
Technology for driving comfort and safety
52 In the following exceptional circumstances, it 
may be effective to activate the DTC for a short 
period:
>When driving on snow-covered grades, in 
slush or on uncleared, snow-covered roads
>When rocking the vehicle or starting off in 
deep snow or on loose surfaces
>When driving with snow chains
Activating DTC
Press the button briefly; the DTC indicator lamp 
lights up in the instrument cluster.
Checking 
Deactivating DTC
Press the button again; the DTC indicator lamp 
in the instrument cluster goes out.
Malfunction in the driving stability 
control systems
Have the system checked as soon as possible.Drive cautiously, think well ahead and 
avoid full brake applications, otherwise 
unstable driving conditions could result.<
The vehicle remains operational. Have the sys-
tem checked as soon as possible.
Drive cautiously and think well ahead, 
otherwise unstable driving conditions 
could result.<
Drive-off assistant
The drive-off assistant enables you to drive off 
smoothly on uphill gradients. It is not necessary 
to use the parking brake for this.
1.Hold the car in place by depressing the 
brake.
2.Release the brake and drive off without 
delay.
The drive-off assistant holds the car in 
place for approx. 2 seconds after the 
brake is released. Depending on vehicle load, 
the car may roll backwards a little during this 
time span. Drive off without delay after releas-
ing the brake. Otherwise, the drive-off assistant 
will no longer hold the car in place after approx. 
2 seconds and the car will start to roll back-
wards.< The indicator lamp flashes:
DTC controls the drive forces and 
brake forces.
The indicator lamp is lit:
DTC has been activated.
The warning lamp for the brake system 
lights up in red, together with the yel-
low indicator lamps for ABS and DSC:
The driving stability control systems 
have failed.
Canadian models display these warn-
ing lamps.
The DSC warning lamp lights up 
together with the yellow warning lamp 
for the brake system:
DSC, including DTC and DBC, are 
malfunctioning.
Canadian models display these warn-
ing lamps. 

Reference
At a glance
Controls
Driving tips
Mobility
 53
Malfunction
The warning lamp for the brake system 
lights up in yellow. The drive-off assis-
tant has failed. The car will not be held 
in place after the brake is released. Have the 
system checked as soon as possible.
Flat Tire Monitor FTM*
The concept
The Flat Tire Monitor monitors tire pressures 
while the car is being driven. The system 
reports any significant loss of pressure in one 
tire in relation to another.
In the event of tire pressure loss, the rolling 
radius of the tire changes, thereby affecting the 
rotational speed of the wheels. This change is 
detected, and a flat tire warning is issued to the 
driver.
System requirements
To ensure a reliable flat tire warning, the system 
must be initialized with the correct tire inflation 
pressures.
The system must be reinitialized each 
time a tire inflation pressure has been cor-
rected or a wheel or tire has been changed.<
System limitations
The Flat Tire Monitor is unable to warn 
the driver of sudden, severe tire damage 
caused by external factors, nor can it identify 
the gradual loss of pressure that will inevitably 
occur in all four tires over a lengthy period of 
time.<
The system could issue a false warning or func-
tion in a delayed manner in the following situa-
tions:
>System was not initialized
>Driving on a snow-covered or slippery road 
surface
>Performance-oriented driving: slip at the 
drive wheels, high levels of lateral accelera-
tion
>Driving with snow chains attached
Initializing the system
The initialization is completed while you 
are driving, and can be interrupted at any 
time. Initialization is continued automatically 
when you continue driving.
When driving with snow chains, do not initialize 
the system.<
1.Start the engine immediately before pulling 
away, but do not drive off yet.
2.Press the button until the yellow indicator 
lamp in the instrument cluster lights up for a 
few seconds.
3.Drive off.
Initialization is completed during the drive, 
without any feedback issued.
Flat tire warning
The warning lamp in the instrument 
cluster lights up in red. A signal also 
sounds. There is a flat tire or a signifi-
cant loss of tire pressure.
1.Cautiously reduce speed to 50 mph/
80 km/h or lower. Avoid strong braking and 
steering maneuvers. Do not exceed a maxi-
mum speed of 50 mph/80 km/h.
If the car is not equipped with Run-
Flat Tires, refer to page88, the stan-
dard equipment by design, do not continue 
driving. Otherwise a severe accident could 
result after a tire puncture.<
2.At the next opportunity, check the air pres-
sure in all four tires.
If the inflation pressure is correct in all 
four tires, it is possible that the Flat 
Tire Monitor was not initialized. In this case, 
initialize the system.< 

