BMW 3 Series Touring teased. And it matters
Almost a week after the radically restyled BMW 3 Series debuted, attention has shifted to what upstaged it.
As CEO Oliver Zipse wrapped up his presentation at the i3 Sedan premiere, a Touring silhouette appeared in the background. He then, in no uncertain terms, confirmed the addition of a 3 Series Touring to the range.
BMW will more than likely offer it in both ICE and electric versions, starting with the latter, which will likely lead the charge with over 800km of driving range.
In terms of design, the Touring typically mirrors its sedan sibling, minus the sedan’s 3-box outline. The electric Neue Klasse variant will likely do the same. The question is whether the ICE version will adopt the Neue Klasse design or a more conventional approach. Likely, the electric i3 Touring will be built in Munich, and the combustion car in Dingolfing, suggesting BMW sees these as distinct products.
The 3 Series Touring tradition stretches back to the E30. It has survived SUVs, crossovers, and every trend that was supposed to kill the wagon. A generation that skipped the long roof entirely would have been a strange way to honour that legacy.
For South Africa, the question isn’t really about the electric one. It’s about the ICE. We never got the G21 3 Series Touring in standard form; only the M3 Touring made it here, which says something about how BMW SA reads this market. The M5 Touring followed the same logic. So the honest position is cautious optimism: if there’s appetite for a standard 3 Series Touring, BMW SA has time to make that case internally.
Neither variant is expected before 2027 or 2028, and that timeline is exactly what’s needed to get the homologation conversation started.
