2008 BMW 128I CONVERTIBLE Owner's Manual

Controls
95Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
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Mobility
Fog lamps*
To switch on/off, press the button.
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 whenever the
fog lamps are on.
The fog lamps are switched off while you acti-
vate the headlamp flasher or switch on the high
beams.
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 adjust the brightness of the instrument
lighting only when the parking lamps or the low
beams are switched on.
1.Push button 1 in the turn indicator lever up
or down repeatedly until the appropriate
symbol appears in the display, accompa-
nied by the brightness level and the word
"SET".
2.Press button 2.3.Push button 1 up or down to select the
desired brightness level.
4.Press button 2.
The display again shows the outside tem-
perature and the time.
Interior lamps
The interior lamps, footwell lamps*, entry
lamps
*, cargo bay lamp and courtesy lamps*
are controlled automatically.
The LEDs for the courtesy lamps
are set in the
door handles and illuminate the ground in front
of the doors.
To avoid draining the battery, all lamps
inside the car are switched off about
8 minutes after the ignition is switched off, refer
to Start/stop button on page58.<
Switching interior lamps on/off
manually
Interior lamps, front and rear*:
To switch on and off, press the button.
To switch off the interior lamps, footwell
lamps
*, entry lamps* and courtesy lamps* per-
manently, press the button for the front interior
lamps for about 3 seconds.

Lamps
96
Reading lamps
There are reading lamps at the front and rear*,
next to the interior lamps. To switch on and off,
press the button.

Controls
97Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Climate
1Airflow directed toward the windshield and
side windows
2Air to the upper body area:
Draft-free ventilation100
3Air to the footwell
4Air distribution, manual
5Temperature adjustment, left-hand side of
passenger compartment
6Maximum cooling
7AUTO program
8Air flow rate, manual
9Display for temperature and air supply10Automatic recirculated-air control AUC/
Recirculated-air mode
11Temperature adjustment, right-hand side
of passenger compartment
12Residual heat
13Windows, defrosting and removing con-
densation
14Switching cooling function on/off manually
15Rear window defroster
16Air grill for interior temperature sensor –
please keep clear and unobstructed
The current setting for the air distribution is dis-
played on the Control Display.

Climate
98
Automatic climate control
Comfortable interior climate
The AUTO program7 offers the ideal air distri-
bution and air flow rate for almost all conditions.
All you need to do is select an interior tempera-
ture which is comfortable for you.
The following sections inform you in detail
about how to adjust the settings.
Most settings are stored for the remote control
currently in use, refer also to Personal Profile
settings on page28.
Adjusting air distribution manually
The air distribution can be
switched on and off manually. The
air is directed to the windshield, to
the upper body area and to the
footwell. Automatic air distribution adjustment
is deactivated.
You can switch the automatic air distribution
back on by pressing the AUTO button. This
automatically switches on the cooling function
as well.
Fine adjustments to manual air
distribution
You can set the rate of incoming airflow for
manual air distribution.
iDrive, for operating principle refer to page16.
1.Press the button.
This opens the start menu.
2.Move the controller to the left to open "Cli-
mate".
3.Select "Vent settings" and press the con-
troller.4.Select the desired field.
5.Turn the controller to set the air distribution.
1Airflow directed toward the windshield and
side windows
2Air to the upper body area
3Air to the footwell
Temperature
Set the desired temperatures indi-
vidually for the driver's and front
passenger's sides.
The automatic climate control
achieves this temperature as quickly as possi-
ble regardless of the season, using maximum
cooling or heating power if necessary, and then
maintains it.
When you switch between different tem-
perature settings in quick succession, the
automatic climate control does not have
enough time to achieve the set temperature.<
You can achieve maximum heating power with
the highest setting, regardless of the outside
temperature.
The lowest setting effects continuous cooling.
Maximum cooling
At outside temperatures above
327/06 and when the engine is
running, you obtain a maximum
cooling effect as soon as possible.
The automatic climate control goes into recir-
culated-air mode at the lowest temperature. Air
flows at maximum rate from the vents for the
upper body area. You should therefore open
them for maximum cooling.

