BMW M5 Touring review

The Touring version of the seventh-generation of BMW M5, though only the third-gen Touring. Which works something like this: the E28 was M5 Touringless. The E34 had a Touring (the very first Touring in M Touring town), then the E39 had no wagon. The E61 had both a V10 engine and an estate. Then the later M5s in 2011 and ’17 didn’t get longroof variants either.

But there seems to be a light renaissance for estate versions (particularly in North America, and BMW has been surprised by the reception of the M3 Touring in Europe), so the G90 saloon gets a hatchback version.

Let’s do a little reminder of what we’ve got going on at the other end of the thing. The M5 is now a plug-in hybrid with an 18.6kWh battery and a possible 42 miles of e-range. You can charge it at up to 7.4kW on a normal home wallbox, and take advantage of tax breaks: in Ireland, the CO2 figure of the M5 Touring makes it cheaper than the M3 Touring thanks to that plug-in element, for instance.

But when that battery isn’t busy providing electric motivation, it produces just under 200bhp and 200lb ft-ish through the eight-speed StepTronic gearbox to add to the power produced by the familiar 4.4-litre biturbo V8. Total system output is 727bhp and 737lb ft of torque. Enough for a 3.6 second 0-62mph time (just 0.1 seconds slower than the saloon) and a top speed of 155mph on a limiter. Or 189mph (still limited) if you option the M Driver’s Package and have a very long driveway. Both of which are the same as the booted car.

So it’s the same as the saloon bar the back bit?

To all intents and purposes, yes. There are tweaks to the rear axle, and a weight gain of some 40-50kgs (depending on who you talk to), plus the hatchback and rear glass, rear-end treatment and a specific Touring roof spoiler. But it’s got all the power and torque, with an active rear differential and enough customisable, stepped traction aids to make it perfectly usable day-to-day.

Plus the G90 M5 generally is all-wheel drive. It’s always a little rear-biased, but you can mess with the systems to make it even more so, or indeed just stick it in two-wheel drive mode and set fire to the rear tyres if you want to make the dog cough. Knock it back a bit and it’s as stable, safe and confident as the saloon, even at ridiculous speeds. And it looks better. Though that’s a personal opinion.

So you’re saying the Touring is better than the saloon?

Looks-wise it’s subjective, but the Touring just seems to sit better. The front is exactly the same as the saloon, so there’s a new front end with some serious cooling gap, new brake-cooling vents, a 75mm stretch in the width at the front and 48mm swell in the rear arch linked by stepped sills. But they’re not just wrap-over arches or bolt-on flares over the 21-inch front and 22-inch rear wheels: these are proper wide arches that make the car look like racing bait.

There are the same M-Power rear view mirrors and various carbon options, before terminating in that Touring rear complete with the staggered quad pipes. Worth noting that you can’t get the carbon roof option for the Touring though: there wasn’t a big enough bit of carbon that met BMW’s quality controls, so it’s pan-roof only for longroof buyers. Oh, and the split rear diffuser allows for fitment of a towball for extra practical points.

Is it fun to drive?

That depends on what you’re doing, and whether you’re doing Touring things. The new M5 generally is voraciously fast, and more than capable of the numbers, and so is the Touring. Launch control is regular and impressive, grip generally very good. Set the car up via the various menus and you can find a balance between chassis dynamics and traction that disguises the near 2.5-tonne kerbweight brilliantly. It really doesn’t feel as heavy as it is.

On a sweeping, fast road, the M5 really can destroy distance in imperious fashion, and both Touring and saloon are pretty much rock solid wet or dry. But the mass is undoubtedly there, something that, weirdly, you’re probably more disposed to forgiving in the slightly bigger Touring. Although it’s not actually that much bigger: the Touring is exactly the same length as the saloon and only 6mm taller, so you’d be hard-pressed to notice when parking.

There’s all the usual new-M5 systems to play around with, from traction control to five different drivetrain options (if you option the M Driver’s Package that adds two extra to the standard three), to a myriad of other changeable options. Brake pedal feel, sound, dampers, driven wheels, steering feel… it’s all up for grabs.

And while such granular changes might seem like fun at first, you’ll be desperate to just programme the two shortcut ‘M’ buttons on the steering wheel after a while. In fact, the new M5 can feel a bit gamified, with lots of flashing lights and twiddly bits.

An example: you can define a ‘Boost’ setting by pulling the left hand paddle for more than a second to max-out all the power settings for overtakes - at which point the head-up display flashes ‘BOOST’ in capital letters and flashes like a disco. Which is essentially what we used to call ‘kickdown’ accessed by the simple expedient of pressing the throttle pedal into the carpet. It’s all a bit much, and you can definitely feel the ghosts of code that do so much to rein in the car’s weight, even if it is remarkably competent.

Still, EV-only really is a nice addition to the array of talents, and it works very nicely, right up to motorway speeds. Not the sort of thing you thought to say about an M5, but still. The Touring is actually best sampled at seven or eight tenths rather than fully flat out, and once you’ve found an acceptable middle-ground for your driving style, it works.

While the M5 generally has become a car defined by its control systems and cleverness, the M5 Touring feels just that little bit… better. More suited. And better looking than the saloon. The addition of the plug-in hybrid element, the way the car has adapted and changed itself to cope with the additional weight and regulation might not be very ‘M5’, but as a big estate it makes more sense.

And it might not have the hot rod sensibilities of something like a V10-engined E61 generation, but there’s something about the Touring style that suits the car more completely.