Technology for driving comfort and safety
54 3.In the event of complete tire pressure loss, 
0 psi/0 kilopascal, you can estimate the 
possible distance for continued driving on 
the basis of the following guidelines:
>With a light load:
1 person without luggage:
approx. 155 miles/250 km
>With a medium load:
1 person, cargo bay full,
or
2 persons without luggage:
approx. 90 miles/150 km
>With a full load:
2 persons, cargo bay full:
approx. 30 miles/50 km
Drive cautiously. Do not exceed a speed 
of 50 mph/80 km/h. Driving characteris-
tics change if there is a loss of tire pressure. 
This includes reduced tracking stability in brak-
ing, extended braking distance and altered nat-
ural steering characteristics.
If unusual vibration or loud noises occur during 
the journey, this may be an indication that the 
damaged tire has finally failed. Reduce your 
speed and pull over to the side of the road at the 
earliest opportunity. Otherwise, parts of the tire 
could come loose and cause an accident. Do 
not continue driving. Contact a BMW center.<
Tire Pressure Monitor TPM*
The concept
TPM monitors the tire inflation pressure in all 
four mounted tires. The system reports if infla-
tion pressure has dropped significantly in one 
or more of the tires.
System requirements
To ensure a reliable flat tire warning, the system 
must have been reset while tire inflation pres-
sures were correct.
Always use tires with TPM electronics to 
ensure that the system operates properly.The system must be reset each time a tire 
inflation pressure has been corrected or a 
wheel or tire has been changed.<
System limitations
TPM cannot report sudden serious tire 
damage due to external causes.<
The system will not operate correctly if it was 
not reset, e.g. it may report a flat tire even if the 
tire inflation pressures are correct.
The system is inactive and cannot indicate a flat 
tire if a wheel without TPM electronics is 
mounted or if other systems or devices that use 
the same radio frequency temporarily interfere 
with the TPM system.
Resetting the system
The system must be reset each time a tire 
inflation pressure has been corrected or a 
wheel or tire has been changed.<
1.Start the engine but do not drive off yet.
2.Press the button until the yellow warning 
lamp in the instrument cluster lights up for a 
few seconds.
3.Drive off.
After several minutes of driving, the current 
inflation pressures in the tires are adopted 
as the target values to be monitored. The 
resetting procedure is completed automat-
ically without further notice during the trip, 
which can be interrupted at any time. 
Resetting is continued automatically when 
you continue driving. 

