2004 BMW 545I SEDAN start

525i
530i
545i

Congratulations, and thank you for choosing a BMW.
Thorough familiarity with your vehicle will provide you with
enhanced control and security when you drive it. We there-
fore have this request:
Please take the time to read this Owner's Manual and
familiarize yourself with the information that we have com-
piled for you before starting off in your new vehicle.
It contains important data and instructions intended to
assist you in gaining maximum use and satisfaction from
your BMW's unique range of technical features. The man-
ual also contains information on maintenance designed to
enhance operating safety and contribute to maintaining the
value of your BMW throughout an extended service life.
This Owner's Manual should be considered a permanent
part of this vehicle. It should stay with the vehicle when
sold to provide the next owner with important operating,
safety and maintenance information.
This manual is supplemented by a Service and Warranty
Information Booklet for US models or a Warranty and Ser-
vice Guide Booklet for Canadian models.
We wish you an enjoyable driving experience.
BMW AG

Reference
At a glance
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility

Contents
The fastest way to find specific topics is to
use the index, refer to page 202.

Using this Owner's Manual

4Notes
7Reporting safety defects

At a glance

10Cockpit
16Control Center
20Voice command system

Controls

26Opening and closing
36Adjustments
45Transporting children safely
49Driving
65Everything under control
76Technology for comfort, convenience
and safety
87Lamps
90A congenial climate
96Practical interior accessories

Driving tips

106Things to remember when driving

Navigation

114Starting navigation system
116Destination entry
123Destination guidance
127What to do if É

Entertainment

130On/off, tone
134Radio
141CD Compact Disc
144CD changer

Communications

150Telephoning
161TeleService, BMW Assist



Mobility

168Refueling
170Wheels and tires
177Under the hood
181Maintenance
183Rules and regulations
184Replacing components
190Giving and receiving assistance

Reference

198Technical data
202Everything from A to Z

Notes

6

For your own safety

Fuels

Use unleaded gasoline only. Fuels
containing up to and including
10% ethanol or other oxygenates with up
to 2.8% oxygen by weight Ð that is,
15% MTBE or 3% methanol plus an equiv-
alent amount of co-solvent Ð will not void
the applicable warranties with respect to
defects in materials or workmanship. Field
experience has indicated significant differ-
ences in fuel quality Ð volatility, composi-
tion, additives, etc. Ð among gasolines
offered for sale in the United States and
Canada. The use of poor-quality fuels may
result in driveability, starting and stalling
problems, especially under certain environ-
mental conditions such as high ambient
temperature and high altitude.
Should you encounter driveability prob-
lems which you suspect could be related to
the fuel you are using, we recommend that
you respond by switching to a recognized
high-quality brand.
Failure to comply with these recommenda-
tions may result in unscheduled mainte-
nance.
Follow the relevant safety rules when you
are handling gasoline.

<



Maintenance and repair

Advanced technology, e. g. the use of
modern materials and high-perform-
ance electronics, requires specially
adapted maintenance and repair methods.
Therefore, only have corresponding work
on your BMW carried out by a BMW center
or a workshop that works according to
BMW repair procedures with correspond-
ingly trained personnel. If work is carried
out improperly there is a danger of conse-
quential damage and the related safety
risks.

<



Parts and accessories

For your own safety, use genuine
parts and accessories approved by
BMW.
When you purchase accessories tested
and approved by BMW and Genuine BMW
Parts, you simultaneously acquire the
assurance that they have been thoroughly
tested by BMW to ensure optimum perfor-
mance when installed on your vehicle.
BMW warrants these parts to be free from
defects in material and workmanship.
BMW will not accept any liability for dam-
age resulting from installation of parts and
accessories not approved by BMW.
BMW cannot test every product made by
other manufacturers to verify if it can be
used on a BMW safely and without risk to
either the vehicle, its operation, or its occu-
pants.
Genuine BMW Parts, BMW Accessories
and other products approved by BMW,
together with professional advice on using
these items, are available from all BMW
centers.
Installation and operation of non-BMW
approved accessories such as alarms,
radios, amplifiers, radar detectors, wheels,
suspension components, brake dust
shields, telephones Ð including operation of
any portable phone from within the vehicle
without using an externally mounted
antenna Ð or transceiver equipment, for
instance, CBs, walkie-talkie, ham radio or
similar accessories, may cause extensive
damage to the vehicle, compromise its
safety, interfere with the vehicle's electrical
system or affect the validity of the BMW
Limited Warranty. Consult your BMW cen-
ter for additional information.

<

Maintenance, replacement, or repair
of the emission control devices and
systems may be performed by any automo-
tive repair establishment or individual using
any certified automotive part.

<

At a glance

11

Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility

6

Buttons on steering wheel
Portable phone

*
:

>

Accepting a call

>

Start calling

>

Ending call.
Volume
Voice command system.
Fast forward/reverse:

>

Radio
Press briefly: change station
Press longer: manual tuning or auto-
matic search scan

>

CD
Press briefly: select track
Press longer: fast forward/reverse.
Individually programmable, refer to
page 44.

>

Individually programmable, refer to
page 44

>

Voice instructions for navigation.

