BMW M3 Touring 3.0 Competition M xDrive (A) Review

With bulging wheel arches and a distinctinctly muscular rear end, the M3 Touring is a bold, cool sight on the road

While it might be tempting to think that this is simply a wagon version of the standard M3 sedan, it's actually not quite so straightforward.

Yes, there's the obvious difference in body style, and thus silhouette as well. Wagons are absolutely cool (I will hear ZERO arguments), and this one is no different - low slung, with the roof slightly tapering downwards towards a muscular rear end flanked by bulging wheel arches, the M3 Touring looks sleekly purposeful (especially in motion), if not quite beautiful. 

For visual coherence, I wish it wasn't quite so long a car, but all cars continue to grow in size, and this is the reality we must accept (for context, this M3 Touring has a longer wheelbase and is almost the same length as the first generation E23 7 Series).

The 500-litre boot delivers plenty of family-friendly practicality

At the rear, you of course get a hatchback boot lid that opens up to a generous 500 litres of space, expandable via the 40:20:40 folding rear seats to a maximum of 1,510 litres. I particularly like the opening rear window - less about its functional convenience, but more so the extremely satisfying thwwp sound it makes when you close it. Yes, I'm an AMSR person. Bite me.

Inside, you actually get the latest generation Operating System 8, as this car comes alongside the mid-cycle facelift of the 3 Series range. Though, you'll notice the steering wheel and centre console cluster remain from before.

The OS 8 here sports M-specific graphics (hence the slanted lines), but it's still not the most user-friendly interface 

My complaints remain - the OS 8 interface is overly dense and complicated, I don't particularly like the new dashboard design (what's wrong with circular dials?), and honestly there's probably more features than most drivers would know what to do with.

But, it looks pretty. That counts for something, right?

Also, I do want to point out that, at least on the test car, you get the standard sport seats, not the optional carbon bucket ones. There's a particular and specific part about it that I don't quite like, the way the design of the seat back creates something like a channel on either side. Might just be a me problem (I should get my back checked). 

Additive and addictive

The 3.0-litre in-line six engine pumps out 503bhp and 650Nm of torque

Under the wagon body, there are also mechanical changes. The chassis is tuned specifically to this model, featuring bespoke components unique to the Touring. There's plenty of technical jargon involved, but the key thing to know is that these adjustments are to account for the fact that this car is 1. a wagon and 2. has all-wheel drive.

The difference is palpable - compared to the standard M3, this Touring feels more comfortable and pliant. It's super composed over all kinds of roads surfaces, and hence feels like a more friendly car to use on mundane everyday commutes.

For general commuting, the M3 Touring is more comfortable than the M3 sedan

But, this is no mundane car. It's monstrously quick (actually quicker than the sedan to 100km/h), thanks to 503bhp and 650Nm of torque being sent to all four wheels via the rear-biased xDrive system.

Through corners, the car feels alive. I like that there is a fluidity to the way the car steers, and the xDrive system truly flatters you through every windy road. The car clings frenetically to the tarmac, allowing you to push even harder - the ability to point and gun is shockingly simple. For the braver drivers, a rear-wheel drive, all-nannies-off setting is also available, use at your own peril. 

Dynamically, it feels indistinguishable from the M3 sedan. And that is a remarkable achievement. The extra rear-end weight of the wagon bodystyle, together with the fact that additional bracing is required to account for the removal of the rear bulkhead, should compromise the car's overall dynamic capability.

Excellent stopping power is necessary, considering the ravage pace the M3 Touring is capable of

But, the engineers have worked their magic so that it feels every bit as capable - this is a truly authentic and uncompromised M driving experience with both breadth and depth.

Like the M3 and M4, it's not perfect - power is fed to all four wheel via an eight-speed torque converter, and while 95% of the time it works just fine, there are occasional moments where it might hesitate on a downshift.

But ultimately, the M3 Touring still consistently delivers everything you want out of it - fast, dynamic, more comfortable than you'd imagine, and just always putting a smile on your face.

Waiting for so long

The opening rear window provides quick and convenient access to the boot

It's hard to ignore the anticipation and emotional excitement that is tied into the experience of the car. Because this is more than just a sporty wagon - this is a culmination of years of yearning from fans of the M brand.

And that certainly plays into the experience - both in creating a level of expectation, but perhaps also a certain idealised, glorified perception of what the car should be.

Yes, we have waited so long for it, and it delivers. Unsurprisingly, it's great. It exceeds expectations, and expectations are high.

The Touring simply adds more practicality, usability and character to the stellar M3 package

Regardless how you feel about the way it looks, the current generation G80 M3 is a fundamentally great performance sedan. Potently quick, grips like hell through bends, and also much more refined and usable daily than before.

The M3 Touring is only additive - it's more practical, more usable daily, and has more character. It's a better overall car, fully justifying its price increase over the standard M3.

Is this the best M car? Perhaps not. I dearly and unabashedly adore the M2 Competition, a car that I think is an instant icon. 

The car affords you ample configurability, so you can set up the exact dynamic package you want

Is this the most well-rounded and most all-encompassing M car? I think it is. It does everything you want it to do. Driven hard on public roads, it is equally as dynamically captivating as any M3 or M4. Driven lightly, it is as practical and sensible as a 320d Touring (pitiful fuel consumption aside).

It's not perfect. The design is likely still divisive, the price tag will induce slight nausea, OS 8 is not my favourite, and I have issues with the seats (or I have back issues). But, all these criticisms are less about this Touring specifically, but rather the broader contemporary BMW toolkit. For what it is, the M3 Touring is so wholly capable, exciting and desirable that I could forgive all that.

The M3 Touring exceeds expectations, and is perhaps the most well-rounded M car you can buy today

Stuck in a traffic jam on Bartley viaduct on the way to the office, I'm struck by how joyous the experience of driving this M3 Touring has been. And not just when hooning it around a set of corners or putting your foot down when the light goes green (plenty of fun, no doubt). 

It is even more joyous when you're just trundling around sensibly, boot loaded with the random paraphernalia of daily monotony, when other keen-sighted drivers look curiously your way, or give you a wave or thumbs up to indicate that shared petrolhead appreciation for the car.

That is the Touring effect, and why we've been waiting so long for BMW to do it. The M3 Touring has absolutely been worth the wait. All 37 years of it.

See just how this BMW M3 Touring can thrill here in our video review as well!