Reference
At a glance
Controls
Driving tips
Mobility
 55
Warning of low tire inflation pressure
The warning lamp lights up in yellow. A 
signal also sounds. There is a flat tire or 
a significant loss of tire pressure in one 
or more tires.
1.Cautiously reduce speed to 50 mph/
80 km/h or lower. Avoid strong braking and 
steering maneuvers. Do not exceed a maxi-
mum speed of 50 mph/80 km/h.
If the car is not equipped with Run-
Flat Tires, which is the standard 
equipment by design, refer to page88, then 
do not continue driving. Doing so after a tire 
puncture may result in a severe accident.<
2.In the event of complete tire pressure loss, 
0 psi/0 kilopascal, you can estimate how far 
you can continue driving on the basis of the 
following guidelines:
>With a light load:
1 person without luggage:
approx. 155 miles/250 km
>With a medium load:
1 person, cargo bay full,
or
2 persons without luggage:
approx. 90 miles/150 km
>With a full load:
2 persons, cargo bay full:
approx. 30 miles/50 km
Drive cautiously. Do not exceed a speed 
of 50 mph/80 km/h. Driving characteris-
tics change if there is a loss of tire pressure. 
This includes reduced tracking stability in brak-
ing, extended braking distance and altered nat-
ural steering characteristics.
If unusual vibration or loud noises occur during 
the journey, this may be an indication that the 
damaged tire has finally failed. Reduce your 
speed and pull over to the side of the road at a 
suitable location at the earliest opportunity. 
Otherwise, parts of the tire could come loose 
and cause an accident. Do not continue driving. 
Contact a BMW center.<
Malfunction
The yellow warning lamp flashes and 
then lights up continuously. A flat tire 
cannot be detected.
This warning is displayed under the following 
circumstances:
>If there is a malfunction;
have the system checked.
>If a wheel without TPM electronics is 
mounted.
>If other systems or devices that use the 
same radio frequency temporarily interfere 
with the TPM.
Declaration according to NHTSA/
FMVSS 138 Tire Pressure Monitoring 
System
Each tire should be checked monthly when cold 
and inflated to the inflation pressure recom-
mended by the vehicle manufacturer on the 
vehicle placard or tire inflation pressure label. If 
your vehicle has tires of a different size than the 
size indicated on the vehicle placard or tire infla-
tion pressure label, you should determine the 
proper tire inflation pressure for those tires. As 
an added safety feature, your vehicle has been 
equipped with a tire pressure monitoring sys-
tem, TPMS, that illuminates a low tire pressure 
telltale when one or more of your tires are signif-
icantly under-inflated. Accordingly, when the 
low tire pressure telltale illuminates, you should 
stop and check your tires as soon as possible, 
and inflate them to the proper pressure. Driving 
on a significantly underinflated tire causes the 
tire to overheat and can lead to tire failure. 
Under-inflation also reduces fuel efficiency and 
tire tread life, and may affect the vehicle’s han-
dling and stopping ability. Please note that the 
TPMS is not a substitute for proper tire mainte-
nance, and it is the driver’s responsibility to 
maintain correct tire pressure, even if under-
inflation has not reached the level to trigger illu-
mination of the TPMS low tire pressure telltale.
The TPMS malfunction indicator is combined 
with the low tire pressure telltale. When the sys-
tem detects a malfunction, the telltale will flash 
for approximately one minute and then remain  

Lamps
60 If necessary, switch on the parking lamps as 
described in the section about parking lamps.
You can have the daytime running lamps 
activated/deactivated on your vehicle.<
Pathway lighting
If you activate the headlamp flasher after park-
ing the car, with the lights switched off, the low 
beams come on and remain on for a certain 
time.
You can have this function activated/
deactivated as well as the duration of the 
pathway lighting set.<
LIGHTS ON warning
Whenever you open the driver's door after hav-
ing turned the key to position 0, you will hear an 
acoustic signal for a few seconds to remind you 
that the lamps have not been switched off.
High beams/Roadside 
parking lamps 
1High beams
2Headlamp flasher
3Roadside parking lamps
*
Roadside parking lamps, left or right*
When parking the vehicle, you have the option 
to switch on the lamps only on the side facing 
the road.
After parking the vehicle, press the lever up or 
down, arrow 3, until it engages.
The roadside parking lamps discharge 
the battery. Therefore, do not leave them 
on for unduly long periods of time, otherwise the battery might not have enough power to 
start the engine.<
Fog lamps*
Press the button to switch them on/off.
The parking lamps or low-beam headlamps 
must be switched on. A green indicator lamp 
comes on in the instrument cluster to indicate 
that the front fog lamps are 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
Turn the rotary dial to adjust brightness. 

