BMW i5 Touring Models/Series Timeline, Specifications & Photos

BMW opened a new chapter in its history book when it released the i5 Touring in early 2024 since it was the first all-electric station wagon based on the 5 Series executive sedan.

When BMW introduced the 5 Series on the market in 1972, it launched it as a sedan-only vehicle. But fast forward two decades, and in 1992, it released the first station wagon version of it. The car enjoyed great success since it allowed customers with families to enjoy a large vehicle with plenty of storage area for their belongings. Moreover, it was a premium vehicle fitted with all the comforts and amenities they craved for. So, when the German automaker announced the eighth generation of the 5 Series in May 2023, the long-roof version was expected to follow. But that happened only after almost a year, and besides the fossil fuels powered vehicles, the i5 Touring was also released. It was the first all-electric station wagon made by the German automaker.

The i5 was available in a few trim levels and with a few option packages that made it look different from one version to another. For the base version, the i5 Touring featured a kidney grille surrounded by a chromed trim and featured closed vertical slats since the car didn’t need too much cooling area. A step up in the options game and the automaker added black decorations on it, while a light stripe was available for the M-Package Pro version. The same went with the bumper, which was either body-colored or fitted with black accents from the M Package trim.

From its profile, the i5 Touring looked more like a shooting brake rather than a regular station wagon. BMW knew that its customers didn’t fill their vehicles to the headliners, so they could afford to make a raked forward tailgate at a narrower angle than on the previous 5 Series Touring. The i5 came fitted as standard with a set of 19-inch alloy wheels with an option for a set of 20 or 21-inch in size. The rear axle was fitted as standard with a pneumatic suspension and could also be optioned with active steering. Another significant detail of the 2024 i5 is that it had the same length as the all-electric i5 sedan. Previously, all station wagon versions of the 5 Series were slightly longer than their sedan brothers.

Inside, the i5 boasted an impressive luxurious cabin even for the base trim level. Atop the center stack, the automaker installed a curved wide display that was split into two parts. The one fronting the driver was for the instrument panel, while the one that sat atop the center stack was for the infotainment system and also featured touch capabilities. But people who bought station wagons were interested in the rear seats and trunk space. BMW installed a split-folding (40/20/40) bench seat in the rear that expanded the trunk space from a regular 570 liters (20.1 cu-ft.) up to 1,700 liters (60 cu-ft.) with the rear seats folded down. It is worth noting that these values were identical to those for the rest of the ICE-powered vehicles from the 5 Series Touring range.

The i5 was available with rear or all-wheel drive systems and provided sports car accelerations of under four seconds for the most potent version of it, the i5 M60 xDrive. The battery pack could be charged at 22 kW chargers on AC and up to 205 kW on DC fast chargers.