BMW has officially confirmed that for the
first time in the history of the brand, we will get a wagon version of the M3.
According to the German carmaker, the new BMW M3 Touring will launch after the
M4 Convertible, which is set for next year. That means that the first M3 wagon
should be expected towards late 2022.
The all-new M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe will be officially revealed this
September.
The new M3 Touring is currently in its
early stage of development, with the first prototypes to hit the public roads
for testing in the coming months. Last time we saw an official M3 Touring was
in the form of a concept based on the E46 M3 20 years ago but sadly it was
never green-lighted for production.
The very idea of having an M3 with the
Touring bodystyle has been a long-lasting desire among enthusiasts, with some
of them even creating their own unofficial versions, complete with swollen
fenders and bumpers for the perfect factory look.
Power will of course come from BMW M’s
latest S58 twin-turbo 3.0-liter straight-six engine, which will produce 473 HP in its base form and 503 HP in the Competition models. We do
know that the M3 Sedan and M4 Coupe will be offered with both rear- and
all-wheel-drive, along with manual and eight-speed automatic transmission
options. However, we don’t know if the Touring variant will be offered with the
same powertrain options just yet.
Expect to see the first lightly
camouflaged prototypes being tested on public roads in the next few months.
BMW’s move to offer a Touring version of the M3 declares war on the Audi RS4
and the Mercedes-AMG C63 Estate but let’s hope they’ll do something about that
front end design as well.