Special operating instructions
76 sure which must be exerted by the pads to 
clean the rotors by brake applications is not 
reached.
If the brake rotors are corroded, they will tend to 
respond to braking with a pulsating effect which 
even extended application will fail to cure.
Brake pads
The warning lamp lights up. The brake 
pads have worn down to the minimum 
safe limit. Have the brake pads 
replaced as soon as possible.
When the vehicle is parked
Condensation forms while the air conditioning 
or automatic climate control is in operation, and 
then exits under the vehicle. Traces of con-
densed water on the ground underneath the 
vehicle are thus normal.
Before driving into a car wash
For general information about taking care of 
your BMW, refer to the Caring for your vehicle 
brochure.
Cargo loading
Avoid overloading the vehicle so that the 
permissible carrying capacity of the tires 
is not exceeded. Otherwise, overheating and 
inner damage to the tires may result. The ulti-
mate result can assume the form of a sudden air 
loss.<
Determining the maximum load
1.Locate the following statement on your 
vehicle's placard
*:
The combined weight of occupants 
and cargo should never exceed 
XXX kg or YYY lbs. Otherwise, overloading 
can result in damage to the vehicle and 
unstable driving conditions.<
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 kilograms or 
YYY pounds.
4.The resulting figure equals the available 
amount of cargo and luggage load capacity.
For example, if the YYY amount equals 
551 lbs and there will be two 150 lbs occu-
pants in your vehicle, the amount of avail-
able cargo and luggage load capacity is 
251 lbs.
551 lbs minus 300 lbs = 251 lbs
5.Determine the combined weight of luggage 
and cargo being loaded on the vehicle. That 
weight may not safely exceed the available 
cargo and luggage load capacity calculated 
in step 4. 

Refueling
82
Refueling
Always switch off the engine before refu-
eling. Otherwise the tank cannot be 
refilled. The Service Engine Soon warning lamp 
will come on.<
Take all precautionary measures and 
observe all applicable regulations when 
handling fuel. Do not carry any spare fuel con-
tainers in your vehicle. They can develop a leak 
and cause an explosion or cause a fire in the 
event of an accident.<
Gas cap
Opening
1.Open the fuel filler door, arrow 1.
2.Turn the gas cap counterclockwise.
3.Place the gas cap in the bracket attached to 
the fuel filler door, arrow 2.
Closing
Fit the gas cap and turn it clockwise until you 
clearly hear a click.
Do not jam the gas cap strap as this will 
allow fuel vapors to escape.<
The warning lamp
* lights up briefly if 
the gas cap is loose or missing. Close 
the gas cap properly.
Manually releasing the fuel filler door
In the event of a malfunction you can unlock the 
fuel filler door manually.1.Remove the cover for the right-hand rear 
lamps in the cargo bay by turning the lock, 
see arrow.
2.Pull the cargo bay trim panel slightly toward 
the interior. The green button with the fuel 
pump symbol becomes visible.
3.Undo the adhesive strip and pull off.
4.Pull the button. The fuel filler door is 
released.
Pull on the button slowly and care-
fully; otherwise it could be torn off.<
Observe the following when refueling
When handling fuels, comply with all of 
the applicable safety precautions posted 
at the service station.<
When refueling, insert the filler nozzle com-
pletely into the filler pipe. Avoid lifting the filler 
nozzle while filling the tank, as it could other-
wise lead to:
>Premature pump shutoff
>A reduced efficiency of the fuel-vapor 
recovery system. 

Under the hood
92
Important parts in the engine compartment
1Washer fluid reservoir for headlamp clean-
ing system and window washer system, 
refer to page46
2Filler neck for engine oil, refer to Adding 
engine oil3Jump-starting connection, refer to 
page104
4Reservoir for brake fluid, refer to page95
5Body ground, negative terminal, refer to 
page105
6Expansion tank for coolant, refer to page94
Engine oil 
Oil consumption is directly influenced by your 
driving style and vehicle operating conditions.
Warning lamp
Engine oil pressure 
The warning lamp lights up in red: 
The engine oil pressure is too low. 
Stop the vehicle immediately and 
switch off the engine. Check the engine oil level 
and top up if necessary. If the oil level is correct, 
please contact your nearest BMW center or a 
workshop that works according to BMW repair 
procedures with correspondingly trained per-
sonnel.Do not continue driving, otherwise the 
engine could sustain serious damage 
from inadequate lubrication.<
Engine oil level
The warning lamp lights up in yellow 
while you are driving. In addition, a sig-
nal sounds and "+1.0" appears in the 
instrument cluster, refer to page93.
The oil level is at the absolute minimum; refill as 
soon as possible. Do not drive more than 
125 miles/200 km before refilling.
The warning lamp comes on in yellow 
after the engine is switched off. A signal 
also sounds.