Controls
3Reference
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Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Contents
The fastest way to find specific topics is
to use the index, refer to page218.
Using this Owner's Manual
4 Notes
7 Reporting safety defects
At a glance
10Cockpit
17 Control Center
26 Voice command
Controls
34Opening and closing
46 Adjustments
58 Transporting children safely
62 Driving
81 Everything under control
91 Technology for comfort, convenience
and safety
100 Lamps
103 A congenial climate
112 Practical interior accessories
Driving tips
122Things to remember when driving
Navigation
130Starting navigation system
132 Destination entry
139 Destination guidance
145 What to do if …
Entertainment
148On/off, tone
152 Radio
158 CD Compact Disc
160 CD changer
163 TV
165 DVD changer
Communications
174Using the phone in your vehicle
182 BMW Assist
Mobility
186Refueling
188 Wheels and tires
194 Under the hood
198 Maintenance
200 Rules and regulations
201 Replacing components
209 Giving and receiving assistance
Reference
214Technical data
218 Everything from A to Z
Controls
95Reference
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Communications
Navigation
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Mobility
Have the system checked as soon as pos-
sible.
Display of the previously described
malfunction on Canadian models.
Dynamic Drive
The concept
Dynamic Drive minimizes body roll and
optimizes vehicle stability during cornering
and evasive maneuvers.
Active stabilizers at the front and rear axles
form the basis for Dynamic Drive. Suspen-
sion compliance adapts to suit driving con-
ditions, varying from performance-oriented
during cornering to smooth and comfort-
oriented when the vehicle is proceeding in
a straight line.
The system assumes operational status
each time you start the engine.
Driving with Dynamic Drive
During vehicle operation, the system con-
tinuously runs through closed-loop control
cycles lasting only fractions of a second.
Malfunction
The warning lamp lights up, accom-
panied by a status message in the
Check Control. Please take note of
the additional information on the Control
Display. A malfunction has occurred in the
system. Have the system checked as soon
as possible.
If the Dynamic Drive system switches
off in response to malfunction, please
remember to adapt your speed accord-
ingly, especially in curves.
The suspension will be noticeably softer
and the vehicle will display a greater ten-
dency to tilt during cornering and in cross-
winds.
If a Check Control message stating that you
should stop appears in addition to the red
symbol, stop immediately and switch off
the engine. In this case the oil level in the
reservoir may have dropped below the min-imum, possibly owing to a leak in the
hydraulic system.
Please observe the additional instructions
provided on the Control Display.<
EDC Electronic Damping
Control*
The suspension responds to changes in
factors such as road surface, or operating
conditions such as steering and braking, by
adapting to the new conditions within frac-
tions of a second.
Two programs are available; they can be
selected in the "Settings" menu.
Comfort mode
The Comfort mode is suitable for use
throughout the vehicle's entire speed range
and regardless of load.
Sport program
You should select the Sport program for
consistently performance-oriented
response from shock absorbers and steer-
ing.
Flat Tire Monitor
The concept
The Flat Tire Monitor keeps track of the
inflation pressures in the four fitted tires as
you drive. The system provides an alert
whenever the inflation pressure drops sig-
nificantly in relation to the pressure another
tire.
Technology for comfort, convenience and safety
96 The check of the tire inflation pressure is
based on monitoring the relative speeds of
the wheels. A flat tire is detected and
reported on the basis of a deviation in cer-
tain speed ratios.
Functional requirements
So that the Flat Tire Monitor can learn the
correct inflation pressure, please perform
the following:
1.Check the inflation pressures in all tires
2.Compare with the inflation pressure
table on page189 and correct if neces-
sary
3.Initialize the system.
System limits
The Flat Tire Monitor cannot indicate
sudden severe tire damage caused by
outside factors and does not detect a natu-
ral, even pressure drop in all four tires.<
In the following situations, on the other
hand, there can be delays in detecting tire
pressure losses, and even system failure:
>When you are driving on snow-covered
or slippery road surfaces
>In the case of performance-oriented
driving: slip on the drive wheels, high
lateral acceleration
>False alarms and undetected loss of
pressure may occur when you are driv-
ing with snow chains fitted.
