On the heels of the release of the 2011 5 Series at the Geneva Auto Show, BMW has now unveiled the 2011 5 Series Touring (wagon). Designed for the European market and possibly not scheduled to arrive in North America at all (due to the release of the similar 5 Series GT), the Touring model doesn’t change much from the 5er, other than adding functionality. Trunk space is rated at 19.8 cu.-ft. (560 liters), and with the rear seats folded the total cargo volume increases to 60 cu.-ft. (1670 liters)

At launch two gasoline and two diesel engines will be offered. The 530d makes 245-hp and 398 ft-lbs of torque, delivering a 0-62 mph time of 6.4 seconds and an average of 37 mpg, while the 520d makes 184-hp and 280 ft-lbs of torque, with a 0-62 mph time of 8.3 seconds and an average of 44.8 mpg (EU cycle). As for the gasoline mills, the 523i makes 204-hp and 199 ft-lbs of torque, with a 0-62 mph time of 8.2 seconds and 30.2 mpg. A range-topping 535i Touring model get’s BMWs twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six to produce 302-hp and 295 ft-lbs of torque, with a 0-62 mph time of 6.0 seconds and 27.4 mpg average.

There’s no word if BMW plans to offer the 4.4-liter twin-turbo V8, which is possible as in the past BMW has offered an M5 Touring.

GALLERY: 2011 BMW 5 Series Touring

Get more on the 2011 5 Series Touring after the jump:

Lexus is looking to bring back the IS SportCross – at least in Europe. The wagon body style of the original IS300 was a massive flop in North America, causing Lexus to eliminate the oddly shaped five-door from its product plans when it came around to building the second generation of cars.

With North Americans being early adopters of Lexus vehicles, Toyota’s luxury arm is now looking to make more of a push in Europe as its models finally start to become more popular there. Lexus now admits that its decision to drop a wagon model most likely slowed sales and the growth of the brand in a market where wagons are seen as the functional yet cool alternative to boring sedans.

As a result, Lexus is now looking to bring back the IS wagon for the third-generation model, due out soon. And according to a report by AutoCar, the wagon is likely only to be sold only as a hybrid (which sounds strange to us). This model would then help Lexus compete more strongly with the popular BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes C-Class wagons.

There’s no word about the wagon returning to North America and while the segment does seem to be growing with the Cadillac CTS SportWagon on sale now and the Acura TSX Sport Wagon coming, it’s still not clear if the U.S. market will accept luxury wagons in numbers significant enough for Lexus to bring the SportCross back to our shores.

IS-F SportCross anyone?

[Source: AutoCar]

Several spy photos that popped up on the net over the weekend have revealed what appears to be a production ready Cadillac CTS-V SportWagon. We shouldn’t be too surprised to see the car (caught during filming of a commercial in downtown LA) as Bob Lutz has confirmed it for production. But after Lutz’ G8 promise, it’s best to see it to believe it.

The wagon is likely to contain no surprises, but is sure to be plenty awesome with Caddy’s 556-hp supercharged 6.2-liter V8 under the hood. It’s also likely to debut at the New York Auto Show, just before Lutz is set to retire.

Still, as cool as it is, we’re not exactly sure this vehicle makes great business sense. Wagons aren’t very popular in North America and Cadillacs aren’t very popular in Europe – where such a high-powered wagon might find a home. That being said, we hope the V version isn’t overly expensive to make as the CTS-V SportWagon might only be popular with internet bloggers like us who don’t have the cash for all that, well, you know…

Acura has officially announced that the TSX Sport Wagon will gets its North American debut at the New York Auto Show at the end of the month. With the TSX sedan based on the European Honda Accord, the Sport Wagon is simply the Acura-fied version of the Euro Accord Wagon.

Set to go on sale in the Fall, we still don’t know if Acura plans to offer both a 4-cylinder and V6 version of the new model, which adds functionality to the already impressive TSX package. We will, however, be on hand at the New York show to bring you full coverage and plenty of live photos, as well as all the facts on the newest addition to the Acura family.

Official release after the jump:

Ford has just released the latest model to be based on its global C architecture, the Focus Wagon. Looking quite a bit like the Focus hatch, it’s a bit larger with more cargo room. It also represents the European launch of the MyFord Touch system.

A range of gasoline and diesel engines are available, but it doesn’t matter much as Ford has no plans to bring the wagon to North America and if itthat decision ever changes it will get the 2.0-liter direct-injection 4-cylinder set for the Focus sedan and hatch. With the new focus sedan and hatch as well as the C-Max and Grand C-Max MPVs, the wagon now represents the fifth of 10 Focus-based models. We expect a coupe to add to that list as well as a crossover to replace the Escape.

While not all 10 models will be available in all international markets, Ford says the Focus Wagon is a great example of how its cost-saving One Ford strategy can be adapted to meet regional needs.

GALLERY: Ford Focus Wagon

Official release after the jump:

With the Cadillac CTS having grown in size considerably since its inception, a true entry-level rear drive luxury sports sedan has been an on-again/off-again project for General Motors. Since emerging from bankruptcy, GM reconfirmed its commitment to the vehicle, likely to be called the ATS.

