BMW i5 Touring eDrive40 M Sport Review
12 Sep 2024|8,667 views
What We Like
Understatedly unique (and handsome) styling
Extra serving of practicality and space
Perfect balance of comfort and sportiness
Remarkable breadth of capabilities
Effortless air of quiet luxury
Effectively has no rivals today
What We Dislike
Pricey even by the standards of today's COE climate
Can sometimes feel like a bit too much car for Singapore's roads
One imagines the first-ever BMW i5 Touring has a lot to live up to, whether beheld in the eyes of a casual car enthusiast or a fan of the brand.
Wagons are already especially loved by the former bunch: Appreciated for the fact that they offer more space without sacrificing handling/compromising the driving experience, yet also simply loved for how sleek they tend to look. Any association with BMW's storied 5 Series nameplate raises the bar even further.
Double the pressure, then - but also double the joy and satisfaction, if expectations are duly met. Thankfully, BMW's first ever electric executive wagon is a tour de force for the brand that nails down most of its beloved hallmarks - even if a couple of the current-generation caveats remain.
Quiet head-turner: Though bulkier than the i5, the i5 Touring's sleek two-box profile - aided by its slim D-pillars - arguably makes it the better-looking twin
Part of the i5 Touring's visual charm lies in its 'sleeper' status.
If you simply saw its nose jutting out from a row of parked cars, you'd pass it off as any other 5 Series or i5 (albeit one dressed up in the more aggressive M Sport trim). What this means is the standard bling of mid-sized modern BMWs, with those LED-outlined kidney grilles up front.
If you know it, you know it: The i5 Touring may look similar to the normal i5/5 Series from the front, but gets restyled taillights along with an additional glasshouse at the rear
Yet step closer to behold the i5 Touring in its five-metre glory and the differences will become clearer as its low-slung, two-box shape comes into full view. Additional glasshouse aside, the i5 Touring even gets its own bespoke touch at the rear.
Note how the tail lights wrap themselves upwards and around the rear corners into a hockey stick-like visual that, in its fuller embrace of the firm's signature L-shapes, marks a nice callback to older BMWs.
Offered exclusively in the M Sport trim, the car also rides on 20-inch wheels with M Sport aerodynamic rims, and gets a smattering of black gloss all over
It's a deceptively small fix for the flattened-out taillights on the sedan that, on top of the wagon profile, immediately elevates the i5 Touring visually over its three-box siblings. One wonders why BMW didn't just apply this throughout the range - but then the i5 Touring gets to confidently call itself the most handsome of the bunch.
It's worth noting that unlike both its combustion-powered and electric sedan siblings, the M Sport trim is the only one in which the i5 Touring is offered locally, meaning it rides on mean-looking 20-inch wheels, and gets a dollop of black gloss underlining its sides, and plastered onto its front and rear bumpers.
Knock the i5 Touring's second row down and it morphs into a sleek cargo container, with 1,700 litres of space on offer
The first instinct is to look at the i5 Touring's increase in boot capacity over the i5's in isolation.
But the real allure necessitates pulling the levers and watching the second row collapse forwards - following which the i5 Touring morphs into a sleek cargo container, its hauling capacity reaching its maximum potential of 1,700 litres.
Space already wasn't lacking in the rear bench of the sedan, but the i5 Touring scores just a bit better with its flatter roofline, and with extra niceties such as the two-piece sunshades on its rear windows. The only downside? The fact that the i5 Touring is based off a rear-wheel drive ICE car platform means the middle passenger still has to do battle with a huge transmission tunnel.
The window seats are best in the rear of the i5 Touring, with the amount of head and legroom on offer, as well as those two-piece window shades. With four separate USB-C ports at the rear, no one should be complaining about their phone batteries dying either
The front of the i5 Touring's cabin is virtually inseparable from those in the i5/5 Series Sedan - but that's no bad thing.
Despite the tech-ification of modern BMW cabins across its entire range, differentiating the insides of mid-sized cars like the i5 Touring from those in lesser siblings doesn't require the assistance of a BMW Genius. This is a mid-sized luxury wagon whose interior is fittingly impressive.
Even though smaller BMWs have gotten a good dose of digitalisation themselves, cars like the i5 Touring still make their full-fledged luxury status clear with an upsized serving of tech and luxury
The sumptuous quilted front seats themselves, finished in a leather-mimicking vegan upholstery, already serve as a good starting point. But there are other telltale signs: Larger screens (spread vibrantly across the car's Curved Display panel), a more generous spread of soft-touch materials, the car's crisp Harman Kardon speaker system, and of course, the bedazzling Interaction Bar that cuts a technicolour path through the dashboard, running from door to door.
The same gripe remains, though: A car's hazard light button should be dead-easy to operate, but here, it's buried both within the Interaction Bar and under the unintuitiveness of touch operation - requiring a rather forceful depress.
Running BMW OS 8.5, the car's 14.9-inch infotainment touchscreen still maintains a good proportion of permanently-embedded shortcut buttons. As with the 5 Series and i5, however, the burying of the hazard light button within the Interaction Bar makes operation unintuitive
With the i5 Touring specced as fully as modern BMWs come, it even gets a sharp head-up display with clear and configurable layouts. As a quick note, BMW's lightly updated OS 8.5 does a commendable job of decluttering the expanse of sub-menus with its customisable, zero-layer principle.
Still, it's likely you'll spend most of the time mirroring your smartphone with the car's wireless CarPlay and Android Auto anyway. Permanently embedded touch controls further aid the ease of accessing your most commonly accessed functions, such as the home page, and the dual-zone air-conditioning.
For everyday commutes, the i5 Touring driving experience feels like it has been calibrated to perfection. It's supremely pleasant to be behind the wheel of no matter the speed, and ultimately leaves you awestruck by its wide breadth of capabilities.
Treat it with a bit more gentleness and it's a big, cushy luxury transport. You expect it to be a touch too much on the firm side, given its M Sport suspension, but the i5 Touring rolls silently and smoothly over road imperfections like an unperturbed champ. Also praiseworthy is the deftness with which it dampens down road noise (especially tyre roar) at highway speeds.
Yet when the caffeine from your post-lunch coffee has hit and you're feeling a devilish grin slowly spread across your face, the i5 Touring rises to the occasion with a finger's snap.
The i5 Touring's breadth of capabilities - from sublime comfort to surprising sharpness - is one of its biggest draws
2.2 tonnes - plus your passengers - is quite a lot of weight to mask, so it's remarkable how well the i5 Touring does it with how sharp and controlled its handling is. In recent BMW fashion, the steering tends a tad towards lightness even in 'Sport' mode, but as a counterpoint, is also alert and quick. There's also a sense of tightness and effortless fluidity to the way it flows in and out of bends.
Its well-weighted brakes are another highlight - made even more remarkable given how seamless the transition is between the motor retardation and actual callipers. In many instances, it's easy to forget that you're behind the wheel of such a large car.
Put the car into Sport - and watch its Interaction Bar glow blue and red - and you'll be able to unleash the full power 400Nm of torque from its rear-mounted electric motor
The amount of power given to the i5 Touring in this rear-wheel driven eDrive40 variant is a sweet spot too, reaching the sorts of highs that could match a straight-six engine, except with far more explosive acceleration off the line. If you're feeling even cheekier still, the 'Boost' paddle behind your signal stalk is your reminder that you're in an M Sport car with the ability to unlock a bit more power for up to 10 seconds.
As for driving range, the i5 Touring isn't too shabby on the efficiency front, too, despite its weight. Our driving patterns would have easily returned more than 450km from a full charge.
