
At a glance
 15Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
1Glasses compartment115
2Storage compartment115
3Switching audio and video sources on/
off and adjusting volume149
4Telephone keypad, folding176
5Automatic air distribution and supply, 
left side of passenger 
compartment103
6Outside air/AUC Automatic recircu-
lated-air control/recirculated air104
7Defrosting windshield and windows 
and removing condensation104
8Control Display17
9Temperature, left side of passenger 
compartment: turn
Maximum cooling: press104
10Glass roof, electric42
11Memory buttons for integrated 
universal remote control111
12Air supply, left side of passenger 
compartment: turn
Switching off automatic climate 
control: press104, 106
13Reading lamps101
14Hazard warning flashers
15Interior lamps100
16Air supply, right side of passenger 
compartment103
17Temperature, right side of passenger 
compartment: turn
Residual heat mode: press103, 105
18Rear window defroster
19Air conditioning104
20Starting an emergency call177
21Opening the glove compartment
22Automatic air distribution and supply, 
right side of passenger 
compartment106
23Station/track search and CD, DVD148
24Central locking system36
25Controller17
26Control Center buttons1727Seat adjustment44
Heated seats49
Active seat ventilation50
Active seat51
Seat, mirror and 
steering wheel memory53 

Controls
 75Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Operating the active cruise control 
1Activate system, 
store and increase desired speed 
2Activate system, 
store and decrease desired speed 
3Deactivate system 
4With system deactivated: 
Briefly press the button to recall the 
stored speed and distance 
4With system activated: 
Increase desired speed by 1 mph/
1 km/h with each press of the button 
5Select distance to vehicle driving 
ahead. You can choose from four avail-
able distance settings. You will find 
more detailed information on page 76 
Adjust your desired speed to the traf-
fic conditions and remain ready to 
brake at all times. Great differences in 
speed to the vehicles driving ahead, e.g. 
when quickly approaching a truck or when 
another vehicle swerves into your lane, 
cannot be compensated for by the sys-
tem.< 
Activating the system 
From approx. 20 mph/30 km/h you can 
activate the system by pressing the lever forward or pulling it back: 
The current driving speed is stored as a 
desired speed and briefly displayed in the 
speedometer, refer to arrow. 
If the display ACC --- mph/km/h 
appears briefly in the speedometer, 
it might be that conditions necessary for 
operation are not currently being met. 
To call up Check Control messages, refer 
to page 83.< 
1 Storing and increasing desired 
speed 
Press the lever forward: 
The system applies and stores your current 
speed as a desired speed. The speedome-
ter indicates this speed. 
Subsequently pressing forward increases 
the desired speed to the next 5-mile place/ 
10 km/h. 
Each time the lever is pressed forward 
again, the desired speed is increased by 
another 5  mph/10  km/h until a maximum of 
110 mph/180 km/h is reached. The speed 
then displayed is stored and reached on a 
clear road. 
2 Storing and decreasing desired 
speed 
Pull back the lever: 
The current driving speed is rounded off to 
the next 5-mile place/10 km/h, displayed 
and stored. 
Each time the lever is pulled back again, 
the desired speed is decreased by another 
5  mph/10  km/h until the minimum speed of 
20 mph/30 km/h is reached. The speed 
then displayed is stored and reached on a 
clear road. 
3 Deactivating the system 
Press the lever up or down while the sys-
tem is active. The displays in the speedom-
eter disappear. You can use the system 
again as required. 
In addition, the system is deactivated auto-
matically: 
>When you apply pressure to the brake 
pedal  

Controls
 103Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
1Automatic air distribution and supply, 
left side of passenger 
compartment106 
2Outside air/AUC Automatic recircu-
lated-air control/recirculated air104 
3Defrosting windshield and windows 
and removing condensation104 
4Temperature, left side of passenger 
compartment104 
5Maximum cooling104 
6Air supply, left side of passenger 
compartment104
7Switching off automatic climate 
control106
8Air supply, right side of passenger 
compartment104 
9Temperature, right side of passenger 
compartment104 
10Residual heat mode105
11Rear window defroster 12Switching air conditioner mode on and 
off manually104 
13Automatic air distribution and supply, 
right side of passenger 
compartment106 
14Air grill for interior temperature sensor Ð 
please keep clear and unobstructed 
15Independent ventilation109 
>Activation time activated: 
The indicator lamp comes on 
>Independent ventilation switched 
on: 
The indicator lamp flashes 
All other setting options for the auto-
matic climate control can be found at 
"Settings" using the Control Center, refer 
to page 106. 
The current settings for temperature and air 
supply are displayed to you in the status 
line of the Control Display. 
A description of the Control Center is pro-
vided on page 17.< 
A congenial climate 
Activate the automatic mode using the 
AUTO button or "AUTO" in the Control 
Center, refer to page 106. Select an interior 
temperature you find pleasant. 
The following section contains more 
detailed information on the available set-
ting options. 
All of the air conditioner functions, 
including Maximum cooling, refer to 
page 104, and the Rear air conditioner, 
refer to page 108, are available only when 
the engine is running.< Your vehicle has been designed to 
automatically select your personal 
climate-control settings whenever you 
unlock the doors using your individually 
programmed remote control.< 
Automatic air distribution and supply 
The AUTO program adjusts the 
airflow and distribution patterns 
for you while also using your 
preselected temperature setting as the 
basis for adjusting the interior climate to 
adapt to external influences: summer, win-
ter.  