Initializing system
Perform the initialization immediately
after correcting the inflation pressure,
changing a tire or changing a wheel or all
wheels. A drive is necessary for this pur-
pose.<
1.Start the engine, but do not drive off
2.Select "RPA" from the "Settings" menu
and confirm your selection. The initial-
ization menu appears 3.Select "SET" and confirm your selection
4.Drive off.
"FTM is being initialized" is displayed as the
status.
It takes at least 10 minutes before the Flat
Tire Monitor can detect and report a flat
tire.
When driving with snow chains, do
not initialize the system.<
Select and confirm to exit from the
menu.
Indication of a flat tire
The warning lamp lights up red,
accompanied by a status message
in the Check Control. In addition, an
acoustic signal sounds. A flat tire or a major
air loss has occurred.
1.Reduce speed and stop the vehicle
carefully. Avoid sudden braking and
steering maneuvers
2.Identify damaged tire
If identification is not possible,
contact your BMW center.<
3.Replace the damaged tire, refer to
Changing wheels on page204.
Controls
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Vehicles with run-flat tires:
1.Cautiously reduce the vehicle speed to
below 50 mph/80 km/h. Avoid sudden
braking and steering maneuvers. Do not
exceed a vehicle speed of 50 mph/80
km/h
Due to the reinforcement on the
side walls of the run-flat tires,
inflation pressure loss can not usually
be recognized from the outside, refer to
Run-flat tires on page206.<
2.To continue driving, comply with the
instructions for driving with damaged
tires on page206.
Malfunction
The indicator lamp lights up yellow,
accompanied by a status message
in the Check Control. The Flat Tire
Monitor has malfunctioned or failed. Have
the system checked as soon as possible.
Self-leveling suspension*
Malfunction
A Check Control message appear-
ing together with this symbol indi-
cates a malfunction in the self-level-
ing suspension. Please take note of the
additional information on the Control Dis-
play.
Stop and inspect the vehicle. If the rear of
the vehicle is visibly lower than the front,
possibly accompanied by a tilt noticeable
when you compare the left rear with the
right rear, please respond by immediately
proceeding to the nearest BMW center.
Drive with appropriate caution in the mean-
time. The vehicle has reduced ground
clearance and driving comfort may be
noticeably reduced. Even if the attitude of
the vehicle is normal, you should consult
the nearest BMW center if the warning
lamp indicates a system fault.
Brake Force Display
The Brake Force Display indicates the
intensity with which you are applying your
brakes to drivers of following vehicles.
The display consists of two stages:
>Normal braking:
The brake lamps in the tail lamp assem-
blies and the high-mount brake lamp on
the rear tray light up during braking
>Heavy braking and braking with ABS:
The rear lamps also light up with the
same intensity as the standard brake
lamp units to enhance the warning
effect of the brake lamps.
Things to remember when driving
122
Things to remember when driving
Break-in procedures
To ensure that your vehicle continues to
furnish optimized economy of operation
throughout an extended service life, we
request that you devote careful attention
to the following information.
Engine and differential
Up to 1,200 miles/2,000 km:
During this initial period you should attempt
to avoid constant, steady-state operation
and vary both vehicle and engine speeds
as often as possible. Until the break-in
period has been completed you should
also refrain from exceeding the following:
>4,500 rpm or 105 mph/170 km/h
Always obey all official speed limits.
Avoid full-throttle operation and use of the
transmission's kick-down mode during
these initial miles.
Once you have driven 1,200 miles/
2,000 km, the engine or vehicle speeds can
be gradually increased.
Tires
Due to technical factors associated with
their manufacture, tires do not achieve their
full traction potential until after an initial
break-in period. Therefore, drive reservedly
during the first 200 miles/300 km.
Brake system
Brakes require an initial break-in period of
approx. 300 miles/500 km to achieve opti-
mized contact and wear patterns between
brake pads and rotors.
Following component replacements
Observe the break-in instructions again if
previously addressed components must be
replaced again during driving later.
General driving notes
Hot exhaust system
Extreme temperatures occur at the
catalytic converter on this and every
catalyst-equipped vehicle. Do not remove
the heat shields installed adjacent to vari-
ous sections of the exhaust system, and
never apply undercoating to them. When
driving, standing at idle and while parking
take care to avoid possible contact
between the hot exhaust system and any
highly flammable materials such as hay,
leaves, grass, etc. Such contact could lead
to a fire, accompanied by the risk of serious
property damage as well as personal
injury.<
Air conditioning
Condensation forms in the air conditioner
system during operation, and then exits
under the vehicle. Traces of condensed
water under the vehicle are thus normal.
