The saga over 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 to M boss Frank van Meel at the Japan Mobility Show 2025 about the forbidden fruit. Essentially it came down to 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 United States. Consequently, either the G81 or G99 would have been the first M station wagon to receive a US visa. The latter was considered a better candidate due to its V8 engine and footprint. Americans tend to prefer larger cars with large-displacement engines, so the M5 Touring was seen as the safer choice.
Van Meel told BMWBLOG that the choice of the M5 Touring was “the logical decision at the time”. In other words, Munich executives expected the G99 to sell better than the G81. Bringing both carriages wasn’t part of the plan: “There’s only one chance for a first impression, so we played it safe.”
In retrospect, BMW realizes that it might have been wise to sell the M3 Touring in the US. The head of the M division admitted that they were “not brave enough” to green light the G81 for America because they had “second thoughts” about its potential success.
Interestingly, a slow-selling M3 wagon would have doomed the M5 Touring’s chances in the US. BMW would have been reluctant to allow another M with a long roof if the smaller station wagon had performed worse. Competitors Mercedes and Audi have also avoided this niche in the US by keeping the AMG C63 Estate and RS4 Avant out of the market. The M3 Touring might have filled that gap, but it’s too late now.
Of all the M vehicles currently on offer, the success of the touring models has surprised BMW the most. The company didn’t expect the body style to be so popular, especially on the M5 G99. Over the entire life cycle, a production split of 70:30 in favor of the sedan was initially planned. Since then, however, production has been adjusted 50:50 to meet higher-than-expected demand for the car.
