2000 BMW 540I SEDAN engine

177n
RepairsIndexOverview Controls Car care Technology Data
Battery
A highly-explosive gas is
generated when the battery is
charged.
If you happen to get acid in your
eyes, rinse thoroughly for
15 minutes with clear water.
Following that, consult a physician
immediately. If you get acid spray on
your skin or clothing, rinse with plenty
of water. If electrolyte is accidentally
swallowed, consult a physician immedi-
ately.
In order to protect the battery
case from ultraviolet radiation,
do not place it in direct sunlight.
A discharged battery can freeze. Store
the battery in areas where temperature
remains above freezing.
MaintenanceThe battery is absolutely maintenance-
free, that is, the original electrolyte will
normally last for the service life of the
battery under moderate climatic condi-
tions.
Charge conditionYou can read the charge condition
of the battery with the "Magic Eye
*"
(a hydrometer):
>Green: Adequate charge
>Black: Not charged adequately.
The battery must be recharged.
Please contact your BMW center
>Yellow: Replace the battery.
The projected service life of the
battery can only be reached if the
battery is fully-charged at all times.
Check the charge condition of the bat-
tery frequently if the vehicle is used pri-
marily for driving short distances.<
390de612
Charging the batteryIf the battery is charged in the vehicle:
Do not charge the battery with the
engine running.
Before performing any work on
the electrical system, disconnect
the cable from the negative terminal. If
you do not, short circuits can create the
risk of fire or personal injury.<
If you plan to store the vehicle for more
than four weeks, disconnect the battery
from the vehicle electrical system by
disconnecting the cable at the negative
terminal and then recharge using a suit-
able charging device.
If you intend to store your car for longer
than 12 weeks: Remove the battery,
charge it and store it in a cool (but frost-
and dust-free) room. Everv three
months and before reinstalling the bat-
tery, have it recharged. If it is not
recharged, it will not be serviceable.
Every time the battery is discharged,
especially over extended periods, its
service life is reduced.

178n
Battery Fuses Removal and installation
Do not disconnect the battery
when the engine is running. Dis-
connecting the battery cable when the
engine is running will cause a voltage
surge which will damage the vehicle's
onboard electronics.
Do not make any modifications in the
wires to the positive terminal. If you do
so, the protective function of the safety
battery terminal is no longer ensured.
Repairs and disposal may only be
performed by specially-trained person-
nel.<
390de611
When removing the battery, first dis-
connect the negative terminal, then the
positive terminal. Remove the protec-
tive bar (1) and unscrew the threaded
connection of the battery bracket (2).
When installing the battery, connect the
positive terminal first, then connect the
negative terminal.
When installing a battery, be sure
that it is mounted properly. Install
and secure the protective bar. If the
battery is not mounted and fastened
properly, it will not be adequately
secured in case of an accident.<
Return used batteries to a recy-
cling point or your authorized
BMW center. Maintain the battery in an
upright position for transport and stor-
age. Secure the battery against tilting in
transit.<
When an electrical accessory fails to
operate, switch it off and inspect the
fuse.In glove compartment1 Open the glove compartment and
turn the two white quick-release
knobs to the left. Spare fuses and
plastic tweezers are located on the
fuse holder.
2 Use the plastic tweezers to remove
the fuse for the accessory or equip-
ment that has stopped working.
3 If the fuse is burned through (the
metal strip will have melted and sep-
arated), replace it with a new fuse of
the same ampere rating (color code).390de085

182n
Never use spray starter fluids.
If the battery is discharged, the engine
can be started with the use of two
jumper cables and the battery of an-
other vehicle. Always use jumper ca-
bles with fully insulated handles on the
terminal clamps.
Do not touch high-voltage wiring
and cables on a running engine.
There is a risk of fatal injury if you do
this.<
Carefully comply with the following in-
structions to avoid personal injury and
damage to one or both vehicles:
1 Ensure that the battery on the sup-
port vehicle is also rated at 12 volts,
and that the capacities of the two
batteries (Ah) are roughly comparable
(printed on casing).
2 Leave your battery connected to the
car electrical system.
3 Make sure that there is no contact
between the bodywork of the two ve-
hicles Ð short circuit risk.
4 Start by connecting the jumper cable
from the positive terminal of the sup-
port vehicle to the positive terminal
connector located in your BMW's en-
gine compartment. The cover of the
auxiliary terminal for jump starting is
marked with a "+" sign (refer to the
illustration). Remove the cover by
pulling tab. The illustration shows the
external start support point of the
BMW 528i. For the BMW 540i, refer
to "Engine compartment" on
page 146.390de145
5 Then connect the negative terminals.
Attach the cable to either the support
vehicle's negative battery terminal,
or to a suitable ground on its engine
or bodywork. Then connect the other
end of the cable to a ground on the
engine or body of the vehicle which is
to be started. There is a special nut
on the strut dome of your BMW; refer
to the arrow in the illustration.
Follow the same sequence for
connecting the jumper cables if
you assist in jump-starting another ve-
hicle. If you do not, there is a risk of in-
jury caused by spark generation at the
battery.< 390de146
Jump-starting

