We expect new headlights and new taillights, but the big changes will be under the skin.
Our spy photographers have caught two prototypes of the facelifted BMW M3 Touring, and the images reveal that the sports wagon will receive updated lighting units for its 2025 model year update. At the front, the headlights get new graphics, and the taillights are expected to do the same at the rear. But other than that, the longroof M3 will likely get no cosmetic changes when it debuts next year.
That’s because the big changes will happen under the skin, with several reports claiming that the M3 sedan and its coupe sibling, the M4, will both get a boost in power – a boost that will see entry-level M3 and M4 models likely become extinct.
BMW M boss Frank van Meel recently revealed that the Competition trim will soon be the entry point to M ownership, with base models falling away. This has already affected models like the X5 M and M8, so it fits that the M3 and M4 will follow suit. More importantly, van Meel’s proclamation lends credibility to recent rumors about future M car outputs.
These rumors claim that the BMW M2 will soon get 475 horsepower (more than the current base M3 manages at 473 hp). This would not be a smart marketing move if the base M3 was sticking around, but with it gone, the M2 can get a bump, while BMW can charge more money for both the M2 and the M3.
In addition to these rumblings, rumors of an M3 CS Touring have begun circulating. The regular M3 CS sedan gets 543 hp, and a wagon variant would likely match that. With smatterings of carbon fiber and some new parts, this car should lose some weight and be even more engrossing to drive – not that we’ll ever know.
The M3 Touring is still impossible to sell in the US because of the expense of homologating the alternative body style, but Munich is expected to give us a pretty awesome consolation prize in the form of the M5 wagon. The fact that this will arrive while the regular 5 Series won’t makes us question BMW’s inability to homologate an M3 wagon once more, but we’ll take what we can get.