The saga regarding whether BMW would bring the M3 Touring to America is long over. Officially, the G81 will never be sold in the United States. But why is that? BMWBLOG spoke with M boss Frank van Meel at the 2025 Japan Mobility Show about the forbidden fruit. Essentially, it all came down to deciding which model would make the stronger first impression: G81 or G99?
BMW had previously built an M5 Touring, but the V10-powered E61 was never sold in the U.S. Consequently, either the G81 or the G99 would have been the first M wagon to get a U.S. visa. The latter was deemed the better candidate thanks to its V8 engine and footprint. Americans tend to prefer bigger cars with large-displacement engines, so the M5 Touring was seen as the safer bet.
Van Meel told BMWBLOG that choosing the M5 Touring was “the logical decision to make at the time.” In other words, Munich’s higher-ups expected the G99 to sell better than the G81. Bringing both wagons wasn’t part of the plan: “There’s only one chance for a first impression, so we took a safe bet.”
In hindsight, BMW realizes it might have been smart to sell the M3 Touring in the U.S. The M division boss admitted they were “not brave enough” to greenlight the G81 for America because they had “second thoughts” about its potential success.
Interestingly, a slow-selling M3 wagon would’ve doomed the M5 Touring’s chances in the U.S. BMW would have been reluctant to approve another long-roof M if the smaller wagon had underperformed. Rivals Mercedes and Audi have also avoided this niche in the U.S. by keeping the AMG C63 Estate and RS4 Avant out of the market. The M3 Touring might have filled that void, but it’s too late now.
Of all the M cars currently on sale, the Touring models’ success has surprised BMW the most. The company didn’t expect the body style to be this popular, especially in the M5 G99’s case. It initially projected a 70:30 production split in favor of the sedan over the entire life cycle. However, it has since adjusted output to a 50:50 ratio to meet stronger-than-expected demand for the wagon.