Driving tips
 123Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
to as hydroplaning, and is characterized 
by a partial or complete loss of contact 
between tires and road surface, ultimately 
undermining your ability to steer and brake 
the vehicle.< 
Driving through water 
Do not drive through water on the 
road if it is deeper than 1 ft/30 cm, 
and then only at walking speed at the most. 
Otherwise, the vehicle's engine, the electri-
cal systems and the transmission may be 
damaged.< 
Brake system 
Braking with ABS 
The best way to achieve the best response 
from the ABS is to apply maximum pres-
sure to the brake pedal Ð panic stop. Since 
the vehicle maintains steering responsive-
ness, you can nevertheless avoid possible 
obstacles with a minimum of steering 
effort. 
Pulsation at the brake pedal combines with 
sounds from the hydraulic circuits to indi-
cate to the driver that ABS is in its active 
mode. 
Do not drive with your foot resting on 
the brake pedal. Otherwise, even light 
but consistent pedal pressure can lead to 
high temperatures, brake wear and possi-
bly even brake failure.< 
Disc brakes 
Driving in wet conditions 
While driving in wet conditions and in 
heavy rain, it is a good idea to apply light 
pressure to the brake pedal every few 
miles. Monitor traffic conditions to ensure 
that this maneuver does not endanger 
other road users. The heat generated in this 
process helps dry the pads and rotors to 
ensure that full braking efficiency will then 
be available when you need it. 
Hills 
You can retain full and unimpaired braking 
efficiency by downshifting to a gear in 
which only minimal brake applications are 
needed when descending long or steep 
downhill stretches. 
You can further enhance the engine's 
braking effect by selecting a lower gear 
in the automatic transmission's manual 
mode, downshifting as far as first gear 
on extremely steep stretches, refer to 
page 67. This strategy helps you avoid 
placing excessive loads on the brake sys-
tem. 
Never allow the vehicle to coast with 
the transmission in Neutral Ð or with 
the engine switched off Ð as there is no 
engine braking when the transmission is in 
Neutral, and no power-assist for brakes 
and steering when the engine is not run-
ning. 
Never allow floor mats, carpets or any other 
objects to protrude into the area around the 
accelerator and brake pedals and obstruct 
their movement.< 
Corrosion 
When the vehicle is driven only occasion-
ally, during extended periods when the 
vehicle is not used at all, and in operating 
conditions where brake applications are 
less frequent, there is an increased ten-
dency for corrosion to form on rotors, while 
contaminants accumulate on the brake 
pads. This occurs because the minimal 
pressure which must be exerted by the 
pads during brake applications to clean the 
rotors is not reached. 
Should corrosion form on the brake rotors, 
the brakes will tend to respond with a pul-
sating effect that even extended applica-
tion will fail to cure. 
Brake pads 
If the brake pad wear warning lamp 
appears in the Check Control, 
accompanied by a text. Please take 
careful note of the additional information on 
the Control Display.  

Starting the navigation system
130
Starting the navigation system
GPS
Enter data only when the vehicle is 
stationary, and always obey the traffic 
regulations and road signs in the event of 
any contradiction between traffic and road 
conditions and the instructions issued by 
the navigation system. If you do not 
observe this precaution, you may be in vio-
lation of the law, and can endanger vehicle 
occupants and other road users.<
GPS stands for Global Positioning System.
This integral component within your vehi-
cle's navigation system relies on reference 
satellites to determine the precise position 
of your vehicle.
By allowing you to find your destination 
without having to consult conventional 
road maps as you drive, the navigation sys-
tem makes an important contribution to 
traffic safety.
The result: the navigation system provides 
you with dependable guidance to your des-
tination.
Navigation CD/DVD
Navigation CDs/DVDs are inserted in the 
navigation computer located behind the left 
side trim in the luggage compartment.
You can use navigation CDs as of 2001-1 
and navigation DVDs in your navigation 
computer.
To ensure that your vehicle's navigation 
system has access to the latest highway 
network information, always load the most 
recent CD/DVD version of the digital road 
map.
As is the case with conventional road 
maps, the navigation CDs/DVDs are sub-
ject to periodic updates to ensure that they 
reflect the latest information and surveys.
Navigation CDs/DVDs are available at 
your BMW center.<
Changing navigation CDs/DVDs
As you drive your BMW, the computer will 
alert you when you are leaving the area 
stored on your current navigation CD/DVD; 
you should respond by changing the navi-
gation CD/DVD in the navigation computer. 
Navigation CDs contain road maps cover-
ing one or more countries or regions.
Roadmaps of Europe are stored on the 
navigation DVD.
To change the navigation CD/DVD:
1.Press the button
* 

