I couldn’t convince you to give the Z a chance – 60% say GT4. Perhaps my upcoming review will change your mind. Now it’s time for the brand new G99 BMW M5 Touring. That means wagon. It costs $125,000, it weighs 5,530 pounds. And it has over 700 horsepower.
That’s a lot of car, and we’ve waited a long time for it. BUT…what if I could make a wagon on my own that’s even more special for less?
The 2025 BMW M5 Touring
Truth be told, if I could swing it financially, I’d swap my M3 for an M5 Touring. Alas, the jump up is too much.
But I’d also have some concerns. I didn’t like the 5 Series inside as much as the previous generation, and this M5 does little to rectify that. There’s also the question of performance – I’m sure the car will be fast, but 5,530 pounds sounds like a problem, even for a daily. I reserve judgement until I drive one.
The good news is that the M5 comes pretty loaded. You need only add carbon fiber trim for $900, the Executive Package if you want heated seats and other goodies, and possibly Ceramic brakes. I’d make it like this (the wagon isn’t on the website yet):
Price: Around $128,000. Add an individual color and ceramic brakes, and we are so close to $150k that you can touch it with a finger nail.
That’s a lot for a BMW. The RS 6 is cheaper and prettier. But if you want a BMW wagon, there’s only one choice.
Or is there?
The 2012 BMW 328i xDrive Sports Wagon
If you just threw your cereal bowl at the screen because I’m offering up a stupid option, then I’m sorry for your screen, but hear me out on this.
Here’s an E91 3 Series Wagon currently available on Cars & Bids. It will likely go for around $10,000. With 160,000 miles and an interior ready for the crusher, I’d say it’s a good candidate to turn into an M3 Wagon.
People have done weird things to BMW wagons before, but this is a little different. Let’s keep the budget under $128,000, since that’s what an M5 costs.
Next, we need a doner E9X M3. We can go to the junk yard, but let’s get one that works, like this sedan that sold for $18,500 with 155,000 miles on it. Now we’re at $28,500, leaving us a nice, smooth $100,000 to turn this into a beautiful butterfly.
Dialing Dr. TySpeed
To make this a thing, we’ll need TySpeed to mate everything and zero out the well-used chassis on the E91. This has been done before, so I’m hardly a revolutionary, but it’s possible.
Once it is mechanically sound, J&B would need to paint it. The result is something like this, which did not sell for $40k on BaT, but likely would have at $60k. It’s even supercharged. Point is, for much less than the M5’s price, you’re in a genuine M wagon that is sure to be as fun, and just as comfortable.
It may be too late for the BMW M5 Touring
I think BMW got caught flat-footed. Demand for the M3 Wagon surprised them, but it was already too late to certify the car for US roads. The cost was too much without a regular wagon model to piggyback off of.
That has not stopped them here with the M5 Touring. I’ll be rooting for it, and I’m excited to test one out. I just hope that in the end, the fact that they brought over any wagon, instead of the wagon, is good enough.
So, what would you do? Order a new M5, or save a 328i?
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