EMD built 136 locomotives between 1972 and 1974, primarily for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ATSF).

The SD45-2 was an improved version of the EMD SD45; the primary visual difference is the absence of flared radiators on the SD45-2.

In September 2015, Norfolk Southern revealed SD45-2 #1700, which was painted back to its Erie Lackawanna color scheme at Chattanooga, Tennessee.

On August 31, 2018, CSX donated former SD45-2 #8954 (ex: SCL #2049) to the Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth, Georgia, making it the first SD45-2 to be preserved.

[5] It was restored to its bicentennial scheme as ATSF #5704, and is currently stored in Commerce, California, awaiting delivery to SCRM.