Leading up to the unveil of the first-ever M3 Touring, BMW M released more details today. The BMW M3 Touring also has a special nickname: “Bielefeld.” The latest Youtube video goes over the development process of the G81 M3 Touring, followed by some laps on the famous Nurburgring.
When the BMW M3 Touring debuts, it will be, for all intents and purposes, a wagon version of the M3 Competition xDrive. Which means it will have that car’s 3.0 liter twin-turbocharged inline-six — making 503 horsepower and 479 lb-ft — its eight-speed ZF automatic transmission, and xDrive all-wheel drive.
Competition xDrive models are going to be the most popular M3/M4 models by far and away, once they’re on sale for awhile. So it only makes sense to fit the relatively limited-run M3 Touring with the most popular running gear. The top speed is normally limited to 250 km/h, but with the M Driver’s Package this electronic limit can be pushed up quite a bit to 280 km/h. No other variants of the M3 Touring will be made, so don’t get your hopes up for a manual, rear-wheel drive version.
Comes with a facelift design
When the BMW M3 Touring launches, it will come as part of the M3’s LCI facelift, which means it will have slightly updated looks, as well as some updates to its cabin. One such interior update will be the latest iDrive 8 system from the BMW i4, along with the large and curved display. The left LCD measures 12.3-inch in the i4/iX while the touchscreen to the right measures in at 14.9-inch.
We don’t expect many changes on the outside though. The large kidney grille will stay also. Of course, the current BMW 3 Series Touring already previews the design story of the M3 Touring. So expect a sports wagon design with the usual M aero bits. Which means it gets flared wheel arches, a massive rear diffuser, and quad exhaust pipes, the latter of which being a typical M Division staple.
Let’s take a look at the video below and stay tuned for the full unveil sometimes in June! Pricing will also be communicated later on, but we expect a similar price point as the M3/M4 Competition xDrive models. [Render by Motor.es]