Now a recent report suggests an ATS concept will debut some time this year, with a possible launch at the Paris Auto Show in the Fall. A more likely debut, however, will be at the LA Auto Show in December, where a new Cadillac model will get the most media coverage.

According to Inside Line, Cadillac will not only introduce a sedan, but also a coupe, convertible and wagon model. The luxury division is currently undecided on if a retractable hard-top will be used or a weight-saving soft top.

The ATS will arrive, in concept form, before the year is out, with a production model to debut in 2011 and sales to follow shortly thereafter as a 2012 model.

[Source: InsideLine]

Cadillac has decided to cut the price of the CTS SportWagon as it currently sits too close to the brand’s new SRX crossover. Cadillac didn’t see the two as competitors (how could they not?) but apparently consumers did. And with the SRX already a more “normal” platform in the market, selling a much pricier wagon made an already difficult task for dealerships next to impossible.

With the SRX priced from $34,155 and a loaded AWD model close to the $50,000 mark, the SportWagon was situated at $40,485 to start. Caddy now lists an entry-level 3.0-liter V6 rear-wheel drive SportWagon at $39,150, down from $40,485. A larger difference can be seen at the top where a 3.6-liter V6 AWD model with all the goodies now retails for $51,390, down $3,055 from $54,445.

The difference between the two models, considering the shared engines and focus on cargo capacity is certainly confusion consumers, however, closer inspection will show a noticably higher level of trim in the CTS wagon.

[Source: USAToday]

In a bid to offer competitive products with the likes of BMW and Audi, Mercedes-Benz will offer a wagon version of the upcoming second-generation CLS. The car will compete directly with vehicles like the new BMW 5 Series GT and Audi A7 Sportback.

Based on the same architecture as the CLS sedan and, therefore, the E-Class, the CLS Wagon (or Estate) is expected to arrive late in 2011 as a 2012 model. The CLS sedan is due out later this year. According to a report in the U.K.’s AutoCar, this new model is part of a larger plan by Mercedes to use existing platforms for more models in an effort to reduce costs.

The CLS Wagon will take its design inspiration from the Concept Fascination, pictured above. A new concept car, set to be unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show in a weeks time, should also give some clues to the future of Mercedes design.

AutoCar also reports that a new lineup of turbocharged and direct-injection V6 ad V8 engines will be used in the new CLS and CLS Wagon, which should help improve fuel consumption by as much as 25 percent over the current powerplants. Those engines will arrive in a facelifted CL model due out later this year.

GALLERY: Mercedes Concept Fascination

[Source: AutoCar]

Audi of America’s top man, Johan de Nysschen has confirmed that the upcoming Audi A7 will go on sale in North America. Many had already assumed as much, but until now Audi hadn’t even officially stated that the car existed. And with the A5 Sportback not destined for U.S. shores, the future of the A7 for North America was less than certain.

In an interview with de Nysschen, the folks at Autoblog have ascertained Audi’s plan for the car, which was first shown in concept form (as the Sportback Concept, shown above) at the Detroit Auto Show in 2009. The A7 will be a top-tier premium vehicle from Audi, priced just below the A8 but competing very much in the same space. The idea here is that Audi will now have the A8 for the more traditional buyers in the segment, which it believes will account for roughly 5,000 units sold each year, while the A7 will cater to younger buyers that might not have purchased  a top-dollar Audi in the past. Sales of the A7 are expected to be around 7,000 to 8,00 units, says de Nysschen. In terms of pricing, the A8 is expected to retail for a higher dollar amount in 2011, meaning a middle-of-the-road A7 should cost roughly $82,000.

Audi’s plan with the two cars is to more than double the brand’s presence in the top level of the market by doubling the number of vehicles available to consumers.

The Audi boss also said that the Sportback concept will serve as a, “very reliable indicator” of what the A7 will look like.

As for an S8 model, de Nysschen said that while nothing has been confirmed it’s “safe to assume, ” considering Audi always does a high performance version of its cars.

[Source: Autoblog]

Say you’re shopping for a new car but you have to pretty strict requirements: you need plenty of cargo room, and the ability to hit 60 mph in about 4 seconds. Cadillac has just the car for you! According to a recent report in Car& Driver, GM product boss Bob Lutz has confirmed that the 556-hp CTS-V will be available as wagon.

“You’ll be able to get the CTS-V any way you want,” he said in a recent interview, alluding to the fact that the V will also be offered in the current sedan form, as well as in the upcoming coupe.

Sales aren’t likely to be very high in North America, but the CTS-V Sport Wagon should help the Cadillac brand expand in Europe, where there has long been a contest between the German automakers to build ridiculously powerful wagons like the 580-hp RS6 Avant and the 518-hp Mercedes E63 AMG wagon.

No timeline for the production version has been given, but with the CTS-V Coupe expected to debut at the LA Auto Show in a few weeks time, the CTS-V Sport Wagon is likely to arrive roughly a year later. It would also make sense for the debut to take place in Europe.

[Source: Car&Driver]