1998 BMW 740I lock

56n
Airbags
For your safety, comply with the
following instructions for the air-
bags. If you do not, the airbags may not
be able to provide their maximum pro-
tection. All passengers in the vehicle
should be aware of and comply with
this information:
The airbags are supplemental restraint
devices designed to provide extra pro-
tection; they are not a substitute for
safety belts. Wear your safety belt at all
times. The airbags will not be triggered
in the event of a minor accident, a vehi-
cle roll-over, or collisions from the rear.
In these situations, the safety belts pro-
vide optimal protection.
Adjust your seat to a position that pro-
vides maximum distance between you
and the steering wheel, the instrument
panel and the door while still allowing
comfortable and safe access to all vehi-
cle controls.
Hold the steering wheel at the rim
(hands at the "9 o'clock and 3 o'clock"
positions) in order to avoid injuries to
the hands or arms if the airbag is trig-
gered.
Never allow any objects to obstruct the
area between the airbag and the driver/
passenger.
Do not use the cover panel above the
passenger-side airbag as a storage
area.
Do not apply tape or stickers or other
material over the padded steering
wheel hub, the instrument panel, the
side trim panels of the front or rear
doors and the roof pillars or the sides of
the headliner, or modify them in any
other way.
Do not install a rear-facing child-re-
straint device on the front passenger
seat.
If your vehicle is equipped with side air-
bags in the rear, be sure that child seats
are installed correctly and with the
greatest possible distance from the
door. Do not allow children to lean out
of the child's seat in the direction of the
door. Otherwise, serious injuries could
occur if the airbag is triggered.<
Even when all these guidelines are fol-
lowed, there is still a small residual risk
of injuries to the face, hands and arms
occurring in isolated instances. The ig-
nition and inflation noise may provoke a
mild temporary hearing loss in extremely
sensitive individuals.
Airbag warning information is also pro-
vided on the sun visors.
For additional information concerning the
airbag system, refer to pages 15 6, 18 4.This is the right way a child should sit in
a child restraint when rear side bags
(arrow) are installed.
380de637

58n
Child restraints Child restraint installation Child-safety locksbackrest could lead to serious or fatal
injuries.
If it is necessary for a child (not an in-
fant) to ride in the front seat, certain
precautions should be taken. First,
move the passenger seat as far away
from the dashboard as possible. This
important precaution is intended to
maximize the distance between the air-
bag and the child. Older children should
be tightly secured with the safety belt.
Younger children should be secured in
an appropriate forward-facing child re-
straint system that has first been prop-
erly secured with a safety belt. Never
install a rear-facing child restraint sys-
tem in the front passenger seat.
We strongly urge you to carefully read
and observe the instructions for instal-
lation and use provided by the child re-
straint's manufacturer whenever you
use such a device.
Be sure that all occupants (of all ages)
remain properly and securely restrained
at all times.<
All rear seating positions in your
vehicle meet the recommendations
of SAE J1819, an industry recom-
mended practice for securing child
restraint systems in motor vehicles.To allow you to use the safety belts to
secure child-restraint systems, the belts
at all rear positions feature a special
locking mode.
A label with operating instructions is at-
tached to the belt next to the latch plate
(except the middle belt in the rear).
Lock the safety beltExtract the entire length of the belt from
the inertia reel mechanism. Allow the
belt to retract somewhat and engage
the buckle. Then tighten the belt around
the child restraint. The belt is now
locked. Comply with the instructions
provided by the manufacturer of the
child restraint.Unlock the safety beltRelease the safety belt, remove the
child's seat and retract the safety belt to
its end position on the belt retractor.365us146
Insert the key into a rear door lock and
turn it outward:
The door can now be opened from the
outside only.380de019

