Five-door cars can be a bit polarizing. Some people prefer the traditional sedan, while others simply prefer a hatch or a wagon. I fall under the latter.
But regardless of whether you like five-doors or not, you’ve got to admit that these models do nothing but spice up any carmaker’s lineup. Just take a look at Honda and the Civic hatchback we’ll never get in the Philippines—we love the sedan, but having the hatch would’ve been extra cool, too.
This also can’t be any truer in the case of BMW. It wasn’t until midway through 2023 that the German carmaker decided to reintroduce a wagon in its lineup. And it didn’t just launch the 318i Touring and the M340i xDrive Touring—it brought in the M3 Competition xDrive Touring as well.
I was recently able to drive one of those new Bimmers. Unfortunately, it had neither an M badge nor a simple letter ‘M’ with it. Nevertheless, it was still a five-door BMW—something I had never tried out before myself. Over the weekend that I had it, I put my love for wagons aside and tried to see and understand this car for what it was, without bias. Read on to see what I’ve discovered.
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Styling
In case it still needs saying, I’m a wagon fan. There really will be some biases when we start talking about design. But let’s start with the front end: Honestly, I’m just glad that on the 318i Touring, it’s the ‘cleaner’ kind.
It still has that sizeable kidney grille on the nose, but it’s nowhere near as big as the ones on the likes of the M-badged Bimmers. The front fascia also looks very sculpted, with lines adorning the front clip and flowing further towards the sides of the vehicle.
The back, meanwhile, is as simple as it is sexy. It looks beefy with the right amount of sportiness thanks to that small spoiler and the dual exhaust tips. But save for those, there aren’t a lot of things going on here, which is good. It’s not overstyled and overdesigned like most cars in our market these days.
Interior
While the 3-Series Touring’s exterior isn’t too loud, it’s the exact opposite inside. The cabin greets you with this beautiful and striking red leather all around. There’s red on the seats, the center armrest, and the door panels—if you spend enough time inside this car, you’d start thinking the outside was red, too.
As with most BMWs, it’s a pretty busy cabin, but the layout is fairly clean. See, there’s a lot of tech here, but they’ve managed to keep most of the controls on the center console and away from your line of sight when you’re driving. To me, that makes the view a bit more relaxing when you’re behind the wheel. And despite that, all the buttons and knobs are within reach of the driver and are easy to operate—but let’s talk more about that later.
In terms of space, it’s just…okay. I can fit myself properly in the driver’s seat with enough room left behind me for the average-sized adult. In terms of comfort, however, the car impresses. The seats are soft and plush, and there are a lot of available adjustments for the driver. What I reckon isn’t too comfortable here is the middle seat at the back. Since this is a rear-driven vehicle, there’s a large tunnel underneath, and said tunnel gets in the way big-time for the fifth passenger.
In the rearmost portion of the cabin—the trunk—you get 500 liters of storage space. The second-row seats can all be folded down to open up a total of 1,510 liters of space. That’s the magic of these estate cars. You can fit so much stuff here that probably hauling medium-sized pieces of furniture would be doable.
Engine performance
At the heart of the 318i Touring is a 2.0-liter TwinPower turbopetrol that generates 154hp at 4,500-6,500rpm and 250Nm of torque at 1,300 to 4,300rpm. Peak torque comes in early, and you’ll really feel you’re in that power band at relatively lower revs because the engine feels punchy and responsive despite it being turbocharged.
The gasoline powertrain makes for spirited drives, and it makes the wagon feel sportier on the road than it looks. It’s no M car, but for a family-oriented vehicle, this is undoubtedly a lot of fun. It has paddle shifters, too, so you can use that eight-speed Steptronic automatic gearbox to your liking and make trips to the grocery store—with or without the kids—more fun than usual. And if that’s not enough, you can also select Sport mode, in case Comfort and Eco Pro won’t cut it.
It’s somewhat practical, too, as I got a consistent 10-11km/L the entire time I was driving it. Those drives consisted of a lot of highway driving and a considerable amount of time of laid-back driving in Metro Manila with moderate traffic. BMW claims the Touring can do better, and I wouldn’t argue about that. I may have been a bit hard on the gas pedal when I was driving the wagon and I didn’t use Eco mode that much, either.
Ride and handling
If there’s one thing I like about the 3-Series Touring, it’s that its steering feels very precise. It’s not meant to be sporty like its M-badged siblings, but for a station wagon, it impresses. It’s got powerful brakes and grippy Michelin Pilot Sport tires right out the factory, so I wouldn’t be surprised if people actually take this to the track as it is.
But put fast driving and supposed track days aside, this is still one very comfortable wagon. NVH levels are kept to a minimum as road and outside noise is greatly suppressed when you’re inside the cabin. It sits on 17-inch wheels shod in low-profile tires, so I’d still be careful with sizeable potholes on the road, but for the most part, the car eats up typical road imperfections with ease.
And when you’re solely in the city, the steering lightens up a bit and makes the wagon very manageable even in tight areas. Everyday use is fairly easy, too, as it’s easy to get in and out of the vehicle thanks to the large door openings. It may be a bit longer and wider than most ideal city cars, but it’s still a comfy and easy-to-drive daily.
Extra features
This may be the base variant I tested out, but it’s still got a lot of toys to go along with it. Of course, front and center and most notable of all is the large infotainment system, or the BMW Widescreen Display. It has both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, the latter of which can be used wirelessly and seamlessly at that.
The screen is angled towards the driver so it’s easier to look at, and you can navigate the head unit via the dial near the gear shifter. It just takes some time to get used to it, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll find that it’s a very handy tool. The digital instrument cluster is integrated into the same clear and wide display, and it contains all of the basic information you’ll need. My only gripe here is that the controls for the A/C are also in the display—I really just prefer manufacturers sticking to tactile buttons switches for this one.
The 3-Series Wagon also comes with a few more driver-assist aids that I appreciate, such as auto brake hold and cruise control. There’s a speed limiter there, too, which is helpful for those who often find themselves having a little too much fun behind the wheel…
Other nifty additions I need to point out here are the rear A/C vents and the divider net and tonneau cover in the trunk that come as standard.
Verdict
We don’t get enough wagons here in our market. No surprise there, as we Filipinos prefer our crossovers and our pickups and our midsize SUVs. But for the few of us who do prefer the estate cars, we have models like the 318i Touring.
Sure, it’s slim pickings, but this basically has everything you’d want in a station wagon. And if this just isn’t enough, those with the bigger need for speed (and deeper pockets) can opt for the M variant. But for me, this base five-door does it.
It looks classy, feels sporty, and has the oomph I look for in a daily driver. The only problem now is where to get that P3.89 million, because this thing sure ain’t cheap…
SPECS: 2023 BMW 318i Touring
Price: P3,890,000
Engine: 2.0-liter turbopetrol
Power: 154hp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Layout: Rear-wheel-drive
Seating: 5
Score: 9/10
More photos of the 2023 BMW 318i Touring:
