2006 MINI Hardtop 2 Door Owner's Manual

55
OVERVIEW REPAIRS OPERATIONCONTROLS DATA INDEX
PARKING BRAKE MANUAL TRANSMISSION
force. Keep your thumb pressed against the
release button while pulling the lever up
carefully.
Otherwise, excessive force could lead to
overbraking and loss of traction, i.e. fish-
tailing, at the rear axle.<
To avoid corrosion and one-sided
braking, apply the parking brake
lightly from time to time when coasting to
a standstill, for instance at a traffic light,
provided that it is safe to do so. The brake
lamps do not come on when the parking
brake is engaged.<
6-speed transmission*
When shifting into 5th or 6th gear,
press the gearshift lever to the right.
Otherwise, the engine could be damaged
by accidentally engaging 3rd or 4th gear.<
Reverse gear
Before selecting reverse gear, ensure the
vehicle is stationary; then, fully depress the
clutch and pause briefly before moving the
gearshift lever into position.
5-speed transmission:
Press the gearshift lever to the right and to
the back.
6-speed transmission:
Press the gearshift lever towards the left.
Thereby overcome the slight resistance and
press forward.

56
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WITH STEPTRONIC*
In addition to the fully automatic mode,
you can shift gears manually using Step-
tronic, refer to page57.
Selector lever positions
P R N D M/S + –
Range selection
>The selector lever can be moved out of
position P when the ignition is switched
on or the engine is running: interlock.
>While the vehicle is stationary and
before shifting out of P or N, depress the
footbrake in order to disengage the
selector lever's lock mechanism: shift-
lock.
Keep your foot on the brake until start-
ing off, otherwise the vehicle will start
to move when a drive position is
engaged.
A lock prevents the selector lever from
being inadvertently moved into the R and P
positions. To override the lock, press the
button on the front of the selector lever
knob, see arrow.
If the engine speed is too high when
the vehicle is at a standstill, the selec-
tor lever is also blocked to protect the
transmission.
If the selector lever is not placed in
position P when the vehicle is parked, the
position display of the selector lever stays
on. This can lead to battery discharge.<
PPark
Select only when the vehicle is completely
stopped. The transmission locks to prevent
the drive wheels from turning.
RReverse
Select only when the vehicle is completely
stopped.
NNeutral, idle
Select this when you are in a car wash, for
example. The vehicle can roll.
D Drive: automatic driving position
This position is designed for driving under
all normal operating conditions.
Under normal operation conditions, fuel
consumption is lowest when you drive in
position D.

57
OVERVIEW REPAIRS OPERATIONCONTROLS DATA INDEX
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WITH STEPTRONIC*
Kickdown
Kickdown can be used to achieve maxi-
mum vehicle performance.
Press the accelerator pedal past the
increased resistance point at the full-throt-
tle position.
Available displays
P R N D SD M1 to M6 EP
M/S + – Manual mode and Sport
program
Switch from D into M/S + –:
This activates the Sport program and dis-
plays SD in the gear indicator in the speed-
ometer.
Press selector lever once:
This switches from the Sport program to
the manual mode.
In order to accelerate rapidly in the
M/S + – Manual mode and in the
Sport program, e.g. when passing, shift
downwards manually or by kickdown.<
Whenever you want to return to automatic
shifting, just move the selector lever
toward the left to position D.

58
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WITH STEPTRONIC*
Switching from M/S + – Manual mode into
the selector lever positions P, R and N is
only possible via D.
Shifting with the selector lever
>Press selector lever briefly towards +:
Transmission shifts upwards
>Press selector lever briefly towards –:
Transmission shifts downwards.
M1 to M6 appear in the gear indicator.
Shifting on the steering wheel*
The shift paddles allow the gears to be
changed rapidly and, above all, safely, since
both hands can remain on the steering
wheel.
To shift up or down with one of the two
shift paddles:
>Pull the shift paddle:
Transmission shifts up
>Press the shift paddle:
Transmission shifts down.
M1 to M6 appear in the gear indicator.
The transmission will only execute upshifts
or downshifts that will result in a plausible
combination of vehicle speed and engine
rpm, e.g. downshifts that would result in
excessive engine speed are not executed.
In the MINI COOPER S, with the selec-
tor lever in position D, automatic
mode, you can shift gears using the shift
paddles on the steering wheel. The trans-
mission automatically switches to manual
mode. If you do not shift gears with the
shift paddles or accelerate for a certain
amount of time, the transmission auto-
matically returns to automatic mode.<
Malfunction
EP appears on the display. The transmission
system is malfunctioning. Avoid high loads.
All selector lever positions can still be
engaged; in the forward driving positions,
however, the vehicle can only be driven
with a limited gear selection.
Have the system checked immediately.
Jump-starting and towing, refer to
page140 ff.

