It was less than two months ago when BMW introduced the 5 Series Sedan and it has already teased the new M5. Better yet, images of a camouflaged prototype released at the beginning of the week actually depicted the wagon, confirming numerous rumors about the return of the M5 Touring. After the ultra-rare E34 and V10-powered E61, the G99 will break cover at some point in 2024.
BMW USA has been quite active on social media this week since it shared the teaser video on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and even LinkedIn, thus strongly suggesting the long-roof M5 is coming stateside. In the meantime, Bavaria’s belated answer to the Audi RS6 Avant and Mercedes-AMG E63 Estate has been speculatively rendered by our friends at Kolesa. The digital design exercise takes after the i5 M60 but with extra M bits.
Painted in Fire Red, the high-performance wagon gets a fresh take on the front grille with horizontal slats in the same vein as the kidneys installed on the M2 G87, facelifted X5 M and X6 M, and the XM. It also boasts a more aggressive lower air intake to cool down the S68 engine, a twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 already being used by the SUVs we just mentioned. Much like in the XM, it’ll work in conjunction with an electric motor built into the eight-speed automatic transmission.
Bigger wheels with chunkier brakes are a given, and so are carbon fiber side mirror caps. It remains to be seen whether BMW will also offer a carbon fiber roof for the M5 Touring considering you can’t get one on the smaller M3 Touring. As to why that’s the case, the German luxury brand explained a while ago it would’ve needed to make significant changes to the assembly line for a niche product, so they ultimately decided it just wasn’t worth it.
Moving at the back, there’s a dual-piece roof spoiler and a meaner diffuser hosting quad exhaust tips. With the X1 M35i introduced a few days ago, BMW M is now putting four tips on its M Performance models as well, so the full-fat M cars have lost that exclusivity. A stiffer suspension setup will bring the M5 Touring closer to the road for a meaner stance, enhanced by the bulging rear fenders in the same vein as the M3 Touring’s wide hips.
When the M5 debuts next year, the plug-in hybrid setup will be good for a yet-to-be-confirmed 700+ horsepower. Logic tells us it won’t be as potent as the XM Label Red, although we can imagine future hotter derivatives of the G90 Sedan and G99 Touring will pack an even greater punch. Having learned all there is to know about the standard 5 Series, the new M5 will be the biggest and heaviest iteration ever, especially with the Touring coming back for a third generation.
Source: Kolesa
