We’re having a hard time remembering when BMW had such a busy year ahead in terms of new M products. The answer is probably never since the lineup of high-performance models has grown tremendously in recent times. A new addition to the range will occur later this year when the wraps are (finally!) going to come off the M3 Touring.
There’s still a lot of testing that needs to be done, hence why prototypes are almost systematically spied. Case in point, a fully camouflaged M3 Touring was spotted by CarSpyMedia at temperatures well below 0 degrees Celsius in the harsh environment near the Arctic Circle. From some angles, you can see it has the iDrive 8 system with dual side-by-side screens in a curved glass housing.
While the AMG C63 Estate rival is the spy video’s focal point, it’s part of a fleet among other BMWs. Although not fitted to this prototype, the M3 Touring should have slightly different headlights and taillights. We are making this assumption based on the fact it will be based on the 3 Series LCI. From the big grille and fender flares to the quad exhaust and diffuser, you can easily tell it’s a step above the M340i Touring.
No Manual And No Rear-Wheel Drive
As previously reported, you won’t be able to row your own gears in the M3 Touring. Sources close to the matter have told us BMW will sell the belated fast wagon only in Competition xDrive guise. While the M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe will spawn hotter CS versions, with a CSL for the latter, there’s no word about a spicy long-roof derivative.
Arriving in the coming months to mark 50 years of M, the long-awaited M3 Touring should hit the market just in time to get the anniversary badging. The same can be said about the M2, M4 CSL, and the XM plug-in hybrid SUV. Hopefully, BMW has something special planned to celebrate the milestone. However, we wouldn’t hold our breath for a supercar.
[Source: CarSpyMedia / YouTube] [Rendering by Sugarchow]