Before driving into a car wash
1.Fold in the exterior mirrors, refer to
page53, as otherwise they could be
damaged due to the width of the vehicle
2.Leave the remote control in the ignition
lock, as otherwise the P position of the
automatic transmission will automati-
cally be selected when the remote con-
trol is removed. Refer to page63
and69.
With Comfort Access, be sure to
observe the instructions on page63
3.Release the parking brake, especially
when you have activated Automatic
Hold. Refer to page64 and65.
Driving tips
123Reference
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Mobility
Hydroplaning
When driving on wet or slushy roads,
reduce road speed. If you do not, a
wedge of water can form between tires and
road surface. This phenomenon is referred
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
Only drive through water with a maxi-
mum depth of 1 ft/30 cm, and then
only at walking speed at the most. Other-
wise, the vehicle's engine, the electrical
systems and the transmission may be dam-
aged.<
Safe braking
Your BMW is equipped with ABS as stan-
dard equipment. The best way to brake is
to apply maximum pressure to the brake
pedal during emergency: full brake applica-
tion. Since the vehicle maintains steering
responsiveness, 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.
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 maneu-
ver 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
To prevent overheating and reduced
efficiency of the brake system, drive
long or steep downhill gradients in the gear
in which the least braking is required. Otherwise, even light but consistent pedal
pressure can lead to high temperatures,
brake wear and possibly even brake fail-
ure.<
You can further enhance the engine's brak-
ing 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
page70. This strategy helps you avoid
placing excessive loads on the brake sys-
tem.
Never allow the vehicle to coast with
the transmission in Neutral – or with
the engine switched off – 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 on brake rotors
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.
Mobile communications devices in
vehicle
BMW does not recommend using
mobile communications devices, e.g.
portable phones, in the interior of the vehi-
cle without a direct connection to an out-
side antenna. Otherwise the vehicle elec-
tronics and mobile communications device
can affect each other. In addition, it is not
Things to remember when driving
124 ensured that the radiation which results
during transmission will be discharged
from the vehicle interior.<
Cargo loading
To avoid loading the tires beyond
their approved carrying capacity,
never overload the vehicle. Overloading
can lead to overheating and increases the
rate at which damage develops inside the
tires. The ultimate result can assume the
form of a sudden air loss.<
Determine loading limit
1.Locate the following statement on your
vehicle's door pillar
*:
The combined weight of occu-
pants and cargo should never
exceed XXX lbs. or YYY kg, as other-
wise the vehicle may be damaged and
unstable driving conditions may
result.<
2.Determine the combined weight of the
driver and passenger that will be riding
in your vehicle
3.Subtract the combined weight of the
driver and passenger from XXX lbs. or
YYY kg
4.The resulting figure equals the available
amount of cargo and luggage load
capacity.
For example, if the XXX amount equals
1,400 lbs. and there will be five 150-lbs.
passengers in your vehicle, the amount
of available cargo and luggage load
capacity is 650 lbs.:
1,400 Ibs. minus 750 Ibs. = 650 Ibs.5.Determine the combined weight of lug-
gage and cargo being loaded on the
vehicle. That weight should not exceed
the available cargo and luggage load
capacity calculated in step 4
6.If your vehicle will be towing a trailer,
part of the load from your trailer will be
transferred to your vehicle. Consult the
manual for transporting a trailer to
determine how this may reduce the
available cargo and luggage load
capacity of your vehicle.
Load
The permitted load is the total of the weight
of occupants and cargo/luggage. The
greater the weight of occupants, the less
cargo/luggage can be transported.
Stowing cargo
>Load heavy cargo as far forward and as
low as possible, placing it directly
behind the bulkhead behind the rear
seats
>Cover sharp edges and corners
>For very heavy cargo when the rear seat
is not occupied, secure each safety belt
in the opposite buckle.
Mobility
This section helps you maintain your
mobility by supplying important information
on vital topics including fuels and
lubricants, wheels and tires, service,
maintenance and how to deal with any
problems that may occur.