Navigation
Entertainment
Driving tips
 155Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Mobility
Weather Band 
Weather Radio is a service of the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Ð 
NOAA Ð of the U.S. Department of Com-
merce. Weather messages are repeated 
every four to six minutes and are routinely 
revised every one to three hours, or more 
frequently if needed. Most of the stations 
operate 24 hours daily. During severe 
weather, National Weather Service fore-
casters can interrupt the routine weather 
broadcasts and substitute special warning 
messages. If you have a question concern-
ing NOAA Weather Radio, please contact 
your nearest National Weather Service 
Office, or write to National Weather Service 
Ð Attn: W/OM11 Ð, National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, 1325 East-
West Highway, Silver Spring, MD. 20910.
Selecting Weather Band 
1.Select "WB" and confirm 
2.Select channels and confirm.With satellite radio:
1.Select "AM..." and confirm
2.Each time you confirm "AM...", the sys-
tem alternately switches between the 
"AM" and "Weather" mode
3.Select channels and confirm.
In some regions, only one or two 
channels can be received or Weather 
Band stations are unavailable.<
Satellite radio*
You can receive approx. 100 different 
channels with high sound quality.
You can listen to one of these channels 
free of charge at any time to obtain a 
first impression. The channel is marked 
with .
To listen to additional channels of your 
choice, you must have these channels 
enabled.
You may experience signal drops and 
muting events related to this new 
technology.< 1.{Radio}
2.{Station 1 ..12}. 

Radio
156
Enabling channels
1.Select "SAT..." and confirm.
The channels that can be received are 
shown in the list
2.Select a channel and confirm
3.Dial the displayed telephone number to 
have the system enabled.
During enabling, leave the ignition 
switched on.
Channel selection
1.Select "SAT..." and confirm. 
Each time you confirm "SAT...", the sys-
tem alternately changes between 
"Channels", "Category" and the "Pre-
sets".
The enabled channels are displayed 
with  
2.Select a channel and confirm
Additional information
3.Confirm channel once again.
The name of the artiste, the title of the 
track and the name of the album are 
displayed.
Notes
As a rule, reception is guaranteed under a 
clear sky. If you are unable to receive any 
channel, the message "ACQUIRING..." 
appears in the status line. "DISPLAY ESN" 
shows the electronic serial number on the 
Control Display. The following also appear:
>"Call Sirius ( ) to Subscribe", or
>"Call Sirius ( ) to activate"
to subscribe or activate the selected chan-
nel.
When there is a signal blockage or the 
transmission is suspended momentarily for 
more than 4 seconds:
Service may be interrupted or 
unavailable for specific reasons such 
as environmental or topografic conditions 
and other factors that Satellite Radio can-
not directly control. The signal might not be 
available in tunnels, in parking garages, 
next to tall buildings, near trees with dense 
foliage, near mountains or other possible  

Navigation
Entertainment
Driving tips
 157Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Mobility
strong sources of radio interference.
Service should resume normally after the 
source of signal unavailability has been 
cleared.<
Selecting a category
1.Select "SAT..." and keep pressing until 
"Category" appears. 
The categories are shown in the cate-
gory list
2.Select a category, e.g. "POP", and con-
firm.
All the channels available in the cate-
gory "POP" are displayed
3.Storing channels and selecting memory 
locations, refer to next section. Addi-
tional information, refer to page 156.
Storing a channel
1.Select "SAT..." and confirm
2.Select the desired channel
3.Select "STORE" and confirm.
After confirming, you are in the preset 
list4.Turn the controller and select a memory 
location where the channel is to be 
stored and press the controller for sev-
eral seconds.
Selecting a stored channel
Turn the controller in the preset list to 
select and confirm stored channels. 
Up to twelve previously stored stations can 
be selected.
Next channel
Press to select the desired direction.
The next channel that appears on the Con-
trol Display is selected.
1.{Radio}
2.{Station 1 ..12}.