For those of you not feeling quite excited about the SUV mania, we have good news. Manufacturers like BMW are still producing station wagons and it seems that this won’t change anytime soon as the Bavarian automaker is currently working on its first fully-electric estate to complement its overhauled 5 Series family. What you see in the gallery below are new spy photos showing two prototypes of the upcoming i5 Touring.
The first 13 photos depict a test vehicle spied on the streets of Munich in Germany, which looks like the hotter M60 variant. Those red brake calipers hint at a more powerful electric system hiding under the skin and as far as we know, there could be a dual-motor powertrain to go along with the M badges. This isn’t going to be a full-flat M model though, but a fast luxury electric wagon sounds pretty good to us.
Gallery: BMW i5 Touring new spy photos
As far as the exterior design is concerned, we have more good news. BMW will likely use an evolutionary approach based on the current 5 Series family, which is among the best-looking mainstream vehicles available. No oversized grilles, no futuristic shapes – just a traditional long-roof design in typical Bavarian fashion.
The i5 Touring will be one of many members the overhauled 5 Series family will include. Underpinning all of them will be BMW’s CLAR architecture, which will allow the manufacturer to produce different kinds of body styles with different powertrains on the same assembly line. The combustion-powered sedan and wagon are expected to come first, followed by their electric siblings. An M5 is also in the cards with an electrified powertrain and there could also be a more practical M5 Touring.
We were starting to get worried about the future of BMW seeing how SUV-oriented the brand is becoming. Thankfully, with models such as the new 5 Series, the marque will keep its roots alive, offering stylish and modern family vehicles for everyone.