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RepairsIndexOverview Controls Car care Technology Data
Jump-starting Towing the vehicle 6 Start the engine of the support
vehicle and let it run.
7 Start the engine on the vehicle need-
ing the jump-start, and allow it to run
as usual. If the first start attempt is
not successful, wait a few minutes
before another attempt in order to al-
low the discharged battery to re-
charge.
8 Before disconnecting the jumper ca-
bles from your BMW, turn on the
headlamps, the rear window de-
froster and the highest blower speed
and allow the engine to run at least
10 seconds to prevent a voltage
surge at the voltage regulator.
9 Then disconnect the jumper cables in
the opposite order.
Have the battery recharged if neces-
sary.
Tow fittingThe screw-in tow fitting is stored in the
onboard tool kit; be sure that it remains
in the vehicle at all times. This fitting
is designed for installation in the tow
sockets located at the front and rear of
the vehicle, and is intended for towing
on proper road surfaces only.
It should not be used to pull a vehicle
out of deep snow, mud, sand, etc. Al-
ways observe all applicable towing laws
and regulations.Access to tow socketsFront:
Apply pressure to the arrow symbol on
the cover panel to remove.390de087
Rear:
Apply pressure to the arrow symbol on
the cover panel to remove.
Screw the tow fitting in until it bot-
toms firmly. If this is not done, the
threads could be damaged.
Never attach tie-down hooks, chains,
straps, or tow hooks to tie rods, control
arms, or any other part of the vehicle
suspension, as severe damage to these
components will occur, leading to pos-
sible accidents.<
Use only a nylon towing strap to tow the
vehicle, since the inherent resilience of
this material helps protect both vehicles
from sudden jerking movements.394de088

184n
Towing the vehicle
The towed vehicle should always
be the lighter of the two vehicles.
If this is not the case, it is no longer
possible to control vehicle response.<
Tow-startingIt is not possible to start the engine of
vehicles equipped with an automatic
transmission by towing or pushing.
For instructions on jump starting, refer
to page 182.
Never attempt to use your vehicle to
push another car, since damage to the
energy-absorbing bumpers could
result.
Towing a vehicle with automatic
transmission1 Place the selector lever in position N
2 Towing speed:
Max. 45 mph (70 km/h)
3 Towing distance:
Max. 95 miles (150 km)
4 Leave the ignition key at position 1 to
ensure that the brake lamps, turn sig-
nals, horn and windshield wipers re-
main operative, and to prevent the
steering lock detent from engaging.
5 Switch on the hazard-warning system
(observe country-specific regula-
tions).
Find some means of identifying the ve-
hicle in tow, for instance, place a sign
or warning triangle in the rear window.
Make sure that the ignition key
remains in position 1 even when
the electrical system has failed to pre-
vent the steering lock from engaging.
The steering and brakes are without
power assist when the engine is off.
This means that increased effort is
required for steering and braking.<
Towing with a commercial
tow truck>Do not tow with sling-type equipment
>Use a wheel lift or flat bed carrier
>Please comply with applicable towing
laws.
Never allow passengers to ride in
a towed vehicle for any reason.<380us124

189n
RepairsIndexOverview Controls Car care Technology Data
In order to take driving conditions into
account, ATC registers corners and
both uphill and downhill gradients. For
example, if you maintain speed through
a curve, the transmission does not up-
shift.
On uphill gradients, it shifts only when
the engine speed increases in order to
make more efficient use of power
reserves. On downhill gradients ATC
downshifts when the speed of the vehi-
cles increases, causing the driver to
step on the brakes.Precision sensors monitor the number
of revolutions of the wheels. When
equipped with DSC, they also monitor
steering angle, lateral acceleration,
brake pressure and the movement of
the vehicle around its vertical axis.
If differences in the wheel speeds
occur, the system counteracts the dan-
ger of wheelspin by reducing torque. If
necessary, the system also responds
with additional applications of the
brakes at the rear wheels.
If the system detects an instability in the
vehicle's condition, the braking action
can also be directed to help the front
wheels by the DSC in order to help sta-
bilize the vehicle.
You may need some time to become
accustomed to this system intervention.
However, it guarantees optimum drive
force and driving stability.
The braking intervention may be
accompanied by a certain degree of
noise.ATC
*
ASC+T/DSC
*

190n
Radio reception BMW active seat
*
AM provides substantially longer recep-
tion ranges than FM. AM broadcast
signals, propagated at ground level in
the form of surface waves, are also
reflected from the ionosphere as
atmospheric waves.
Frequency-modulation (FM) provides
substantially better sound quality than
AM. However, because FM transmis-
sions rely on line-of-sight broadcast
waves, their effective reception range is
limited.360de084
Although numerous factors combine
to impose inherent limitations on the
reception quality available from mobile
radios, specially designed systems can
be employed to minimize their effects:
The Diversity Antenna system employs
several FM antennas integrated within
the rear window to provide three sepa-
rate sources for receiving broadcast
waves. An integral processor automati-
cally selects the antenna with the best
FM reception quality at any given time.
Because the ongoing antenna selection
process is completed within milli-sec-
onds, it remains inaudible to the radio
listener.BMW seats are configured for your
orthopedic well-being. The active seat
is an engineering enhancement of
BMW's seats, designed to ensure less
fatigue during extended trips while
sitting with little movement. The seat is
no longer a passive element between
the road, the running gear and the pas-
senger. Instead, it creates minor and
imperceptible shifts in your weight by
an active change in the contour of the
seat surface. The basic seat position is
not changed as this occurs.
Fluid cushions are located below the
surface of the seat in the seat's
upholstery on the left and right. The
fluid is circulated slowly back and forth
between the two cushions by means of
a pump. This causes a movement of the
spinal column which is nearly unnotice-
380de676

Overview
Controls and features
Operation, care
and maintenance
Owner service procedures
Technical data
Index Advanced technology
197n
RepairsIndexOverview Controls Car care Technology Data
Engine specifications198
Dimensions Ð sedan199
Dimensions Ð sport wagon200
Weights Ð sedan201
Weights Ð sport wagon202
Capacities203
Electrical system204
Drive belts204