2006 BMW 650I COUPE&CONVERTIBLE instrument panel

Controls
47Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Adjustments
Sitting safely
The ideal sitting position can make a vital con-
tribution to relaxed, fatigue-free driving. In the
interaction with the safety belts, the head
restraints and the airbags, the seat position
plays an important role in an accident. To
ensure that the safety systems operate with
optimal efficiency, we strongly urge you to fol-
low the instructions contained in the following
section.
For additional information on transporting chil-
dren safely, refer to page56.
Airbags
Always maintain an adequate distance
between yourself and the airbags. Always
hold the steering wheel by its rim with hands at
the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock positions to mini-
mize the risk of injuries to your hands and arms
in the event of airbag deployment.
No one and nothing is to come between the air-
bags and the seat occupant.
Do not use the cover of the front airbag on the
front passenger side as a storage area. Make
sure that the front passenger is sitting correctly
and does not rest feet or legs on the instrument
panel, otherwise leg injuries can occur if the
knee and front airbags are triggered.
Make sure that occupants do not rest their head
on the side or head airbag; otherwise, injuries
can occur if the airbags are triggered.<
Even if you adhere to all the instructions, inju-
ries resulting from contact with airbags cannot
be fully excluded, depending on the circum-
stances. The ignition and inflation noise may
provoke a mild hearing loss in extremely sensi-
tive individuals. This effect is usually only tem-
porary.
For airbag locations and additional information
on airbags, refer to page92.
Head restraints
A correctly adjusted head restraint reduces the
risk of injury to cervical vertebrae in an accident.
Adjust the head restraint so that its center
is approx. at ear level. Otherwise, there is
increased danger of injury in the event of an
accident.<
Head restraints, refer to page50.
Safety belt
Before every drive, make sure that safety belts
are being worn at all of the occupied seats. Air-
bags complement the safety belt as an addi-
tional safety device, but they do not represent a
substitute.
Your vehicle has four seats that are each
equipped with a safety belt.
Never allow more than one person to
wear a single safety belt. Never allow
infants or small children to ride in a passenger's
lap. Make sure that the belt lies low around the
hips in the lap area and does not press on the
abdomen. The safety belt may not lie across the
neck, rub on sharp edges, be routed over solid
or breakable objects or be pinched. Wear the
safety belt without twisting, snugly across the
lap and shoulders, as close to the body as pos-
sible. Otherwise, the belt can slip over the hips
in the lap area in a frontal impact and injure the
abdomen. Avoid wearing clothing that prevents
the belt from fitting properly and pull the shoul-
der belt upward periodically to readjust the ten-
sion across your lap in order to avoid a reduc-
tion in the retention effect of the safety belt.<
Safety belts refer to page51.

Controls
93Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
head and side airbags help provide protection in
the event of a side impact. The relevant side air-
bag supports the side upper body area. The
head airbag supports the head. The knee airbag
protects the legs from colliding with the cockpit.
The airbags are deliberately not triggered in
every impact situation, e. g. less severe acci-
dents or rear-end collisions.
Do not apply adhesive materials to the
cover panels of the airbags, cover them or
modify them in any other way. Do not attempt to
remove the airbag retention system from the
vehicle. Do not modify or tamper with either the
wiring or the individual components in the air-
bag system. This category includes the uphol-
stery in the center of the steering wheel, on the
instrument panel, the side trim panels on the
doors and on the Coupe, the roof pillars along
with the sides of the headliner. Do not attempt
to remove or dismantle the steering wheel.
Do not touch the individual components
directly after the system has been triggered,
because there is a danger of burns.
In the event of malfunctions, deactivation, or
triggering of the airbag restraint system, have
the testing, repair, removal, and disposal of air-
bag generators carried out only by a BMW cen-
ter or a workshop that works according to BMW
repair procedures with appropriately trained
personnel and has the required explosives
licenses. Unprofessional attempts to service
the system could lead to failure in an emer-
gency or undesired airbag activation, either of
which could result in personal injury.<
Warnings and information on the airbags is also
provided on the sun visors.
Automatic deactivation of front
passenger airbags
The occupation of the seat is detected by eval-
uating the impression on the occupied seat sur-
face of the front passenger seat. The system
correspondingly activates or deactivates the
front, knee and side airbag on the front passen-
ger side.The current status of the front passenger
airbag, i.e. deactivated or activated, is
indicated by the indicator lamp over the interior
rearview mirror, refer to Operating state of front
passenger airbags below.<
Before transporting a child in the front
passenger seat, read the safety informa-
tion and follow the instructions under Trans-
porting children safely, refer to page56.
The front, knee and side airbag on the front pas-
senger side can be deactivated for teenagers
and adults in certain seat positions; the indica-
tor lamp for the front passenger airbags lights
up when this occurs. In these cases, change the
seat position so that the front passenger air-
bags are activated and the indicator lamp goes
out. If the desired status cannot be produced by
changing the seat position, transport the corre-
sponding person in the rear seat.
Do not fit seat covers, seat cushion padding,
beaded mats or other items onto the front pas-
senger seat unless they are specifically recom-
mended by BMW. Do not place objects under
the seat which could press against the seat
from below. Otherwise a correct evaluation of
the occupied seat surface cannot be ensured.<
Operating state of front passenger
airbags
The illustration here shows a possible arrange-
ment in the Coupe. With some vehicle equip-
ment packages or in the Convertible, the
arrangement of the switches and indicator
lamps may differ somewhat.
The indicator lamp for the front passenger air-
bags indicates the operating status of the front,
knee and side airbag on the front passenger
side depending on whether the seat is occu-

