BMW Might Kill 5 Series Wagon in Favor of GT Crossover

[LeMansX5]

PNG, told you so.

BMW Might Kill 5 Series Wagon in Favor of GT Crossover

SPARTANBURG, South Carolina — BMW officials told Inside Line that the future of the 5 Series wagon may be in jeopardy in the U.S. The wagon has never been a strong seller, with fewer than 400 sold this year so far. And with the introduction of the 2010 5 Series GT crossover imminent, BMW may cut out the wagon entirely to clear some space in the lineup.

No official decision has been made, but BMW officials say that 5 Series wagon sales have been slow for years, noting that the company sells more M5s in the U.S. than it does 535i wagons. And during the brief period the V8-equipped 540i wagon and the Z8 roadster were both on sale (2000-'03), the oddball Z8 actually outsold the 540i.

The peak sales year for the 5 Series wagon was 2005, when Americans bought 2,351 of them.

Now the 2010 BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo unveiled at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show could put an end to the 5 Series wagon altogether in the U.S. BMW thinks it can sell 4,000-8,000 5 Series GTs annually.

Inside Line says: We'll be surprised if the 5 Series wagon makes it another year. It's a shame, too, as it looks much better than that GT thing. — Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor




BMW Might Kill 5 Series Wagon in Favor of GT Crossover

[Weasel]

Damn... will be a sad day, I like the wagons. The GT is to the wagon what the X6 is to the X5 physical design speaking... I'd just like to see that body style wagon come out as well.

[AzNMpower32]

NO

BMW, if you start ditching touring versions for a stupid, fad Crossover GT rubbish, I'm going to stop buying your cars.

[motordavid]

Makes sense to me; they are betting they can sell more than ~1,000
Crossover GTs, here in the states. I think I've seen a dozen 5 series
wagons, er.. "Touring", during our interstate trips in the past few years.

AzNMpower: BMW doesn't really care what you or I, or anyone else here
thinks.

[AzNMpower32]

Originally Posted by motordavid

AzNMpower: BMW doesn't really care what you or I, or anyone else here
thinks.

True. Just wished BMW spent more R&D money in the right places (current cars) instead of trying to become a luxury "Toyota" (every kind-type of vehicle imaginable).

[rayxi]

My wife is going to kill me.

I convinced her to wait another 2 years before getting the wagon so we bought extended warranty on the X5. She reeeeally wanted the wagon.

[motordavid]

Ray, when it's your time to toss the X, I would think you
could find a 2 yr old 5 wagon on a lot or, in an ad...

Originally Posted by rayxi

My wife is going to kill me.

I convinced her to wait another 2 years before getting the wagon so we bought extended warranty on the X5. She reeeeally wanted the wagon.

[rayxi]

We've looked before. Since the wagon is not on the best sellers list the choices are few and far between. Most are autos without X and we both are partial to stick with X.