
62
If exceptional circumstances
make it necessary to engage the
parking brake while the vehicle is in
motion, do not pull it with excessive
pressure. Keep your thumb pressed
against the release button while care-
fully pulling the lever up.
Excessive pressure can lead to over-
braking and loss of traction – fishtailing
– at the rear.
The brake lamps do not come on when
the parking brake is engaged.
Vehicles with manual transmission:
Always engage the parking brake when
parking on slopes and inclined sur-
faces. Placing the lever in gear may not
provide adequate resistance to rolling.
Vehicles with automatic transmission:
Place the selector lever in Park.<
To avoid corrosion and one-sided
braking, apply the parking brake
lightly from time to time when coasting
to a standstill – at a traffic signal, for
instance – provided that it is safe to do
so.<
Manual transmission
Do not hold the vehicle in place on
slopes by slipping or "riding" the
clutch. Use the parking brake instead.
Riding the clutch leads to severe and
premature clutch wear.<
ReverseSelect only when the vehicle is station-
ary. Press the shift lever to the left to
overcome the slight resistance.
As you do this, the backup lamps will
light up automatically when the ignition
key is in position 2.
Parking brake
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63
Automatic transmission with Steptronic*You can drive as with a normal auto-
matic transmission. In addition, you can
also shift manually.
When you move the selector lever from
the D position to the left into the M/S
range, the performance-oriented shift
programs of the automatic transmission
are engaged. Steptronic enters the
manual selection mode and executes
the desired shift whenever you tap the
selector lever in the direction indicated
by + or –. Whenever you want to use
the automatic mode again, just move
the selector lever toward the right to
position D. Under normal operating
conditions, fuel consumption is lowest
when driving in position D.
Selector lever positionsP R N D M/S + –Starting the engineThe engine can only be started in selec-
tor lever positions P – for Park – or N –
for Neutral.Range selectionA detent prevents inadvertent shifts to
the Reverse or Park selector lever posi-
tions. To disengage the detent, press
the button on the front side of
the selector lever button – see arrow.
While the vehicle is stationary and
before shifting out of Park or Neu-
tral, depress the footbrake in order to
disengage the selector lever's lock
mechanism – Shiftlock.
Hold the footbrake down until starting
off. The vehicle will otherwise "creep"
when a drive position is engaged.<
To prevent the vehicle from start-
ing off on its own, always move
the selector lever to position P and
engage the parking brake before leav-
ing your vehicle with the engine run-
ning.
Do not leave the vehicle unattended
with the engine running. An unattended
vehicle with a running engine repre-
sents a safety hazard.<
PParkSelect only when the vehicle is station-
ary. Transmission locks to prevent rear
wheels from turning.RReverseSelect only when the vehicle is station-
ary.
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67
Washer/wiper system/Rain sensor*0Wipers retracted
1Intermittent mode or rain sensor
2Normal wiper speed
3Fast wiper speed
4Brief wipe
5Rotary dial for control of the wipe
interval or the sensitivity of the rain
sensorIntermittent modeNot on vehicles with rain sensor.
You can set the wipe interval at four
stages with rotary dial 5.
In addition, the wipe interval is varied
automatically depending on road
speed.
Rain sensor*The rain sensor is located on the wind-
shield directly behind the rearview mir-
ror.
To activate the rain sensor:
>With the ignition key in position 1 or
higher, move the lever to position 1.
The wipers will make at least one
sweep across the windshield.
You can leave the lever in position 1
at all times. With the ignition key in
position 1 or higher, all you then need
to do to activate the rain sensor is
>briefly turn the rotary dial 5, or
>clean the windshield 1, refer to
page 68.
To adjust the sensitivity of the rain sen-
sor: turn rotary dial 5.
To switch off the rain sensor: return
lever to position 0.
Turn the rain sensor off in auto-
matic car washes. Failure to do so
could result in damage caused by
undesired wiper activation.
wipe – not on vehicles with rain sensor.
Fast wiper speedWhen the vehicle is stationary, the wip-
ers revert to operation at normal speed
– not on vehicles with rain sensor.
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68
To clean windshield and
headlamps*0Wipers retracted
1Clean the windshield and headlamps
2Rear window wiper intermittent mode
3Clean the rear window
Do not use the washers if there is
any danger that the fluid will
freeze on the windshield, as your vision
could be obscured. Always use a wind-
shield washer antifreeze in cold
weather. Refer to page 126.
Do not use the washers when the reser-
voir is empty. This could cause damage
to the washer pump.<
The system sprays washer fluid against
the windshield and activates the wipers
for a brief period. When the vehicle's
lighting system is switched on, the
headlamps will also be cleaned at rea-
sonable intervals.Rear window wiperRear window wiper in intermittent
mode. When reverse gear is engaged,
continuous operation is switched on
automatically.
You can also program the interval:
>Briefly move the wiper lever from
position 0 to position 2
>The period that elapses until the wip-
ers again start to move – from
position 0 to 2 – is the programmed
interval for intermittent operation –
max. 30 seconds.Clean the rear windowThe system sprays washer fluid onto
the rear window.
To change the wiper blades refer to
page 136.
