BMW M on Sunday posted a teaser video on Instagram that possibly hints at a new M5 Touring in the works.
The video, which was posted with the message “Never say never,” shows M engineers working on a new model. At one point in the clip, the mystery model is revealed to be a wagon.
The engineers are shown installing a widened wheel arch at the rear of the vehicle, and a flat roof extending past the C-pillar can clearly be seen.
The floor of the vehicle can also be seen, confirming it isn’t a tall SUV the engineers are working on.
Teaser for possible BMW M5 Touring
BMW a year ago launched its first M3 Touring high-performance wagon, a vehicle with a similar widened rear wheel arch, and the boss of the BMW M performance division, Frank van Meel, in an interview that year teased there might be an M5 wagon joining it eventually.
A redesigned 5-Series sedan was revealed in May and starts sales later this year as a 2024 model. It will spawn a new M5 sedan that’s currently out testing ahead of a debut likely in a year’s time. It’s possible any M5 wagon will debut alongside the sedan.
There have been two M5 wagons in the past, based on the E34 M5 of the late ’80s/early ’90s and E60 M5 of the ’00s, so BMW is not averse to the idea of a more practical M5.
2008 BMW M5 Touring
Should a modern M5 wagon be launched, it isn’t clear whether it will reach the U.S. The M3 Touring isn’t coming here, and the same could be true for any M5 wagon. Mercedes-Benz no longer offers an AMG E 63 wagon in the U.S., though Audi offers its RS 6 Avant here.
BMW will go the hybrid route for its next M5, with the powertrain likely to pair a turbocharged 4.4-liter V-8 with a single electric motor for a combined output of more than 700 hp. The same setup features in the 2023 XM SUV, and delivers 738 hp in the range-topping XM Label Red grade.
Performance fans with a penchant for electric power also have an option with the new 5-Series. BMW M has developed an i5 M60 xDrive grade, which BMW will offer with a wagon body style starting next spring (though likely not in the U.S.). The i5 M60 xDrive grade features a dual-motor all-wheel-drive powertrain generating a peak 590 hp.