7

Instrument cluster12

9

Ignition lock49

10

Horn: the entire surface

13

Opening the hood177

14

Opening the luggage compartment
lid31

16

Parking lamps and low beams87

8

Windshield wipers57
Rain sensor57

11

Steering wheel heater44
Steering wheel adjustment43

12

Cruise control58
Active cruise control59

15

Head-Up Display85

17

Instrument lighting88
Front fog lamps89

At a glance
13Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Indicator and warning
lamps
Technology that monitors itself
The indicator and warning lamps identified
by the
+ symbol are subjected to an oper-
ation check each time you switch on the
ignition or start the engine. They each light
up once for different periods of time.
When a malfunction occurs in a monitored
system, the corresponding lamp will either
fail to go out when the engine is started, or
it will come on again during normal driving.
For information on how you should respond
when this happens, please refer to the
pages indicated.
Colors
The indicator and warning lamps can light
up in different colors and combinations.
The following section explains the signifi-
cance of the individual colors as well as
how you should respond when they
appear.
>Red:
Stop immediately
or
important reminder
>Red and yellow:
Continue driving moderately
>Yellow:
Have checked soon
or
for your information
>Green or blue:
For your information.
Indicator and warning lamps of the
Check Control
Other indicator and warning lamps appear
in display 6 of the instrument cluster as
necessary, accompanied by supplemen-
tary text on the Control Display, refer to
Check Control, page 68. Turn signal indicators 56
Active steering
+82
Handbrake/brake fluid, brake
hydraulics/DBC Dynamic Brake
Control
+50/ 180/ 79
Handbrake/brake fluid, brake
hydraulics/DBC Dynamic Brake
Control for Canadian models
Airbags
+83
Service Engine Soon
+183
If the indicator lamp comes on
either continuously or intermit-
tently, this indicates a fault in the
emissions-related electronic sys-
tems. Although the vehicle
remains operational, you should
have the systems checked by your
BMW center at the earliest possi-
ble opportunity.
Service Engine Soon indicator
lamp for Canadian models.
Front fog lamps 89
ABS Antilock Brake System
+77
DTC Dynamic Traction Control79
High beams/headlamp flasher 88
Please fasten safety belt
+40
DSC Dynamic Stability
Control
+78
Check Gas Cap168
lamp for US models

At a glance
15Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
1Microphone for
>Telephone/portable phone151
>Voice command system20
2Reading lamps89
3Starting emergency call190
4Interior lamps89
5Glass roof, electric34
6Front passenger's airbag indicator
lamp84
7Control Display16
displays for menu guidance
8Hazard warning flashers
9Central locking system30
10Automatic climate control90
11Button for
>Station scan/track search130
>CD player141
>CD changer145 12Ejecting
>Navigation CD/DVD114
>Audio CD130
13Drive for navigation CD/DVD114
14Drive for audio CD130
15Switching audio sources on/off and
adjusting the volume130
16Center console switching center
17Controller16
Horizontal movement in four directions,
turn or press
18Activating voice command system20
19Open start menu17 Temperature setting,
left/right91
Automatic air distribution and
supply91
Cooling function91
Automatic recirculated-air
control AUC91
Maximum cooling91
Residual heat mode92
To switch off automatic climate
control92
Air volume91
Defrost windows91
Rear window defroster90
Heated seats 41
Active seat ventilation42
Active seat42
PDC Park Distance Control 76
DSC Dynamic Stability
Control78

Control Center
16
Control Center
The Control Center groups the functions of
a large number of switches. This means
that these functions can be operated from
a central position. The following section
provides an introduction to the principle of
the menu guidance. How you control the
individual functions is described in the con-
text of the relevant equipment.
Controls
1Controller: you navigate through the
menus of the Control Center and make
adjustments by turning, pressing and
moving it to the left, right, forwards or
backwards
2Opening the start menu from any menu
item
3Control Display
When you turn the controller, you feel a
clicking. This helps you to select the
desired menu item.
To avoid posing an unnecessary haz-
ard due to inattention, both to your
own vehicle's occupants and to other road users: never attempt to use the controls or
make entries unless traffic and road condi-
tions allow.<
Menu overview
You can call up all the functions in the Con-
trol Center using five menu items.
Communication
>Portable phone*
>BMW Assist* or TeleService*.
Navigation or onboard information
>Navigation system*
>Onboard information, e.g. for display of
the average fuel consumption.
Entertainment
>Radio
>CD.
Climate
>Air distribution
>Seat air conditioning
*
>Independent ventilation
*.
Menu item
>Switching off the Control Display
>Traffic information
>Sound and display settings
>Settings for your vehicle, e.g. Key
Memory
>Display of the maintenance requirement
and dates for statutory emission and
vehicle inspections.

At a glance
17Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Menu guidance
As of ignition key position 1, the following
message appears on the Control Display:
Confirm the message by pressing the con-
troller; the start menu is opened.
Start menu
In ignition key position 2:
Via the start menu, you can open four
menus by moving the controller to the left,
right, forwards or backwards. Pressing the
controller opens the menu.
Calling up the start menu:
Press button.
Opening the start menu from the menu:
Press the button twice.
Displays on the Control Display
A menu
1In menus, you can change fields to
select the menu items they contain or to
make adjustments. The active field is
brighter than the others
2Menu items are usually grouped in hor-
izontal or vertical lists
3Arrows indicates that other menu items
can be selected in lists, but these are
not visible at the moment
4Adjustments are displayed in diagrams
or as numbers
5A symbol indicates the last selected
menu item of the start menu
Communication
Navigation or
onboard information
Entertainment
Climate
menu