Anyone Surprised? The New BMW M3 Touring Reportedly Won’t Offer A Manual Gearbox

For the first time in the M3’s history, BMW will offer a station-wagon version of the performance model under the ‘Touring’ moniker.

However, it won’t launch in North America, where the company doesn’t even sell the regular 3-Series wagon (that’s one of the main reasons we won’t get the M3 Touring either), while we’ll will have to wait along with the rest of the world until late 2022 to see it in final production form.

Read Also: See How The Old And New BMW M3 Sedan And M4 Coupe Compare

While BMW has yet to confirm specifications, BMWBlog citing undisclosed sources reports that it won’t offer a proper clutch pedal and push-it-yourself gearbox nor a rear-wheel drive version. Instead, the report says, it will be available exclusively with the 8-speed automatic transmission and M-tuned xDrive all-wheel drive system.

That’s not the kind of news that traditional enthusiasts want to hear, but truth be told, this configuration is hardly a surprise, considering there isn’t much of a demand in wagons with rear-wheel drive and a stick shift.

It’s very likely then that the first-ever M3 Touring will launch exclusively in Competition spec, which packs a tweaked version of the twin-turbo 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine producing 503 HP (510 PS / 375 kW) and 479 lb-ft (650 Nm) paired to a standard 8-speed automatic driving all-four wheels.

This same setup allows the M3 Sedan Competition and M4 Coupe Competition to sprint to 60 mph (96 km/h) in just 3.8 seconds (4.1 sec for the 473 HP regular models). However, due to the added weight, the long-roof variant might be a tad slower, adding perhaps one or two tenths of a second to the acceleration time. Top speed, on the other hand, should be identical, with a maximum 155 mph (250 km/h) achieved, or 180 mph (290 km/h) when ordering the new M3 Touring with the optional M Driver’s Pack.