Last month BMW M confirmed a M5 Touring will join its line-up in 2024, and now the hot wagon has been spied testing.
It will be the first M5 Touring since 2010, and only the third generation of M5 to offer a wagon body style.
BMW has confirmed the M5 Touring line-up will gain electrified powertrains of some variety.
The company teased a separate M5 Touring prototype in June 2023, and announced the model will begin testing on public roads and closed race tracks this month.
While BMW has released teaser images of the M5 Touring, this is the first time we have gotten a look at the wagon’s front fascia which, to be expected, is identical to the M5 sedan and closely resembles the ‘regular’ 5 Series and i5.
Based on the prototype, the M5 Touring will come with 20-inch alloy wheels.
At the rear, the prototype spied features dual circular exhaust outlets on each side plus a spoiler, though the rear bumper appears to still be in the prototype phase with sensors and faux reflectors.
Based on previous spy photos of the M5 sedan, the interior of the M5 is expected to not stray far from the 5 Series/i5’s current layout and design, with the exception of some specific M cues.
The interior of the 5 Series boasts a curved display housing a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 14.9-inch touchscreen which runs BMW iDrive 8.5.
The new M5 will reportedly adopt the plug-in hybrid V8 powertrain from the XM crossover, which has 550kW of power and 1000Nm of torque. It has a claimed 88km of electric range thanks to its 25.7kWh lithium-ion battery pack.
The current M5 uses a twin-turbocharged 4.4-litre V8 with 460kW and 750Nm in its most powerful CS guise and doesn’t offer any hybrid assistance.
“We are now also installing a hybrid drive system with typical M performance in other high-performance cars,” said Dirk Häcker, head of development at BMW M GmbH.
BMW M could use the XM’s hybrid-specific M xDrive all-wheel drive system which includes an electronic rear differential lock in the rear axle transmission.
It also features an active anti-roll system, although it’s not clear if the lower-riding M5 will require the same tech.
By reintroducing a performance wagon of this size, BMW will once again have a rival for the Audi RS6 and Mercedes-AMG E63 wagons – though only the Audi is sold here.
BMW has only offered an M5 Touring in two different generations.
It produced 891 examples of the E34 generation wagon between 1992 and 1995, and it was to a large extent hand-finished.
The M5 Touring disappeared until the wild, V10-powered E61 entered production. Just 1009 were produced and sold between 2007 and 2010.
MORE: Everything BMW M5
