a centrifugal supercharger – a potent combination. It also features Alpina’s own design of suspension and brakes taken from the 760Li. A sublime performance saloon, this is a 530bhp machine, capable of covering ground effortlessly and 0-62 mph in 4.7 seconds.

According to the Alpina service booklet enclosed in the embossed bookpack, this particular B5, in black with a cream leather interior received its pre-delivery check at the Alpina factory on 2nd November 2006, prior to dispatch to the sole Alpina concessionaire for the UK, the Sytner BMW Group. Interestingly, the car was first registered with the DVLA in December 2007 and on 21st January 2008 was given a 'running-in check' at 1,189 miles by Sytner Nottingham, so we assume the car was likely to have been a demonstrator or used by Sytner management, for it was later registered after four months on 22nd April 2008 to the second owner who kept the car until November 2020. The copy BMW Alpina Sytner Nottingham used vehicle order confirms the car was sold with 34,688 miles for £29,500 later that month and registered to the third owner on 2nd December 2020.

The car returned to Sytner Nottingham, the suppling dealer, a further 11 times according to the service book and the last stamp, for a total of 13, was issued by BMW specialist Darren Wood Ltd, when it was serviced at 37,160 miles on 3rd March 2023. The car was issued with an advisory-free MOT, valid until 18th June 2026, at 41,457 miles and had covered just one further mile when it was recently photographed for the auction.

Presented to auction in fine form, with the aforementioned bookpack and paperwork with a driver’s mileage considered low by period 5-Series standards, this rare car ticks all the right boxes. Gaining serious attention among those who appreciate modern comforts, speed and rarity and keenly estimated, this is one to seriously consider against the results achieved by much higher mileage contemporary examples at auction.