BMW Won’t Make An F81 M3 Touring, So This Guy Built One

For some reason that baffles enthusiasts (but completely makes sense to number crunchers), BMW hasn’t jumped on the estate bandwagon when it comes to the M3 family.

Still, there’s a way to benefit from the closest thing to an M3 Touring, and that would be turning over to Alpina. Or, if your budget allows it, and you’re not afraid of getting your hands dirty, then you could always make your own (faux) BMW M3 Touring.

We figure the 340i xDrive would be a good starting point. After all, it can be had in RWD or AWD, and has a punchy engine. But surprisingly, the car shared here appears to have started life with a diesel engine under the hood. That’s before the owner swapped the original unit for an S55 unit, which initially made 450PS (444hp / 331kW) and 550Nm (406lb-ft) of torque.

Also Read: Six Used BMW Touring Wagons For Every Pocket And Taste

The word ‘initially’ plays a big role, as the car benefited from a Stage 2 tuning upgrade, which included ECU remapping and Eventuri intakes. The result is 530PS (523hp / 390kW), which makes this unofficial BMW M3 Touring more powerful than the M3 CS, which takes 3.9sec to reach 100km/h (62mph), and maxes out at 280km/h (173mph).

It’s unknown how fast this one-off project is, but its owner wasn’t satisfied with the M3’s engine alone. So, he went on and installed an M-Performance exhaust system, an M3 Competition Package, the hood from the M4 GTS, a special steering wheel and a KW suspension, among other work. But you can see the result for yourselves on film below, right after the jump.