BMW showed the new “G20" BMW 3 Series , and it looked fine as a sedan, but today the Munich-based automaker revealed the wagon version, and it looks more than just fine. It looks lovely. Just look at this beauty.
As a general rule, wagons are the best kinds of cars. They look better than sedans, and they offer the cargo volume of SUVs, but without all the top-heaviness and handling compromises. So it won’t surprise you that I’m 100 percent onboard with the new BMW 3 Series Touring, codenamed “G21.”
I mean, how could I not be? Just look at this thing:
That whole tail end looks great—from the dual exhaust outlets at the base of the bumper, to the upright-ish rear hatch, to the skinny and aggressive taillights, to those nicely styled rear side windows featuring the classic .
There are even standard roof rails, and while I’m not sure it adds a whole lot to the styling, I would love to see this 3 Series carving canyon roads with a few kayaks on top. Just to show off this thing’s practicality. Because practicality is hot.
Engine options are essentially the same as those of the sedan, which is to say that there’s a 3.0-liter inline six making around 374 horsepower (and rocketing the wagon to 62 mph in 4.5 seconds!), there are a couple of 2.0-liter turbo fours making roughly 180 and 260 ponies, and there are some diesels engine options, too. A plug-in hybrid is coming in 2020, it should also be mentioned.
Those are European specs, should you be curious. compare U.S. vs EU, mostly that our top 340i gets around 380 HP, but, of course, that’s all a little academic. BMW is making no clear statement that the wagon is coming to America, and notes that “The new BMW 3 Series Touring will go on sale in Europe, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand.” Absent from that list: the United States of America.
Like the G20 sedan, the G21 wagon gets suspension upgrades like lift-related dampers, and BMW says it’s lighter and stiffer. But what really matters is how much stuff you can fit into this thing, and in that area, the company says the new long-roof outdoes its predecessor. Compared to the outgoing 3 Series wagon, the G21 is three inches longer, 0.6 inches wider, and about 0.4 inches taller, with a 1.6-inch longer wheelbase, a 1.7-inch wider front track, and a 0.8-inch wider rear track.
The result, BMW says, is more space for occupants, and, crucially, more cargo space. Per BMW’s :
The new BMW 3 Series Touring’s boot can hold 500 litres of gear – five litres more than its predecessor – when all the seats are occupied, and directly usable primary load capacity is up by 32 litres. Load capacity can be increased to a maximum of 1,510 litres by flipping down the sections of the 40 : 20 : 40 split-folding rear backrest.
Horsepower numbers and suspension improvements are nice, but in the wagon world, the hot, steamy specs are the cargo capacity figures. So it’s nice to see that there’s more room in the attractive new 3 Series wagon.
BMW says the car will hit the market in September, though it’s too bad there’s a good chance this gorgeous machine I hope I’m wrong, but I’ve reached out to BMW to find out.