Wagons are cool. That's just a fact.

When it comes to the Editorial Pick for 2023, there were plenty of impressive choices - spanning cheerful hatchbacks, roaring performance coupes, and of course broad selection of electric cars as well.

However, one thing stood out with the 3 Series Touring - personality.

It does begin with the wagon bodystyle. It's visually different and uncommon especially here in Singapore, but on this new generation model the additional heft at the rear actually accentuates the car's macho design.

It's also vastly practical. You get a large cargo capacity (500 litres) accessible via a large loading aperture, and the additionality functionality of being able to open the rear windscreen to quickly access items in the boot.

The rest of the car is 3 Series goodness - a premium, high quality interior packed with technology, excellent ride damping that balances comfort and sportiness well, and a capable drivetrain as well.

The result is a car that has all the space and practicality of an SUV, yet the driving dynamism and visual cohesion of something more akin to a sedan. And that balance - between sense and style, between performance and practicality - is exactly the personality of this car.

Wagons are cool. Not just as a simple bodystyle, but because in an automotive world that appears to be trending towards homogeneity, a car like the 3 Series Touring stands out by being almost stubbornly its own thing. That almost indignant insistence of its own character is what creates the gravity that draws us to it, and makes it our Editorial Pick of 2023.