AUTONEWS

BMW M5 Touring in the Christmas rhythm

With Christmas approaching, BMW M released an image of the new M5 Touring in front of a Christmas tree on Instagram. The German sports station wagon has lost the usual camouflage we saw on test prototypes at the Nürburgring in exchange for wrapping paper and a big golden bow on the roof.

The BMW M5 Touring is one of the rarest cars the M division has ever manufactured. Of the E34, only 891 units were assembled, while the E61 was limited to 1,025 units. Both were quite special, as the first arrived at a time when sports station wagons were a rarity, while the second had a V10 engine with Formula 1 DNA.

The M5 (G99) will not be so exclusive, but it will also be an interesting car as it hides a V8 engine under its hood, a rare bird in the era of downsizing engines and dominant SUV silhouettes.

Unlike its predecessor, the next M5 Touring could reach markets like North America, unlike its smaller brother, the M3 Touring, which will not. Something logical on the part of BMW M, which will certainly want to attract customers who would otherwise only be able to buy an Audi RS 6 Avant or a Mercedes-AMG E 63 Estate.

The M5 sedan (G90), along with the M5 Touring wagon, will be the only 5 Series models that will retain the V8, as it will not be available in the M550i. Under the hood, BMW M will install a 4.4-liter twin-turbo engine.

However, the 8-cylinder engine will not be alone, as it will combine its forces with those of an electric motor. It is estimated that the plug-in hybrid configuration will deliver a combined power of 750 hp, surpassing the base XM, but less than the XM Label.

Super sports car numbers combined with silence: the next incarnation of BMW's PHEV will be able to travel several tens of kilometers in all-electric mode, although naturally the plug-in propulsion system will focus mainly on performance.

This will be reflected in an acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 3.5 seconds and a maximum speed initially limited to 250 km/h, but which can increase up to 280 km/h or 300 km/h with the incorporation of packages specific additions.

Considering that BMW has not yet presented the regular 5 Series Touring, it is unlikely that the M version will make its debut anytime soon. The German station wagon will be presented in early 2024 alongside the all-electric i5 (including the i5 M60), while the M5 Touring will debut at the end of the year. For now, nothing is known about prices, so we will have to wait a little longer.