Torque monster 2024 BMW i5 Touring coming to Australia: full details

A wagon version of BMW’s all-electric i5 has been confirmed for Australia, arriving in the third quarter of this year.

The i5 M60 xDrive Touring lands with a chunky price tag of $219,900 before on-roads – $4000 more than the all-wheel-drive dual motor sedan equivalent which arrived last year.

The i5 range opens at $155,900 for a single motor rear drive eDrive40 model.

Highlighting BMW’s commitment to EVs, when the i5 M60 wagon arrives it’ll be the Bavarian brand’s 16th fully electric variant offered here, across seven different model series.

For Touring lovers and SUV rejectors, the big-bummed i5’s arrival shows there’s life in the wagon format yet. It’s a practical thing too, this new generation the first 5 Series to measure over five-metres long. At 5060mm, its length eclipses a Toyota LandCruiser 300.

Cargo space is 570L with five seats up, or 1700L with rear seats folded.

Other i5 Touring’s numbers are equally pleasing. Dual electric motors develop 442kW/800Nm combined (a boost button ups that to 820Nm), the 100km/h sprint’s demolished in 3.9-seconds, and WLTP driving range is a quoted 506km from the 84kWh battery.

Maximum DC charging’s 205kW, while Aussie customers score a five-year complimentary subscription to the Chargefox public charger network.

Starting to justify that hefty price tag, standard inclusions are mighty.

In an upmarket move, BMW says “interior design and comfort levels are adopted from the flagship 7 Series.” The brand’s confrontingly-visaged limo has a luxe-filled rock star of a cabin, so if the i5 has taken notes, owners are in for a pampering.

Visually, the i5’s one of the more appealing from BMW’s line-up of currently contentious designs.

Its projecting grille features BMW’s Iconic Glow contour lightning (you won’t miss it at night), while standard are 20-inch M alloys (21-inchers are no-cost options), 12.3-inch information display, 14.9-inch digital display, Individual Merino leather, Swarovski glass iDrive controller and gear selector rocker, panoramic glass roof and 17-speaker Bowers & Wilkins surround sound system.

Expect ample room to move inside, the wheelbase now stretched to 2995mm to make this new gen 5 Series Touring longest in its class.

That said, the i5 Touring’s platform is shared with combustion versions of BMW’s 5 Series, meaning packaging’s compromised versus EV-only platforms. A Hyundai Ioniq 5’s wheelbase, for example, bests the i5 Touring’s by 5mm.

The i5 Touring in flagship M60 xDrive guise gets rear-axle air suspension (with auto self-levelling), M Sport suspension, M Sport braking system, BMW’s Adaptive Chassis Professional with electronically controlled shock absorbers, Active Roll Stabilisation and Comfort.

Ergo, it should ride pretty plush.

Tech heads can embrace four surround view cameras, automated parking and manoeuvring up to 200m (can be controlled via smartphone), head-up display with augmented view, video streaming services and AirConsole in-car gaming.

Despite costing around $230,000 on the road, BMW still asks extra if you want steering wheel heating and bum warming rear seats for your i5 Touring. At least standard metallic paint options are all at no cost.

With the i5 Touring’s arrival, could we see a welcome return of wagons in Australia?

Porsche’s Taycan Cross Turismo is a kinda wagon already sold here, while Audi’s A6 Avant e-tron and VW’s ID.7 Tourer (wagon) are both expected to launch in 2024, although unconfirmed for Australia.

BMW’s own wagon back-catalogue is chockers with excellence, from the family-friendly E30 3 Series Tourings of the 1980s, to continent-crushing M5 wagons from the 1990s and 2000s. The current M3 Touring is arguably the best ‘M’ car on sale right now.

For now, the flagship i5 M60 Touring will be the only wagon grade available when it arrives in Australia in the second half of the year.

Hopefully response is strong enough to lock in a cheaper single motor eDrive40 Touring variant (as they’re getting in Europe) to drop that $219,900 price by around $60k.