The pricey M5 Touring is out of reach for most people, so what s the next best thing? We argue it s this “ the new 550e xDrive Touring. It too is a plug-in hybrid but it eschews the big V8 in favor of an inline-six. The combustion engine punches out 313 horsepower and 450 Newton-meters (332 pound-feet) of torque while the electric motor delivers an extra 197 hp.
With the power of the two combined, the large electrified wagon delivers a total system output of 489 hp. It s enough hybrid muscle for a 0 to 62 mph (100 km/h) in only 4.4 seconds. That makes it just 0.8 seconds slower than the M5 Touring. That s not too shabby for a large and heavy BMW wagon that s not even an M Performance model.
At ‚¬79,300 in Germany, the new 550e xDrive Touring is a whopping ‚¬66,700 more affordable than the G99 flagship. The massive gap between the two begins to narrow once you start adding options. Go for the M Sport Package Pro and the six-cylinder hybrid wagon starts at ‚¬84,350. Even so, we reckon it s an appealing alternative for those who can t fork out so much money for the M5 Touring.
There s another benefit to getting the 550e since it has a higher electric range. BMW says the wagon can cover 57 miles (92 kilometers) in the WLTP cycle without sipping any gasoline. The long-roof M5 will travel for 45 miles (73 kilometers) before the twin-turbo, 4.4-liter V8 engine kicks in. We should mention the 550e has a slightly bigger lithium-ion battery pack, 19 kWh vs 18.6 kWh.
On a related note, BMW is also adding a 520i to the G61 lineup as a base model and the first gas-only version. In addition, the purely electric i5 Touring can now be had in an xDrive40 flavor. Its dual motors produce a combined 394 hp and 590 Nm (435 lb-ft) for a sprint to 62 mph (100 km/h) in five and a half seconds. Flat out, it ll do 134 mph (215 km/h). The EV gets an 81.2-kWh battery with up to 323 miles (520 km) of range.
You can already find these new additions to the lineup in the German configurator.
Source: BMW
First published by https://www.bmwblog.com