The most beloved BMWs have managed to thread an uninterrupted line through style, everyday usability, comfort, sportiness as well as luxury. The i5 Touring easily hits all those notes in its silently unique way. It feels like the very embodiment of quiet luxury; excellent both as a wagon, and as an electric member of the 5 Series family.
Furthermore, given that Mercedes-Benz hasn't released an EQE Estate, another thing worth noting is that the i5 Touring effectively stands peerless right now (that is, unless and until Audi's recently-unveiled A6 Avant e-tron eventually arrives).
But even if those cars existed today, one suspects that the real competition may actually lie in-house. The combustion-powered 520i currently starts at a good $60,000 less, while even the 'base' i5 eDrive40 Sedan is more than $30,000 cheaper. Even for the well-heeled buyer, $30,000 is a lot of money.
Calling the i5 Touring the ultimate 5 Series would be hyperbolic - but it doesn't feel like a stretch to say this is the most special and most magnetic member of the 5er family you can buy today
Here's where context is important.
That the i5 Touring is specced solely in the M Sport trim should be a clear indicator of how BMW is positioning the car: As the range-topper of the 5 Series family today (at least barring the proper M-tuned cars). A fairer point of reference right now would be the i5 eDrive40 M Sport, which puts the comparison down solely to body style and not spec. In this light, the i5 Touring's additional premium narrows down to a far more palatable $10,000.
The reality is that barring some unexpected shift in buying tendencies, the i5 Touring - like the 330i Touring that we got last year - is still likely to occupy a niche. Still, this is a car for those who, well, simply get it. Calling it the ultimate 5 Series would be hyperbolic, but for all of the things it does so well - and for all the assured subtlety with which it does it - this does feel like the most special of the lot you could possibly buy. It's thus also the most magnetic.
Don't forget to check our reviews out of the other members of the 5 Series family while you're here!
And here are our takes too on Merc's latest E-Class!
Boardroom battle: 5 Series vs E-Class!
What We Like
Understatedly unique (and handsome) styling
Extra serving of practicality and space
Perfect balance of comfort and sportiness
Remarkable breadth of capabilities
Effortless air of quiet luxury
Effectively has no rivals today
What We Dislike
Pricey even by the standards of today's COE climate
Can sometimes feel like a bit too much car for Singapore's roads
One imagines the first-ever BMW i5 Touring has a lot to live up to, whether beheld in the eyes of a casual car enthusiast or a fan of the brand.
Wagons are already especially loved by the former bunch: Appreciated for the fact that they offer more space without sacrificing handling/compromising the driving experience, yet also simply loved for how sleek they tend to look. Any association with BMW's storied 5 Series nameplate raises the bar even further.
Double the pressure, then - but also double the joy and satisfaction, if expectations are duly met. Thankfully, BMW's first ever electric executive wagon is a tour de force for the brand that nails down most of its beloved hallmarks - even if a couple of the current-generation caveats remain.
Quiet head-turner: Though bulkier than the i5, the i5 Touring's sleek two-box profile - aided by its slim D-pillars - arguably makes it the better-looking twin
Part of the i5 Touring's visual charm lies in its 'sleeper' status.
If you simply saw its nose jutting out from a row of parked cars, you'd pass it off as any other 5 Series or i5 (albeit one dressed up in the more aggressive M Sport trim). What this means is the standard bling of mid-sized modern BMWs, with those LED-outlined kidney grilles up front.
If you know it, you know it: The i5 Touring may look similar to the normal i5/5 Series from the front, but gets restyled taillights along with an additional glasshouse at the rear
Yet step closer to behold the i5 Touring in its five-metre glory and the differences will become clearer as its low-slung, two-box shape comes into full view. Additional glasshouse aside, the i5 Touring even gets its own bespoke touch at the rear.
Note how the tail lights wrap themselves upwards and around the rear corners into a hockey stick-like visual that, in its fuller embrace of the firm's signature L-shapes, marks a nice callback to older BMWs.
