BMW 5 Series wagon returning to Australia as electric 2024 i5 M60 Touring, price announced

The BMW 5 Series Touring will make an unexpected return to Australian showrooms for private buyers between July and September 2024 in a single, high-performance electric model grade.

Priced from $219,900 plus on-road costs – $4000 more the equivalent sedan – the electric i5 M60 xDrive will be the only version of the new 5 Series wagon sold in Australia from later this year.

It is a surprising U-turn for BMW Australia, which cut the Touring from the previous 5 Series range for its facelift in 2020 after accounting for just 4 per cent of sales in three years.

The updated 5 Series wagon did come to Australia for fleets including Victoria Police – as a highway-patrol car – but it was not sold to the public.

Since then, BMW Australia has found success with the M3 Touring wagon – which accounts for about a quarter of M3 sales – and it appears it is re-considering its move away from the body style.

It was previously expected the new 5 Series Touring would not be available here, as it did not appear in a list of markets where it would be sold that was distributed by BMW to news outlet Carscoops.

Powering the i5 M60 Touring are dual electric motors developing up to 442kW and 820Nm, good for a 3.9-second 0-100km/h acceleration time – 0.1 seconds slower than the sedan – and a 230km/h electronically-limited top speed.

An 81.2kWh battery pack (net capacity, or 84kWh gross) enables up to 506km of claimed WLTP driving range, down 10km on the sedan.

It can charge at up to 205kW on a DC socket, or 22kW AC, and all i5 models in Australia come with a five-year subscription to the Chargefox public charging network.

The Touring quotes 570 litres of boot space with the rear seats up – compared to 490L in the i5 sedan – or 1700L with the seats folded in a 40:20:40 split.

In Europe there will be less powerful rear-wheel-drive i5 Touring variants – as well as a range of petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid 5 Series wagons – but none will come to Australia.

The i5 M60 Touring shares its underpinnings, interior, technology, and most body panels with its sedan equivalent. A list of standard equipment is included at the bottom of this story.

The new model measures 5060mm long overall, 1900mm wide, 1515mm tall and 2995mm long in wheelbase – 97mm longer overall, 32mm wider, 17mm taller, and 20mm longer in wheelbase than the previous 5 Series Touring.

The wagon has identical dimensions to the sedan – in length, width, height and wheelbase.

The 2024 BMW i5 M60 Touring is due in Australian showrooms in the third quarter of this year (July to September), pending any delays.

Note: All prices above exclude on-road costs.