The U.S. is the BMW M Division's most important market...
Uwe FischerBMW recently came out with a new wagon version of the M3, the M3 Touring. Sadly, it’s not coming to the United States. But BMW may be plotting another wagon for America. CarBuzz spoke to BMW M CEO Frank van Meel at an event in South Africa, where the M boss noted that BMW M is considering bringing a wagon to the American market.
“We do see the demand increasing, especially in regard to M, because the US is our single biggest market, our most important market,” van Meel told CarBuzz. “We listened to our dealers and our customers, and they’re coming more and more, asking for a touring. So, we are taking that into consideration.”
The best candidate for an American wagon would be a Touring variant of the next-generation M5, due to arrive in 2024. That car is expected to be even wilder than the current version, potentially getting around 750 horsepower from the twin-turbo V8 hybrid BMW used in the new XM crossover.
If BMW builds a Touring version of the next M5, bringing it to America would make a lot of sense. Americans broadly don’t buy station wagons (or vehicles explicitly marketed as station wagons). The exception is the niche of affluent car enthusiasts who buy six-figure performance vehicles. They love wagons, and are the reason Mercedes sells the AMG E 63 S and Audi brought back the RS 6 Avant. An M5 Touring would be a natural competitor for those vehicles.
Will BMW build a Touring variant of the next-generation M5? Nothing has been announced yet. But van Meel did not rule it out. “We’ll see. Keep your eyes open, and if you see something like that on the Nurburgring, we’re going to do it,” van Meel told CarBuzz.
Keyword: BMW Is Considering an M5 Wagon — and It Might Come to America