Offered exclusively in the M Sport trim, the car also rides on 20-inch wheels with M Sport aerodynamic rims, and gets a smattering of black gloss all over
It's a deceptively small fix for the flattened-out taillights on the sedan that, on top of the wagon profile, immediately elevates the i5 Touring visually over its three-box siblings. One wonders why BMW didn't just apply this throughout the range - but then the i5 Touring gets to confidently call itself the most handsome of the bunch.
It's worth noting that unlike both its combustion-powered and electric sedan siblings, the M Sport trim is the only one in which the i5 Touring is offered locally, meaning it rides on mean-looking 20-inch wheels, and gets a dollop of black gloss underlining its sides, and plastered onto its front and rear bumpers.
Knock the i5 Touring's second row down and it morphs into a sleek cargo container, with 1,700 litres of space on offer
The first instinct is to look at the i5 Touring's increase in boot capacity over the i5's in isolation.
But the real allure necessitates pulling the levers and watching the second row collapse forwards - following which the i5 Touring morphs into a sleek cargo container, its hauling capacity reaching its maximum potential of 1,700 litres.
Space already wasn't lacking in the rear bench of the sedan, but the i5 Touring scores just a bit better with its flatter roofline, and with extra niceties such as the two-piece sunshades on its rear windows. The only downside? The fact that the i5 Touring is based off a rear-wheel drive ICE car platform means the middle passenger still has to do battle with a huge transmission tunnel.
The window seats are best in the rear of the i5 Touring, with the amount of head and legroom on offer, as well as those two-piece window shades. With four separate USB-C ports at the rear, no one should be complaining about their phone batteries dying either
The front of the i5 Touring's cabin is virtually inseparable from those in the i5/5 Series Sedan - but that's no bad thing.
Despite the tech-ification of modern BMW cabins across its entire range, differentiating the insides of mid-sized cars like the i5 Touring from those in lesser siblings doesn't require the assistance of a BMW Genius. This is a mid-sized luxury wagon whose interior is fittingly impressive.
Even though smaller BMWs have gotten a good dose of digitalisation themselves, cars like the i5 Touring still make their full-fledged luxury status clear with an upsized serving of tech and luxury
The sumptuous quilted front seats themselves, finished in a leather-mimicking vegan upholstery, already serve as a good starting point. But there are other telltale signs: Larger screens (spread vibrantly across the car's Curved Display panel), a more generous spread of soft-touch materials, the car's crisp Harman Kardon speaker system, and of course, the bedazzling Interaction Bar that cuts a technicolour path through the dashboard, running from door to door.
The same gripe remains, though: A car's hazard light button should be dead-easy to operate, but here, it's buried both within the Interaction Bar and under the unintuitiveness of touch operation - requiring a rather forceful depress.
Running BMW OS 8.5, the car's 14.9-inch infotainment touchscreen still maintains a good proportion of permanently-embedded shortcut buttons. As with the 5 Series and i5, however, the burying of the hazard light button within the Interaction Bar makes operation unintuitive
With the i5 Touring specced as fully as modern BMWs come, it even gets a sharp head-up display with clear and configurable layouts. As a quick note, BMW's lightly updated OS 8.5 does a commendable job of decluttering the expanse of sub-menus with its customisable, zero-layer principle.
Still, it's likely you'll spend most of the time mirroring your smartphone with the car's wireless CarPlay and Android Auto anyway. Permanently embedded touch controls further aid the ease of accessing your most commonly accessed functions, such as the home page, and the dual-zone air-conditioning.
For everyday commutes, the i5 Touring driving experience feels like it has been calibrated to perfection. It's supremely pleasant to be behind the wheel of no matter the speed, and ultimately leaves you awestruck by its wide breadth of capabilities.
Treat it with a bit more gentleness and it's a big, cushy luxury transport. You expect it to be a touch too much on the firm side, given its M Sport suspension, but the i5 Touring rolls silently and smoothly over road imperfections like an unperturbed champ. Also praiseworthy is the deftness with which it dampens down road noise (especially tyre roar) at highway speeds.
