The BMW M3 Touring still hasn’t been revealed, but it’s already setting lap records.
The first-ever production M3 wagon lapped the Green Hell in 7:35.060 in testing, shaving 10 seconds from the previous record for wagons set by the Mercedes-AMG E63 S.
It’s still 15 seconds off what the lighter M4 CSL will do, but you won’t be able to get a Labrador in the back of the CSL.
It’s also within touching distance of the marker laid down by the Tesla Model S Plaid for production electric vehicles.
The Touring will be revealed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, on the back of a protracted teaser campaign.
Available only in all-wheel drive Competition guise, the Touring packs a 3.0-litre turbocharged inline-six engine making 375kW of power and 650Nm of torque.
Unsurprisingly, previously spied M3 Touring prototypes confirm it’ll receive the BMW Curved Display like the regular M3 sedan and updated 3 Series sedan and wagon.
In these vehicles the curved dash houses a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 14.9-inch touchscreen infotainment system.
This curved dash runs the latest BMW Operating System 8 which has new map displays, an enhanced intelligent voice assistant, and for M vehicles an interface that includes an M-specific layout.
BMW’s reluctance to develop a long-roof M3 has long proved puzzling, especially considering it’s applied the M name to tuned versions of the X3, X4, X5 and X6 SUVs and has offered M5 wagons in the past.
Rival Audi has a rich heritage in high-performance wagons. Its very first RS-branded car was the RS2 Avant, which was succeeded by the first-generation RS4 that was also only offered as a wagon.
Likewise, Mercedes-Benz has always offered a wagon version of its hottest, AMG-fettled C-Class models.
When it’s revealed, the BMW M3 Touring will be the first mass-produced long-roofed M car in the model’s long and storied history. The company only ever built a prototype E46 M3 wagon in 2000.
MORE: Everything BMW M3