59n
RepairsIndexOverview Controls Car care Technology Data
Steering/Ignition lock Starting engine0 Steering lock engagedThis is the only position in which the ig-
nition key can be inserted and removed.
An acoustic warning sounds when you
fail to remove the ignition key before
opening the driver's door.
After removing the key, turn the steer-
ing wheel slightly to the left or right until
you hear the lock engage.380de010
Your vehicle is equipped with an inter-
lock. For this reason, the ignition key
cannot be turned to position 0 and re-
moved until the selector lever is in posi-
tion P.
In addition, the selector lever is locked
in position P when the ignition key is in
position 0 or removed from the ignition
switch.
To move the selector lever out of P, the
ignition key must be turned at least to
position 2.1 Steering lock disengagedYou will find that it is often easier to turn
the ignition key from position 0 to posi-
tion 1 when you move the steering
wheel slightly to help disengage the
lock.
Individual electrical equipment and ac-
cessories are available for use.2 Ignition onAll electrical equipment and accesso-
ries are available for use.3 Starting engineBefore starting
>Press the parking brake pedal
>Place the selector lever of the auto-
matic transmission in P or N.
Do not allow the engine to run in
enclosed spaces. The exhaust
gases contain carbon monoxide, an
odorless and colorless, but highly toxic
gas. Breathing the exhaust gases poses
an extreme health risk, and can lead to
unconsciousness and death.
Never leave the car unattended with the
engine running, as such a vehicle repre-
sents a potential safety hazard.< Starting engine>Start the engine. Do not press the ac-
celerator pedal.
Your BMW is equipped with the
convenience starting feature.
Simply turn the key to position 3 (starter)
and then release it immediately.
The starter continues to operate auto-
matically until the engine starts.

60n
Starting engine Switching off engineIf the battery's voltage is not adequate,
the automatic starting procedure is not
initiated, or it is interrupted. Should this
condition arise, it remains possible to
jump-start the engine (refer to page 17 9).
Do not allow the engine to warm up by
leaving it running while the vehicle re-
mains stationary. Instead, begin driving
immediately at a moderate engine
speed.<
Should the engine fail to start on the
first attempt (if it is very hot or cold, for
instance):
>Press the accelerator pedal halfway
down while engaging the starter.
BMW 740i/L:
Cold starts at extremely low tempera-
tures, from approx. +57 (–156)
and at elevations above 3300 feet
(1000 meters):
>Press the accelerator pedal halfway
down while engaging the starter.Engine idle speed is controlled by the
engine computer system. Increased
speeds at start-up are normal and
should decrease as the engine warms
up. If engine speed does not decrease,
service is required.
To prevent the battery from discharg-
ing, always switch off any electrical de-
vices not in use, as well as the ignition
when the vehicle is not being driven.Turn the ignition key to position 1 or 0.
The vehicle must be stationary
and the selector lever in "Park"
before you can remove the ignition key.
Always remove the ignition key and en-
gage the steering lock before leaving
the vehicle.<

62n
Automatic transmissionSelector lever positions
P R N D 4 3 2
Shift programsLever positions:
>A (Adaptive/Economy)
>M (Manual)
Selector lever in position 4:
>S (Sport program)
For an explanation of the programs, re-
fer to the next page.Starting engineThe engine can only be started in posi-
tions "Park" or "Neutral."380us045
Changing the selector lever
positionA detent prevents inadvertent shifts into
some selector lever positions. To re-
lease the shift-lock mechanism, press
the button on the front side of the se-
lector handle (arrow).
While the vehicle is stationary and
before shifting out of "Park" or
"Neutral," depress the footbrake in or-
der to disengage the selector lever's
lock mechanism (shift-lock).
Hold the footbrake down until starting
off. The vehicle will otherwise "creep"
when a drive position is engaged.< 380us046
Before exiting the vehicle when
the engine is running, place the
selector lever in the "Park" or "Neutral"
position and apply the parking brake. If
you do not, the vehicle can move.
Do not leave the car unattended with
the engine running.
An unattended vehicle with a running
engine represents a potential safety
hazard.<
P - ParkSelect "Park" only when the vehicle is
stationary. The transmission locks to
prevent the rear wheels from turning.R - ReverseSelect "Reverse" only when the vehicle
is stationary.N - NeutralSelect "Neutral" only if your journey is
interrupted for a longer period.D - Drive
(automatic shift program)This position is designed for driving un-
der all normal operating conditions. All
forward gears are available; the Adap-
tive Transmission Control (ATC) is fully
operational.