59
OVERVIEW REPAIRS OPERATIONCONTROLS DATA INDEX
PARKING LAMPS/LOW BEAMS
1 Parking lamps
2 Low beams
3 Automatic headlamp control
*
Parking lamps
Turn the light switch to position 1.
The front, rear and side vehicle
lighting is switched on.
For the additional option of activating the
lights on one side of the vehicle for parking,
refer to Switching on the standing lamps,
page59.
The parking lamps discharge the bat-
tery.
Avoid using them for longer periods of
time; otherwise, you may not be able to
start the engine.<


Low beams
Turn the light switch to position 2.
With the low beams on and with
the ignition switched off, only the
parking lamps will remain on.
Automatic headlamp control*
In switch position 3, the system
automatically activates and can-
cels the low beams in response to
changes in ambient light, for example in
tunnels, at dusk, and when there is precipi-
tation.
When driving into a tunnel with bright
overhead lights, there may be a delay
before the low beams come on.
The low beams may also come on when the
sun is sitting low on a blue sky.
When you switch on the fog lamps,
the low-beam headlamps remain on
regardless of the ambient light. When the
daytime driving lamps are activated, refer
to page60, the low beams come on and
remain lit when the switch is in position 1
and the ignition is switched on.<
Automatic headlamp control cannot
serve as a substitute for the driver's
judgement in determining when the vehi-
cle lights should be switched on. For exam-
ple, 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 headlamps on manually.<
You can have the sensitivity of your
vehicle's automatic headlamp con-
trol adjusted.<
Pathway lighting
If you activate the headlamp flasher after
having switched off the engine and the
lights, the low beams will stay lit for a pre-
set period of time.
You can have this function pro-
grammed.<
Switching on the standing lamps
For parking, you can activate lights on one
side of the vehicle. Observe local laws.
In ignition key position 0:
Move the lever to the adequate turn signal
indicator position.
The standing lamps discharge the
battery. Avoid using them for longer
periods of time; otherwise, you may not be
able to start the engine.<

60
PARKING LAMPS/LOW BEAMS TURN SIGNAL INDICATOR/HEADLAMP FLASHER
'Lights on' warning
If the lights have not been switched off and
the ignition key is in position 0, an acoustic
signal sounds for a few seconds when you
open the driver's door to remind you that
the lights have not been switched off.
Daytime driving lamps*
If convenient, the light switch can be left in
position 2.
When the ignition is switched off, the
external lights go out.
You can have this function activated/
deactivated.<
1 Turn signal indicators
2 High beams/Headlamp flasher
To signal briefly
Gently push the lever up to the point of
resistance and hold it there, if necessary.
The indicator lamp flashes and the
relay clicks faster than normal: a turn
signal indicator has failed.<

61
OVERVIEW REPAIRS OPERATIONCONTROLS DATA INDEX
INSTRUMENT LIGHTING FOG LAMPS INTERIOR LAMPS
To control the instrument lighting, press
the button.
To increase the illumination intensity
Press the button until the desired bright-
ness is achieved.
To decrease the illumination intensity
Press the button briefly.
With each brief pressing of the button, the
illumination intensity is reduced in steps.
When the parking lamps/low beams are
switched on:
Tap the switch upwards or downwards.
Tap it again to switch off.
Fog lamps*
The parking lamps or low beams
must be on. The green LED in the
switch lights up.
The fog lamps are on.
Rear fog lamp*
The low beams must be on. The
yellow LED in the switch lights up.
The rear fog lamp is on.
Observe all legal regulations concerning
the use of fog lamps.
Switching the interior light in the MINI
on and off manually
Press button 1 briefly.
Permanently turn off interior light:
Press button 1 until the interior light comes
on for a short while.
Press button 1 to revert to normal opera-
tion.

62
INTERIOR LAMPS WASHER/WIPER SYSTEM
Switching the interior light in the MINI
Convertible on and off manually
Press button 1 briefly.
Permanently turn off interior light:
Press button 1 until the interior light comes
on for a short while.
Press button 1 to revert to normal opera-
tion.
Switching the reading lamps on and
off
Press button 2.
0Wipers parked
1 Intermittent operation or rain sensor
2 Normal wiper speed
3 Fast wiper speed
4Brief wipe
5 Clean windshield and headlamps
Intermittent operation
Not on vehicles with rain sensor.
The interval time for the wipers is depen-
dent on the vehicle speed.
Rain sensor*
The rain sensor is located on the wind-
shield, directly in front of the interior rear-
view mirror.
When the rain sensor is activated, the
windshield wipers are automatically con-
trolled depending on the amount of mois-
ture, including snow, on the windshield.
To activate the rain sensor:
Lever in position 1.
The wipers will move once across the wind-
shield.
To deactivate the rain sensor:
Lever in position 0.
Switch the rain sensor off when pass-
ing through an automatic car wash.
Failure to do so could result in damage
caused by undesired wiper activation.<
Normal wiper speed
When the vehicle is stationary, the wipers
switch automatically to intermittent wip-
ing.
You can have this function activated/
deactivated.<
Fast wiper speed
When the vehicle is stationary, the wipers
switch automatically to normal wiper
speed.