It was only a couple of years ago that BMW unveiled the first-ever BMW M3 in Touring form, showcasing that there is indeed a lot of love and interest for high-speed Bimmer wagons. Just to make sure that there aren’t any loose ends among the BMW faithful, they made a speedier variant, too! The ‘CS’ nameplate is reserved only for the maddest and sportiest cars that BMW makes, and if you’re a lover of estate cars or if you just want all that oomph in a practical form factor, the first-ever BMW M3 CS Touring is finally here! The most noticeable upgrade over the ‘regular’ M3 Touring is the engine, though it’s that same, iconic BMW 3.0-litre inline-six mill.
Yet, in ‘CS’ form, it now produces a whopping 550hp and 650Nm of torque, capably putting it ahead of even the already-fast M3 Competition Touring. As such, in the M3 CS Touring, you’ll be able to easily sprint from 0-62mph in a mere 3.5 seconds, before reaching its electronically limited 186mph top speed. To get that 20hp increase over the Competition, the CS has quite a handful of clever engine management tricks up its sleeve, in addition to old-school tuning. Peel open the engine, and you’ll find the M3 CS Touring’s rigid, sleeve‑free closed‑deck crankcase, a forged lightweight crankshaft, and a redesigned cylinder head featuring a 3D‑printed core.
Relishing In Your Wagon Fantasies, With Even More Performance
Otherwise, the BMW M3 CS Touring comes with cylinder bores that are coated with a wire‑arc sprayed iron layer to minimize friction, which works in tandem with the upgraded mono-scroll, twin-turbo set-up. That turbo even had its maximum charge pressure raised to 2.1 bar, making sure that you’re able to make use of its linear power delivery. Onto more recognisable bits and bobs, that fire-breathing engine is paired to an 8-speed automatic transmission and BMW M’s xDrive all-wheel drive system, in addition to an electronically-controlled multi-plate clutch. For a more purist experience, you’d be glad to hear that it comes with a rear-biased 2WD mode.
Naturally, adding more power to a car won’t just guarantee improved performance across the board, so some tweaking here and there is in order. With that in mind, the new M3 CS Touring has bespoke chassis tuning, such as increased spring rates with the engine mounting, and you also get a custom suspension set-up, too! Precision handling and deft agility are further a given thanks to the electronically-controlled adaptive M dampers, M Servotronic steering, on top of the integrated braking system, as well as the M brakes and M forged alloy wheels. Should you need extra braking power for high-speed driving, carbon ceramic brakes will be optional.
BMW’s Sharpest, Fastest, Maddest Family-Friendly Wagon Yet
As a fan of all things lightweight, this new BMW M3 CS Touring makes great use of CFRP (aka carbon-fibre reinforced plastics) in most key components. This includes the bonnet, air intakes, front splitter, mirror caps, and rear diffuser, among others. All in all, this translates to 15kg of excess weight being removed when compared to the already-lithe M3 Competition Touring, with xDrive in tow. Step inside the M3 CS Touring, and you’ll likely notice even more CFRP, which now encompasses the bucket seats, shift paddles, bits of trim, and the centre console, among others. With the M3 CS Touring’s improved chassis rigidity, it’s even sharper to drive, too.
As you imagine, you’d be wise to expect a huge tonne of visual improvements – inside and out – made to the new BMW M3 CS Touring. Among the more noteworthy ones, at least to my eyes, include the stripped-down kidney grille, and CS-specific red accents, and inside, you’ll even find the illuminated ‘CS’ badges everywhere, as well as being able to spec the new M3 CS Touring with not one, but four exclusive paint finishes. Yet, despite its sporting credentials, this fast wagon still comes with up to 1,510 litres of cargo capacity! Alas, if you’re looking to order one, make sure you have at least £120,600 at the ready, and be quick too, as this is a limited-run model.