Yet when the caffeine from your post-lunch coffee has hit and you're feeling a devilish grin slowly spread across your face, the i5 Touring rises to the occasion with a finger's snap.
The i5 Touring's breadth of capabilities - from sublime comfort to surprising sharpness - is one of its biggest draws
2.2 tonnes - plus your passengers - is quite a lot of weight to mask, so it's remarkable how well the i5 Touring does it with how sharp and controlled its handling is. In recent BMW fashion, the steering tends a tad towards lightness even in 'Sport' mode, but as a counterpoint, is also alert and quick. There's also a sense of tightness and effortless fluidity to the way it flows in and out of bends.
Its well-weighted brakes are another highlight - made even more remarkable given how seamless the transition is between the motor retardation and actual callipers. In many instances, it's easy to forget that you're behind the wheel of such a large car.
Put the car into Sport - and watch its Interaction Bar glow blue and red - and you'll be able to unleash the full power 400Nm of torque from its rear-mounted electric motor
The amount of power given to the i5 Touring in this rear-wheel driven eDrive40 variant is a sweet spot too, reaching the sorts of highs that could match a straight-six engine, except with far more explosive acceleration off the line. If you're feeling even cheekier still, the 'Boost' paddle behind your signal stalk is your reminder that you're in an M Sport car with the ability to unlock a bit more power for up to 10 seconds.
As for driving range, the i5 Touring isn't too shabby on the efficiency front, too, despite its weight. Our driving patterns would have easily returned more than 450km from a full charge.
The most beloved BMWs have managed to thread an uninterrupted line through style, everyday usability, comfort, sportiness as well as luxury. The i5 Touring easily hits all those notes in its silently unique way. It feels like the very embodiment of quiet luxury; excellent both as a wagon, and as an electric member of the 5 Series family.
Furthermore, given that Mercedes-Benz hasn't released an EQE Estate, another thing worth noting is that the i5 Touring effectively stands peerless right now (that is, unless and until Audi's recently-unveiled A6 Avant e-tron eventually arrives).
But even if those cars existed today, one suspects that the real competition may actually lie in-house. The combustion-powered 520i currently starts at a good $60,000 less, while even the 'base' i5 eDrive40 Sedan is more than $30,000 cheaper. Even for the well-heeled buyer, $30,000 is a lot of money.
Calling the i5 Touring the ultimate 5 Series would be hyperbolic - but it doesn't feel like a stretch to say this is the most special and most magnetic member of the 5er family you can buy today
Here's where context is important.
That the i5 Touring is specced solely in the M Sport trim should be a clear indicator of how BMW is positioning the car: As the range-topper of the 5 Series family today (at least barring the proper M-tuned cars). A fairer point of reference right now would be the i5 eDrive40 M Sport, which puts the comparison down solely to body style and not spec. In this light, the i5 Touring's additional premium narrows down to a far more palatable $10,000.
The reality is that barring some unexpected shift in buying tendencies, the i5 Touring - like the 330i Touring that we got last year - is still likely to occupy a niche. Still, this is a car for those who, well, simply get it. Calling it the ultimate 5 Series would be hyperbolic, but for all of the things it does so well - and for all the assured subtlety with which it does it - this does feel like the most special of the lot you could possibly buy. It's thus also the most magnetic.
Don't forget to check our reviews out of the other members of the 5 Series family while you're here!
And here are our takes too on Merc's latest E-Class!
Boardroom battle: 5 Series vs E-Class!
Car Information
BMW i5 Touring Electric eDrive40 M Sport 81.2 kWh (A)
$417,888
CAT B|Electric|4.8km/kWh
Horsepower
250kW (335 bhp)
Torque
400 Nm
Acceleration
6.1sec (0-100km /hr)
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- Exterior
- Interior
- The Drive
- Conclusion