Controls
99Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
AUTO program
The AUTO program adjusts the air
distribution to the windshield and
side windows, towards the upper
body area and into the footwell for you. The air
flow rate and your temperature specifications
will be adapted to outside influences as a result
of seasonal changes, e.g. sunlight or window
condensation.
The cooling is switched on automatically with
the AUTO program.
Intensity of the AUTO program
Press the AUTO button repeatedly to set the
intensity of the AUTO program. The current
setting is briefly displayed on the Control Dis-
play every time the button is pressed.
You can also set the intensity of the AUTO pro-
gram via iDrive.
iDrive, for operating principle refer to page16.
1.Press the button.
This opens the start menu.
2.Call up "Climate".
3.Select "Automatic programs" and press the
controller.
4.Select the desired field.
5.Press the controller to set the desired inten-
sity.
The selected intensity level of the auto-
matic program is switched on.
Convertible program
When the convertible top is down, the Convert-
ible program becomes available for selection. In
the Convertible program, the automatic climate
control is optimized for driving with the convert-ible top down. In addition, the air flow rate is
increased as vehicle speed increases.
When the Convertible program has been
selected, it is automatically activated every time
the convertible top is opened.
The effectiveness of the Convertible pro-
gram can be enhanced considerably by
installing the wind deflector.<
Adjusting air flow rate manually
Press the left side of the button to
reduce airflow. Press the right side
of the button to increase it. You can
reactivate the automatic mode for the air flow
rate with the AUTO button.
The air flow rate may be reduced or the blower
may be switched off entirely to save on battery
power. The display remains the same.
Switching the system on/off
With the blower at its lowest setting, press the
left side of the button to switch off the auto-
matic climate control. All displays are cleared
except for the rear window defroster if it is
switched on.
Press any button except REST or rear window
defroster to reactivate the automatic climate
control.
Automatic recirculated-air control
AUC/Recirculated-air mode
Switch on the desired operating
mode by pressing this button
repeatedly:
>LED off: outside air flows in continuously.
>Left-hand LED on, AUC mode: a sensor
detects pollutants in the outside air. If nec-
essary, the system blocks the supply of out-
side air and recirculates the inside air. As
soon as the concentration of pollutants in
the outside air has decreased sufficiently,
the system automatically switches back to
outside air supply.
>Right-hand LED on, recirculated-air mode:
the supply of outside air is permanently

Climate
100 shut off. The system then recirculates the
air currently within the vehicle.
If condensation starts to form on the
inside window surfaces during operation
in the recirculated-air mode, you should switch
it off while also increasing the air flow rate as
required.
The recirculated-air mode should not be used
continuously for lengthy periods, otherwise the
quality of the air inside the car will gradually
deteriorate.<
Via the button* on the steering wheel
You can use an individually programmable but-
ton on the steering wheel, refer to page53, to
select between the different modes.
Residual heat
The heat stored in the engine is
used to heat the passenger com-
partment, e.g. while stopped at a
school to pick up a child.
The function can be switched on when the fol-
lowing conditions are met:
>Up to 15 minutes after the engine has been
switched off
>While the engine is at operating tempera-
ture
>As long as battery voltage is sufficient
>At an outside temperature below 777/
256
The LED is lit when the function is on.
As of radio readiness, you can set the interior
temperature, air flow rate and air distribution.
Windows, defrosting and removing
condensation
Quickly removes ice and conden-
sation from the windshield and
front side windows.
Switch on the cooling function as well.
Switching cooling function on/off
The cooling function cools and
dehumidifies the incoming air
before reheating it as required,
according to the temperature setting. This
function is only available while the engine is
running.
The cooling function helps prevent condensa-
tion on the windows or removes it quickly.
Depending on the weather, the windshield may
fog over briefly when the engine is started.
The cooling function is automatically switched
on along with the AUTO program.
Rear window defroster
The defroster is switched off auto-
matically after a certain time.
Depending on your vehicle's
equipment, the upper wires serve
as an antenna and are not part of the rear win-
dow defroster.
Ventilation
1Use the knurled wheels to smoothly open
and close the air vents
2Use the lever to change the direction of the
airflow
Ventilation for cooling
Adjust the vent outlets to direct the flow of cool
air in your direction, for instance if it has become
too hot in the car.
Draft-free ventilation
Set the vent outlets so that the air flows past
you and not straight at you.

Controls
101Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Microfilter/activated-charcoal filter
The microfilter traps dust and pollen in the
incoming air. The activated-charcoal filter pro-
vides additional protection by filtering gaseous
pollutants from the outside air. Your BMW cen-
ter replaces this combined filter during routine
maintenance.
Parked car ventilation*
The concept
The parked car ventilation provides ventilation
to the passenger compartment and lowers its
temperature, if necessary.
The parked car ventilation system is operated
via iDrive, refer to page16. Two different
switch-on times can be preselected.
The parked car ventilation remains switched on
for 30 minutes. The system can also be
switched on and off directly. Due to its high
power consumption, it should not be switched
on twice in a row without driving in between to
allow the battery to recharge.
The parked car ventilation system comes on if
the outside temperature is above 597/156
when the switch-on time was preselected, but
is ready for use at any temperature when the
system is switched on directly.
The air emerges from the air vents for the upper
body area in the instrument panel. The air vents
must therefore be open.
Switching on/off directly
iDrive, for operating principle refer to page16.
1.Press the button.
This opens 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.
If the symbol on the display of the automatic
climate control is flashing, parked car ventila-
tion is switched on.
Preselecting switch-on times
1.Call up "Climate".
2.Select "Parked car operation" and press the
controller.
3.Select "Activation time" and press the con-
troller.
Two consecutive switch-on times
must be at least 31 minutes apart.<
4.Move the controller to the left or right to
select "Timer 1" or "Timer 2".
5.Select the time and press the controller.
The hours setting is selected.

Climate
102 6.Turn the controller to set the hours.
7.Press the controller to select the minutes
setting.
8.Turn the controller to set the minutes.
Activating switch-on times
Move the controller to the left or right to select
"Timer 1" or "Timer 2" and press the controller.
The switch-on time is activated.
The symbol on the automatic climate control
display lights up.
The symbol on the automatic climate control
display flashes when the system has switched
on.
The parked car ventilation system is
switched on within the next 24 hours only.
After that, the time setting must be reacti-
vated.<