BMW’s first electric 3 Series wagon won’t be offered in the US, as we first reported in September, but Europe gets it within a year. Based on what we’re hearing, Munich will start building the BMW i3 Touring (NA1) in July 2027, nearly a year after the i3 sedan (NA0) started down the same line, with i3 30, i3 40 xDrive and i3 50 xDrive versions at launch and an i3 M60 Touring later.
Prototypes have been testing in public since July, most recently at the Nürburgring in October, with camouflage only at the nose and tail. The wagon takes nearly everything from the sedan, so the open questions sit behind the B-pillar: how much range the longer body costs, and whether BMW keeps a feature it already took away from the 5 Series Touring.
Everything Up To The B-Pillar Comes From The Sedan
BMW confirmed the wagon at the i3 sedan’s March 18 premiere, when then-CEO Oliver Zipse closed the show with a Touring silhouette. The front end matches the sedan’s, Neue Klasse lighting and kidney treatment included, and the slim taillights appear to carry over too. The October prototypes wear the M Sport Package, so expect the same standard and M Sport looks the sedan offers.
What changes is the roof and the tailgate. On the Black Sapphire prototype we saw in July, the roofline slopes toward the taillights instead of ending square, and the tail looks longer and more raked than BMW’s teaser suggested. It’s a good-looking wagon, but a tail that leans forward usually takes room from the top of the cargo bay, so the cargo figure is the number we most want from BMW.
Will The i3 Touring Keep Its Opening Rear Glass?
Every 3 Series Touring since the E46 in 1999 has let you open the rear window without lifting the tailgate. None of the i3 Touring prototypes has shown the small handle and button below the wiper, and the G61 5 Series Touring already dropped the feature, which BMW put down to aerodynamics. BMW isn’t ruling it out. When Auto Express asked Neue Klasse boss Mike Reichelt about it, he smiled, nodded and said “We will see.” The feature has survived a close call before: in 2019, 3 Series product manager Stephan Horn said BMW had to argue to keep it on the G21, warning that “we need customers to know about it, or it will die.”
Going by the prototypes, we’re skeptical, though the release could be hidden or simply not fitted yet. If BMW keeps it, the gas-powered 3 Series Touring should get it too.
Expect The Sedan’s Motors, Batteries And 400-kW Charging
Our sources say outputs carry over unchanged from the sedan, which currently comes in two versions in Europe:
- i3 40 xDrive: 82.8-kWh battery, 275 kW (369 hp), 520 Nm (384 lb-ft), up to 710 km (441 miles) WLTP, 300-kW peak DC charging
- i3 50 xDrive: 108.7-kWh battery, 345 kW (463 hp), 645 Nm (476 lb-ft), up to 912 km (567 miles) WLTP, 400-kW peak DC charging
Both charge from 10 to 80 percent in about 21 minutes. The i3 30 is expected to be a new entry point below them, likely with a single motor and a smaller battery, though BMW hasn’t detailed it for either body style. The extra weight and the longer roof should cost some range, so expect WLTP ratings below the sedan’s 912 km. BMW hasn’t published Touring figures.
The i3 M60 Touring comes later. BMW hasn’t confirmed the sedan’s output, but the iX3 M60 xDrive gets 450 kW (603 hp) from the hardware the i3 M60 should share. A full electric M3 Touring, possibly coded ZA1, is expected later this decade.
The Cabin Carries Over, But Cargo Space Is Still Unknown
Inside, expect the sedan’s cabin unchanged: Panoramic Vision across the base of the windshield, a 17.9-inch touchscreen running BMW Operating System X, and no rotary iDrive controller. The small front trunk, mostly a home for the charging cable, should carry over too. What about the trunk space? The current G21 3 Series Touring holds 500 liters (17.7 cubic feet) with the seats up and 1,510 liters (53.3 cubic feet) folded, which is the realistic target. The i5 Touring is the encouraging precedent, with the same 570 and 1,700 liters (20.1 and 60.0 cubic feet) as the gas 5 Series Touring. The i3 sedan is less encouraging: 420 liters, smaller than the gas 3 Series sedan’s.
When Will BMW Reveal The i3 Touring, And What Will It Cost?
BMW hasn’t announced a reveal date, but our sources point to a world premiere in spring 2027, a few months before production starts. The wagon will share the sedan’s line in Munich, which BMW confirmed in April, and San Luis Potosà in Mexico is expected to build it too. In Germany, the i3 sedan starts at €59,900 for the 40 xDrive and €65,900 for the 50 xDrive, and the Touring should cost a little more.
Why The i3 Touring Won’t Be Sold In America
The US decision isn’t a surprise. Wagons have never sold in volume in America, the M5 Touring aside, and a cooling EV market makes a niche electric one a harder sell still. A US-bound 3 Series wagon will likely need a six-cylinder, either a G51 M350 Touring with the B58 or the next M3 Touring (G88), which isn’t due before 2029.
That G51 is the other wagon to watch. BMW hasn’t confirmed it, but it called the March teaser a “technology open announcement,” and the combustion 3 Series Touring is reportedly coming from Dingolfing in 2028 with gas and plug-in hybrid power on the CLAR platform. It should look almost identical to the i3 Touring and share very little underneath. In America, the closest thing to a Neue Klasse wagon will be an iX3.
First published by https://www.bmwblog.com