65n
RepairsIndexOverview Controls Car care Technology Data
Automatic transmission with Steptronic
*
You may drive your vehicle as with a
typical automatic transmission, but you
may also shift manually.
When you move the selector lever to
the left from position "D" and into the
M/S shift level, the performance-ori-
ented shift programs of the automatic
transmission are activate. As soon as
you move the selector lever in the "+" or
"–" direction, Steptronic changes the
gear and the manual mode is active. If
you wish to utilize automatic shifting
once again, move the selector lever to
the right and into the D position.
The automatic transmission of your
BMW is equipped with an Adaptive
Transmission Control (ATC). This sys-
tem reacts with precision to your indi-
vidual driving style and the current driv-
ing conditions. Different shift programs
are utilized to achieve this.
For details concerning ATC, please re-
fer to the chapter describing "Advanced
technology" on page 184.
Selector lever positions
P R N D M/S + –
Starting engineThe engine can only be started in selec-
tor lever positions P ("Park") or N ("Neu-
tral").380us667
Range selectionA detent prevents inadvertent shifts into
some selector lever positions. To re-
lease the shift-lock mechanism, press
the button on the front side of the se-
lector handle (arrow).
While the vehicle is stationary and
before shifting out of "Park" or
"Neutral," depress the footbrake in or-
der to disengage the selector lever's
lock mechanism (shift-lock).
Hold the footbrake down until starting
off. The vehicle will otherwise "creep"
when a drive position is engaged.< 380de211

66n
Automatic transmission with Steptronic
*
Before exiting the vehicle when
the engine is running, place the
selector lever in the "Park" or "Neutral"
position and apply the parking brake. If
you do not, the vehicle can move.
Do not leave the car unattended with
the engine running. An unattended ve-
hicle with a running engine represents a
potential safety hazard.<
P - ParkSelect "Park" only when the vehicle is
stationary. The transmission locks to
prevent the rear wheels from turning.R - ReverseSelect "Reverse" only when the vehicle
is stationary.N - NeutralSelect "Neutral" only if your journey is
interrupted for a longer period.D - Drive
(automatic shift program)This position is designed for driving un-
der all normal operating conditions. All
forward gears are available; the Adap-
tive Transmission Control (ATC) is fully
operational."Kickdown" (automatic downshift)In the "Kickdown" mode, you achieve
maximum performance.
Press the accelerator pedal past the in-
creased resistance point at the full-
throttle position.
M/S - Manual mode and
Sport ProgramWhen you change from "D" to M/S, the
Sport program is activated. This is indi-
cated by "D S" in the gear display. This
position is recommended if your driving
style is performance-oriented.
With the first brief touch, the automatic
transmission shifts from the Sport pro-
gram to manual mode.
When you move the selector lever for-
ward in the "+" direction, the transmis-
sion shifts up. When moved back in the
"–" direction, the transmission shifts
down.
Depending on the version, "1 to 5" or
"M1 to M5" appears in the gear display.380de659

77n
RepairsIndexOverview Controls Car care Technology Data
Check ControlDisplays after completion of tripAll of the malfunctions registered during
the trip appear consecutively when the
ignition key is turned to position 0.
One of the following displays may ap-
pear:
>LIGHTS ON
>KEY IN IGNITION LOCK
>CHECK ENGINE OIL LEV
Add engine oil at the next opportunity
(next stop for fuel). Refer to page 14 3.
This message appears when you open
the driver's door after parking the vehi-
cle. A supplementary gong is also
heard.
Even if the ignition key has been re-
moved and the display has gone off,
you can still retrieve these messages
with CHECK button (1) for approx. three
minutes after completion of your trip. If
there are multiple messages, continue
to press the CHECK button.
To monitor the Check ControlWith the ignition key in position 2, press
CHECK button (1):
CHECK CONTROL OK appears in the
display.
In this case, there are no faults in the
systems which are monitored.