BMW packs more into new 3 Touring

BMW claims to have set a new benchmark for luggage space with its stylish new 3 Series Touring wagon.

A huge seller in its native Europe, the 3 Series Touring will have its cargo area bumped up 495 litres when it launches in its domestic market in August.

Powered by a lone petrol engine and a pair of diesels in its initial wave, the 3 Series Touring will also be longer, more economical and faster than the old version.

Identical to the all-new 3 Series from the front bumper back to the B-Pillar, the redesigned Touring is all change from the rear doors back, as well as stretched to be 97mm longer than the sedan.

More than half of that is in the wheelbase, with the rear wheels sitting 50mm further back than they do in the sedan, though the car is up to 40kg lighter than its predecessor.

BMW has also given it a 40:20:40 split in the folding rear seat, which gives the five-door wagon the potential to offer a 1500-litre cargo capacity in a machine whose standard format already offers 35 litres more luggage space than the old 3 Series Touring.

The extra wheelbase has largely been dedicated to luggage space, though, because the extra 50mm translates to only 17mm more rear knee room than the sedan.

Its cargo area has been carefully crafted with Audi in mind, containing an array of hooks, compartmentalisation options, sliding rails, cargo nets and a cargo cover that can be dispatched to stow beneath the rear floor. It retains the separate rear window operation of the old car, too, and its loading lip is still low, at 620mm off the ground.

It offers the typically huge BMW range of options, including a hands-free foot-swiping arrangement to open the tailgate, but will be based around Modern, Luxury and Sport packages, though there is also an M Sport offering that rides lower and carries some bodywork and extra grip.

It will arrive initially in 328i, 320d and 330d form, with the 330d sitting smugly atop the TwinPower petrol engine as the flagship.

The six-cylinder turbodiesel outputs 10 percent more power, with 190kW, and thumps out 560Nm of torque from 1500rpm. It’s the fastest offering in the initial 3 Series Touring range, too, sprinting to 100km/h in 5.6 seconds, yet uses just 5.1 litres/100km on the combined European cycle.

It is also the heaviest, at 1600kg of dry kerb weight, which is 100kg more than the 328i.

The sole petrol offering, the four-cylinder, turbocharged 328i is marginally slower than the 330d, with its 180kW of power slipping it through to 100km/h in 6.05 seconds. It’s thirstier, too, at 6.8L/100km on the combined cycle (though that’s a 10 percent improvement over the old 325i Touring) and less flexible, thanks to its 350Nm falling more than 200Nm shy of the big-punching six.

The base engine is a 2.0-litre turbodiesel in the 320d, with 380Nm of torque and 135kW of power. It’s also the lightest at 1490kg and uses the least fuel, at 4.7L/100km, and shrinks the faster car’s 17-inch wheels down to 16-inch, shedding its standard run-flat rubber for old-school pneumatic tyres on the way.

All three cars will be available with manual transmissions (in Europe, anyway), though the optional eight-speed automatic is both faster and more economical, even if it adds another 30kg.

The family won’t stop there though, with BMW already planning to introduce a 320i, a 316d and a 318d in Europe before the end of the year.