BMW Exec Denies He Said M5 Touring Is Coming to US [Updated]
BMW’s design chief reportedly confirmed the sport wagon’s long-rumored arrival on our shores, right before spiking it.
Updated: Thursday, February 15, 2024, 12:05 p.m. ET: Shortly before this story's publication, Carscoops reported that BMW's Domagoj Dukec told the site he never confirmed the M5 Touring's U.S. release, as claimed by The Car Guide. The rest of this piece is unchanged, and includes a response to the original report from BMW of North America.
Much to our chagrin, there's never been a BMW M5 Touring wagon sold in the United States. That might be changing now, though, as BMW's head of design Domagoj Dukec reportedly told The Car Guide. Dukec is cited as saying the upcoming G99-generation M5 Touring will indeed head stateside, seemingly turning rumor into reality.
When asked about Dukec's reported comments and whether the M5 Touring truly is coming to the U.S., BMW told The Drive: “BMW M has confirmed the production of the BMW M5 Touring. Details related to when and in which markets this car will be offered will follow at a later date.”
That isn't a yes but it isn't a no, either. Sometimes a non-answer is an answer.
There's perhaps something else to glean from BMW Canada's role in this ordeal. The Car Guide quotes BMW Canada spokesperson Jean-François Taylor as saying no decision has been made on whether the M5 Touring will be sold north of our border. Taylor's comments seem to hint that the M5 Touring is coming to the U.S. and BMW is undecided on whether to send any Canada's way. That could be the case, or BMW may still be undecided about North America as a whole.
If the BMW M5 Touring does make its way across the Atlantic, it's going to pack a punch. It will use the same V8 hybrid powertrain as the BMW XM—a twin-turbocharged 4.4-liter V8 paired with an electric motor, an eight-speed automatic, and all-wheel drive. It isn't yet clear how much power it will make but the XM Label Red's 738 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque are likely. Even with the same power or a little less, the M5 Touring will likely be quicker to 60 mph than the XM Label Red's 3.7-second sprint considering it shouldn't weigh as much as a medium-sized aircraft carrier.
Despite the United States' historic lack of fast BMW wagons, an M5 Touring makes sense nowadays given the success of the automaker's German rivals with fast wagons in recent years. The Audi RS6 Avant—which was also the first of its kind in the U.S.—sells well and the Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo is popular enough to stay on sale through the car's update.
I think I can speak for all of us when I say: I hope the rumors are true. The U.S. needs more fast wagons.
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