Controls
103Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Front fog lamps
The parking lamps or low beams must be
switched on for the fog lamps to operate. The
green indicator lamp in the instrument cluster
lights up when the fog lamps are switched on.
The fog lamps are switched off whenever the
high beams are switched on.
If the automatic headlamp control is acti-
vated, the low beams will come on auto-
matically when you switch on the fog lamps.<
Instrument lighting
You can control the lighting intensity by using
the knurled wheel.
Interior lamps
Control of the interior lamps, footwell lamps,
door entry lighting, courtesy lamps
* and sill
panel lighting
* is automatic.
With the courtesy lamps, LED lights are located
in the door handles to illuminate the exterior
area before the doors.
To protect the battery, all lamps in the
vehicle are switched off approx. 15 min-
utes after radio readiness is switched off, refer
to Start/Stop button on page58.<
Switching interior lamps on and off
manually
Press button 1.
If you want the interior lamps to remain off con-
tinuously, maintain pressure on the button for
approx. 3 seconds.
To revert to normal operation, briefly press the
button.
Reading lamps
The reading lamps are beside the interior lamp:
You can turn them on and off using the but-
tons2 located next to the lamps.

Climate
108
Ventilation for cooling
Adjust the vent outlets to direct the flow of cool
air in your direction, for instance, if the interior
has become too warm, etc.
Draft-free ventilation
Set the vent outlets so that the air flows past
you and is not directed straight at you.
Microfilter/activated-charcoal filter
The microfilter removes dust and pollen from
the incoming air. The activated-charcoal filter
provides additional protection by filtering gas-
eous pollutants from the outside air. Your BMW
center replaces this combined filter as a stan-
dard part of your scheduled maintenance.
You can have more detailed information shown
on the Control Display, refer to page77.
Parked car ventilation
The concept
The parked car ventilation blows air into the
passenger compartment to lower interior tem-
peratures.
It is ready to use in the parked-car mode at any
outside temperature.
You can set two different times for the system
to start. The parked car ventilation can also be
switched on and off directly. It remains
switched on for 30 minutes.
Since the system uses a substantial amount of
electrical current, you should refrain from acti-
vating it twice in succession without allowing
the battery to be recharged in normal operation
between uses.
The air emerges through the upper body region
vent outlets in the instrument panel. These vent
outlets must be open for the system to operate.
The parked car ventilation system is operated
via iDrive.
Switching on and off directly
iDrive, for explanation of principle, refer to
page16.
1.Open the start menu.
2.Move the controller to the left to open "Cli-
mate".
3.Select "Parked car operation" and press the
controller.
4.Select "Automatic ventilation" and press
the controller.
5.Select "Parked car ventilation" and press
the controller.
The parked car ventilation is switched on.
The symbol on the display of the automatic
climate control flashes.
Preselecting activation times
iDrive, for explanation of principle, refer to
page16.
1.Open the start menu.
2.Move the controller to the left to open "Cli-
mate".
3.Select "Parked car operation" and press the
controller.
4.Select "Activation time" and press the con-
troller.

Everything from A to Z
230 Instructions for navigation
system, refer to Voice
instructions139
Instrument cluster12
Instrument illumination, refer
to Instrument lighting103
Instrument lighting103
Instrument panel, refer to
Instrument cluster12
Integrated key28
Integrated universal remote
control110
Interesting destination for
navigation130
"Interim time"82
Interior lamps103
– switching on with remote
control31
Interior motion sensor36
– switching off36
Interior rearview mirror53
– automatically dimming, refer
to Automatic functions53
Interlock on automatic
transmission62
Intermittent wiper mode65
J
Jacking points204
Joystick, refer to iDrive16
Jump starting207
K
Keyless-Go, refer to Comfort
access36
Keyless opening and closing,
refer to Comfort access36
Key Memory, refer to Personal
Profile29
"Keypad"174
Keys28
– key-related settings, refer to
Personal Profile29Kick-down
– automatic transmission with
Steptronic63
– SMG Sequential Manual
Transmission62
Knock control187
L
Lamps, refer to Parking lamps/
low beams100
Lamps and bulbs201
"Languages"84
– for navigation139
Lashing eyes, refer to
Securing cargo121
Last destinations, refer to
Destination list131
"Last seat pos."49
LATCH child-restraint fixing
system57
LEDs light-emitting
diodes201
Length, refer to
Dimensions215
License plate lamps, replacing
bulbs204
Light-emitting diodes
LEDs201
Lighter113
"Lighting"65,101
Lighting
– instruments103
– of the vehicle, refer to
Lamps100
– refer to High-beam
assistant102
Light switch100
"Limit"81
Loading, refer to Cargo
loading120
"Lock after driving"32
Lock buttons in the doors,
refer to Locking33
Locking
– from inside33
– from outside31
– without key, refer to Comfort
access36Locking and unlocking doors
– from inside32
– from outside30
Locking out, refer to
Unlocking37
Locking without key, refer to
Comfort access36
Low beams100
– automatic100
– replacing bulbs201
Lower back support, refer to
Lumbar support48
Luggage compartment
– capacity217
– emergency release35
– hotel function33
– increasing capacity,
Convertible35
– opening/closing, refer to
Luggage compartment
lid34
– opening from inside34
– opening from outside34
– opening with remote
control31
Luggage compartment lid34
– emergency operation34
– emergency release35
– opening from inside34
– opening from outside34
– opening with remote
control31,34
– unlocking manually34
Lumbar support48
LW, waveband148
M
M+S tires, refer to Winter
tires193
Maintenance
– refer to Service
requirements77
– refer to the Service and
Warranty Information
Booklet for US models199
– refer to Warranty and
Service Guide Booklet for
Canadian models199