New 716bhp BMW M5 Touring estate to be unveiled on 15 August
For only the third time in its history, the M5 super-saloon will be joined by a load-lugging estate version
It’s official: the new BMW M5 Touring will make its world debut on 15 August during this year’s Monterey Car Week.
There hasn’t been an estate car version of Munich’s legendary super-saloon for 14 years, as the last M5 Touring, the E61, went out of production in 2010. It famously featured a 5.0-litre naturally-aspirated V10, however, the new M5 Touring – the third generation to ever reach production – will use plug-in hybrid power instead.
It’ll have the same setup as the latest BMW M5 saloon, which produces a combined 717bhp and 1,000Nm of torque. 576bhp and 750Nm comes from a 4.4-litre V8 engine, while a single electric motor mounted between the engine and gearbox delivers up to 194bhp and 280Nm.
A 19.6kWh battery will feed the e-motor and should allow the M5 Touring to offer a pure-electric range of around 40 miles. 0-62mph takes 3.5 seconds in the saloon, and its estate car sibling will probably only be incrementally slower.
Power will be sent to all four wheels through BMW’s eight-speed automatic gearbox and M xDrive system, but drivers should also be given the option of a rear-drive-only mode that deactivates the stability control, for when they’ve finished the school run.
Based on how practical the plug-in hybrid version of the regular 5 Series Touring is, the M5 Touring could offer around 550 litres of boot space – nearly 100 litres more than the M5 saloon.
We expect the new BMW M5 Touring will cost a little bit more than the M5 saloon, which currently starts from £111,405. Rivals will consist of the 603bhp Mercedes-AMG E 53 4Matic+ estate and the 621bhp Audi RS 6 Avant Performance, which in time will be replaced by the next-generation Audi RS 7 Avant.
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