BMW rides high with sleek estate

BMW is basking in the glory of having toppled Mercedes from its perch as the top luxury marque on the Irish market. An expanding range - the 1-Series and the phenomenally successful 6-Series - has put a spring in the Bavarians' step.

The new 3-Series was acclaimed in the motoring press as an improvement on its already successful predecessor. Now, within the range, new versions are starting to arrive.

First up will be the Touring range - dare we call it an estate - due for launch here on September 17th. The 3-Series Touring range has its roots far from the usual pristine studios of a car company, with clay models and wind tunnels.

Instead, a wily BMW engineer developed the first Touring in 1984 in his spare time. His motive was his family - his wife was expecting a new baby so he needed more space and practical features, but liked driving his 3-Series. So he cut open the car, moved the C-pillar to the back, and added a centrepiece where the C-pillar had been before. He then extended the rear lid down to the tail-lights.

It took only six months to complete the car, and in April 1984 he presented his car to his superiors. The 3-Series Touring eventually went into production August 1987, largely based on the engineer's original work.

It was pure estate, but changes in the styling of premium load luggers in the 1990s brought more design influence to bear on the Touring look. Competition from the Alfa 157 Sportswagen and Audi's Avant range meant that estates in this class had to move on from boxy functionality to sleeker lines. This latest Touring is perhaps the closest BMW has come to doing it.

BMW pulled no punches at the Touring launch. "Compared to competitor models, principally from Audi, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz," said a spokesman, "both diesel and petrol BMWs are faster from 0-62 mph and 50-75 mph, more fuel efficient and less expensive to own and run. It also offers more room for rear passengers and more loading space than the A4, X-Type and C-Class."

Two variants will be available at launch, the 4-cylinder BMW 320d Touring and the 6-cylinder BMW 325i Touring. Later in the year we'll see the 4-cylinder 320i and the 6-cylinder 330i and 330d.

We tested the 2-litre diesel and 2.5-litre petrol. Of the two, the diesel makes most sense for those who use the car for actual touring and is one of the best diesels in its class. However, the sweet sound of the 6-cylinder 2.5-litre engine is hard to pass up for petrolheads.

Standard features include a 6-speed manual gearbox, air-conditioning, 16-inch alloy wheels with run-flat tyres, CD player and six airbags (including curtain head airbag covering entire side window area).

BMW is keen to play up practicality as well. As with almost every new car these days, the new 3-Series Touring is larger than its predecessor. Criticisms of the outgoing Touring's rear passenger and boot space have been addressed, it said. "The wheelbase has been increased by 35mm to give rear seat passengers more leg room."

There's also larger boot space - and a dual-opening tailgate allows easy access through the upper window opening. With the 60:40 split folding rear seats in place, 460 litres of space is now available - the extra 25 litres makes the car more spacious with its seats up than an Audi A4 or Jaguar X-Type. With the seats folded, 1,385 litres are available for larger, bulky items, trumping the Mercedes C-Class and, again, the Audi A4.

The new bodyshell is 25 per cent stiffer than its predecessor and, on the twisting roads of north Scotland, it offered impressive handling with none of the tail waggle of some estates.

Prices will start at €47,450 (€48,300 on the road) for the 320d Touring and €52,850 (€53,700 on the road) for the 325i Touring.