ygbsm

GT sales disappointing, 5-series wagon owners do not buy the GT but rather defect to the competition; CEO of BMWNA now says that he wishes they had not stopped selling 5er wagons in the US:

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...305239978/1246

Hello? If the marketing/ product planning people had actually listened to actual BMW wagon owners this debacle never would have happened.

sdg1871

The GT is an ugly, bloated horror show of a failed attempt to create a new niche. Hopefully, BMW will come to its senses and resume selling 5 Series sago sin the US.

luigi524td

After giving the GT a drive I found it had serious flaws that made me lose interest. Mostly rear-ward visibility or lack of it!

And, while I'm not a potential buyer for a 5 Series Touring, I think the decision to eliminate them in the US market was a mistake. And, while I'm not a marketing expert, I'm of the opinion if they moved the price point of the 5'er touring downstream a bit they would have attracted more interest and potentially more buyers. In my mind, 'station wagon' buyers are interested more in a car's utility and function and less in an ultra-loaded with options, hyper-expensive sedan, with storage.

But, then again, what do I know

sdg1871

No that sounds right

Lotus99

But most manufacturers seem to be going for this hatchback look (like the A7 that's going to debut), so it can't be the market that doesn't want them. That's partly what all these crossovers are going for too, I thought? Like the Venza? So it's probably the ugly looks of the GT and its high price tag that deter buyers.

Wagons, sadly, do seem on the way out here in NA. Volvo dropped their V70, Audi's S4 Avant's no longer, and I bet the A6 Avant will go too. Only Merc's new E350 remains if you want a nice high HP wagon, besides the Volvo XC70.

narvselius

... and in Europe wagons are getting more and more important - there was an article last year in a German car magazine about the possible demise of the sedan/limousine.

I hope you get the wagon back, guys! The F11 is a fantastic car.

M3This

S4 Avant yes .... A4 Avant no. The A6 Avant wont go anywhere either.

Here is the thing. With the S4 Avant, S6 Avant, M5 Touring, E63 Wagon ect. .... they should sell those state side but only special order, or European delivery. The standard wagons should be brought over in numbers that they think they can sell or based on demand.

I thing BMW and Audi are missing the mark here when marketing these vehicles. Touring/Avant owners are people that want the utility of a SUV, but still want sports car feel and "fun to drive" factor. They need to run commercials and try and pull some SUV owners into these wagons. I think if more people knew about them, and saw how much cargo they actually can carry they would switch over.

vkhong

You'd think focus groups comprising of current and prospective Touring owners would lead to the same present conclusion.

Lotus99

I read today that the A6 Avant won't be available from 2012 on. But this year, as special order, you can get an E wagon AMG style with over 500 HP! Wow.

People who drive SUV's really don't have a clue I think about how much fun they're missing out on, it's true. Moving from our XC70 to this car, I CANNOT believe how much of a difference there is. And the XC70 even had adjustable suspension. It really drove like an SUV, compared to this car. But then again, maybe they're not the "driver" type, and just want to putt along from A to B... Scary thought for me!

I wish they allowed at least special ordering, but they'd probably still have to have their car tested, which for small numbers, the mfr's can't justify the huge costs. It would be awesome if the North American governments could just rely on Euro testing results.

M3This

See what I have never under stood is why they wont allow special ordering of the halo wagons .... ie M5 touring here? They already have crash tested both the 5 series touring and sedan, so why not allow people to special order the touring? This should be the same thing with Audi and its S4 and RS4, RS6 models.