Windshield washer nozzlesThe windshield washer nozzles are
heated automatically* when the ignition
key is in position 2.
Washer/wiper system/Rain sensor*
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77 Technology for safety and driving convenience
Park Distance Control (PDC)*The conceptPDC provides extra safety and conve-
nience during parking maneuvers.
Acoustic signals alert you to the
momentary distance to an object
behind your vehicle. The system fea-
tures four ultrasonic sensors mounted
in your rear bumper. The monitoring
range for the two corner sensors
extends outward roughly 2 ft/60 cm,
while two centrally located sensors
detect objects at distances of up to
approx. 5 ft/1.50 m.
PDC is a parking aid that can
identify objects if they are
approached slowly, as is generally the
case when parking. Avoid driving
towards objects rapidly; due to underly-
ing physical principles, the system may
otherwise alert you too late for you to
take evasive steps.<
The system starts to operate automati-
cally approx. one second after you
select Reverse or move the selector
lever into the R position with the igni-
tion key in position 2.
Let this short period elapse before
driving backwards.<
PDC is deactivated when you shift back
out of reverse.
You can have a signal set to con-
firm that the PDC has been acti-
vated.
intervals. As the distance between vehi-
cle and object decreases, the intervals
between the tones become shorter. A
continuous tone indicates the pres-
ence of an object less than 1 ft/30 cm
away.
The warning signal is canceled after
approx. three seconds if the distance to
the object remains constant during this
time – if you are moving parallel to
a wall, for instance.
System malfunctions will be indicated
by a continuous high-pitched tone
when the system is activated the first
time. Please refer the problem to your
BMW center.
PDC does not remove the driver's
personal responsibility for evaluat-
ing the distance between the vehicle
and any objects. Even when sensors
are involved, there is a blind spot in
which objects cannot be detected. This
applies especially in those cases where
the system approaches the physical
limits of ultrasonic measurement, as
occurs with tow bars and trailer cou-
plings, and in the vicinity of thin or
wedge-shaped objects. Moreover, low
objects that have already been
detected – such as a curb edge – can
disappear out of the detection range of
the sensors before a continuous tone
sounds.
Loud sources of sound from outside or
inside the vehicle could drown out the
PDC signal tone.<
Keep the sensors clean and free
of ice or snow in order to ensure
that they will continue to operate effec-
tively.
Do not apply high pressure spray to the
sensors for a prolonged period of time.
Always maintain a distance of more
than 4 in/10 cm.<
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89 Lamps
Parking lamps/Low beamsParking lamps
The front, rear and side vehicle
lighting is switched on. You can
use the parking lamps to signal
the position of the vehicle when it is
parked. For lighting on one side for
parking as an additional feature, refer to
page 90.
Low beams
When the ignition is switched off
while the low beams are on, the
headlamps go out and only the
parking lamps remain on.
Follow me home lampsWhen you activate the headlamp
flasher after parking the vehicle with the
lamps turned off, the low-beam head-
lamps will come on for a short time.
You can also have this function
deactivated.
tion 0, you will hear an acoustic signal
for a few seconds to remind you that
the lamps have not been switched off.Daytime driving lamps*If you desire, the lamp switch can be
left in the second position: when the
ignition is switched off, the external
lighting is also switched off.
You can have the activation set-
tings for the daytime driving lamps
programmed on your vehicle.<
Automatic headlight control*
When the switch is set to this
position the system automati-
cally activates and cancels the
low beams in response to changes in
ambient light – in tunnels, at dusk, etc. –
and in the event of rain and snow.
The vehicle's external lights
remain on constantly when you
switch on the front fog lamps after the
headlights have come on automati-
cally.<
Automatic headlight control can-
not serve as a substitute for the
driver's judgement in determining when
the vehicle lights should be switched
on. For example, the sensors are not
able to detect fog. To avoid safety risks,
you should respond to these kinds of
low-visibility situations by switching the
headlights on manually.<
You can have the sensitivity of
your vehicle's automatic head-
light control adjusted.<
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91
Fog lamps*Front fog lamps
The green indicator lamp in the
instrument cluster lights up to
indicate that the front fog lamps
are on.
If the automatic headlight control
is on, the low beams will come on
automatically whenever you activate
the front fog lamps.<
Interior lampsThe interior lamps operate automati-
cally.To switch the interior lamps on
and off manuallyPress button 1 briefly:
If you want the interior lamps to remain
off all the times, press and hold the but-
ton for approx. 3 seconds.
Press the button briefly to revert to nor-
mal operation.Front reading lamps*Switch on and off with the button 2
adjacent to each lamp.
Rear reading lampsSwitch on and off with the button adja-
cent to each lamp.
In order to prevent battery dis-
charge, all of the lamps in the
vehicle are automatically switched off
approx. 15 minutes after you turn the
ignition key to position 0.<
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93
1Air onto the windshield and the side
windows
2Air for the upper body area95
3Air to the footwell
4Air supply/Blower94
5Temperature94
6Air distribution94
7Rear window defroster94
8Air conditioning94
9Outside air/Recirculated-air
mode94Air conditioning
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