Forget your SUV, the BMW i5 Touring is a 601hp dose of electric practicality

AutoElectric VehiclesForget your SUV, the BMW i5 Touring is a 601hp dose of electric practicalityHoly smokes, BMW’s new electric 5 Series Touring has 601 horsepowerWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Holy smokes, BMW’s new electric 5 Series Touring has 601 horsepower

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: BMW)

BMW i5 Touring

(Image credit: BMW)

In the same week that saw Parisians vote in favour of charging SUV drivers more to park in the city centre – regardless of whether they areelectric vehiclesor not – I present to you the perfect antidote to today’s SUV obsession.

It’s the new Touring version of theBMW i5, and all you need know is it’s an electric 5 Series estate with a big, practical boot, all-wheel-drive…oh, and a whopping 601 horsepower.

Yes, really. Go for the i5 Touring in full-fat M60 flavour and the dual-motor drivetrain pumps out more power than a brand-new Porsche 911 Turbo, yet still has space for children, dogs and a trip to the garden centre.

Maximum torque is 795 Nm (586 ft-lbs in old money), the top speed is 143 mph and 62 mph is shown the door in 3.9 seconds.

(Image credit: BMW)

BMW i5 Touring

(Image credit: BMW)

BMW i5 Touring

(Image credit: BMW)

There’s a head-up display with optional augmented reality tech that overlays your view ahead with navigation instructions, sports seats as standard, automated parking controllable from your phone up to 200 metres away, 5G connectivity and YouTube streaming for keeping children entertained at the charger. Adaptive suspension and the all-important heat pump are standard-fit across the i5 Touring family.

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A plug-in hybrid with a two-litre, turbocharged four-cylinder engine will also be available, with slightly less performance than the entry-level EV model and an electric range of 52 to 60 miles. Interestingly, all variants have the same boot space – 570 litres with the rear seats up, or 1,700 with them folded down. For comparison, BMW’s massive iX SUV has 500 litres and 1,750 litres respectively, while the £150,000 BMW XM falls short with the seats up, at 527 litres, but wins back a little when they’re folded flat, with 1,820 litres total.

(Image credit: BMW)

BMW i5 Touring

(Image credit: BMW)

What I’m trying to say is, BMW’s enormous SUVs may sit higher and make their drivers feel superior, but there’s almost no difference in boot space between them and the smaller, smarter and more socially acceptable i5 Touring. I know which one I’d rather have.

Prices start at £69,040 for the i5 Touring, with the rapid M60 adding £30,000 to that figure. Both are available now. The hybrid doesn’t have a price just yet and will arrive later in the year.

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