2009 BMW Z4 SDRIVE35I steering wheel

Cockpit
10
Cockpit
Around the steering wheel: controls and displays
4Folding exterior mirrors in and out*45
5 Adjusting exterior mirrors, automatic curb
monitor
*45
1 Opening and closing windows
jointly
37
2 Opening and closing rear
windows
37
3 Opening and closing front
windows
376
Parking lamps 88
Low beams 88
Automatic headlamp control
*88
Adaptive Head Light
*89

At a glance
11Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
8Instrument cluster 12
9 Buttons
* on the steering wheel
12 Ignition lock 50
14 Horn, the entire surface
15 Adjusting the steering wheel 4617
Buttons
* on the steering wheel
18 Releasing the hood 197
7
Turn signals 59
High beams, headlamp flasher 90
Roadside parking lamps
*90
Computer 65
Settings and information about the
vehicle 68
Instrument lighting 90
Changing radio station
Selecting music track
Scrolling through phone book and
lists with stored phone numbers
Next entertainment source
Recirculated-air mode 97
10 Windshield wipers 60
Rain sensor
*60
11 Switching the ignition on/off and
starting/stopping the engine
50
13 Steering wheel heating
*47
16 Cruise control
*61
Telephone*:
> Press: accepting and ending a
call, starting to dial
* selected
phone number. Redialing if no
phone number is selected
> Press longer: redialing
Volume
Activating/deactivating voice acti-
vation system
*23
19 Opening the luggage
compartment lid
33

At a glance
23Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Voice activation system
The concept
The voice activation system allows you to con-
trol operation of various vehicle systems with-
out removing your hands from the steering
wheel.
Individual menu items on the Control Display
can be spoken as commands. It is not neces-
sary to use the controller.
The voice activation system transforms your
oral commands into control signals for the
selected systems and provides support in the
form of instructions or questions.
the voice activation system uses a special
microphone located in the area of the steering
column.
Precondition
Via iDrive, select the language in which the
voice activation system is operating, so that the
spoken commands can be identified. Selecting
the language for iDrive, refer to page 75.
Symbols in the Owner's Manual
Saying commands
Activating voice activation system
1. Press the button on the steering wheel.
This symbol on the Control Display and
an acoustic signal indicate that the voice ac-
tivation system is ready to receive spoken
commands.
2. Say the command.
The command appears on the Control
Display.
This symbol appears on the Control Display
when you can enter additional commands.
If no further commands are possible, continue
by operating the item of equipment via iDrive.
{
...} Say the specified commands word
for word.
{{ ...}} Indicates responses of the voice acti-
vation system.

Voice activation system
24
Terminating or canceling voice
activation system
Press the button on the steering wheel or
In dialogs that call for a text of your choice, the
procedure can only be canceled using the but-
ton on the steering wheel.
Possible commands
The commands available in each case depend
on the menu item selected on the Control
Display.
Having the possible commands read aloud
For example, if "CD/DVD" is selected, the com-
mands for operating CD/Multimedia are read
aloud.
Calling up functions immediately via
short commands
Short commands enable yo u to perform certain
functions immediately, irrespective of which
menu item is selected, refer to page 223.
Example: selecting the track of a CD
1.If necessary, switch on entertainment audio
output.
2. Press the button on the steering wheel.
Setting the voice dialog
You can set whether the system should use the
standard dialog or a shorter variant. In the
shorter variant of the voice dialog, the prompts
and responses from the system are abbre-
viated.
1."Settings"
2. "Language/Units"
3. "Speech mode:" 4.
Select a setting:
>"Default"
> "Short"
Notes
For information on voice control of the
telephone, refer also to the separate
Owner's Manual. <
For voice commands, bear in mind the
following:
> Do not use the voice activation system to
initiate an Emergency Request. In stressful
situations, the voice and vocal pitch can
change. This can unne cessarily delay the
establishment of a telephone connection.
Use the emergency button near the interior
rearview mirror.
> Pronounce the commands and digits
smoothly and at normal volume, avoiding
excessive emphases and pauses. This also
applies when spelling out destinations dur-
ing destination entry.
> When selecting a radio station, use the
standard pronunciation of the station name.
> For entries in the voice-activated phone
book, only use names in the language of the
voice activation system and no abbre-
viations.
> Keep the doors, windows and retractable
hardtop closed to prev ent interference from
outside noise.
> Avoid ambient noise in the vehicle while
speaking.
{
Cancel }
{ Voice commands }
3. Select the music track, e.g.:
{CD track 4 }
System says:
{{ Track 4 }}

Controls
41Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Adjustments
Sitting safely
The ideal sitting position can make a vital con-
tribution to relaxed, fati gue-free driving. In con-
junction with the safe ty belts, the head
restraints and the airbags, the seated position
has a major influence on your safety in the event
of an accident. To ensu re that the safety sys-
tems operate with optimal efficiency, we
strongly urge you to observe the instructions
contained in the following section.
For additional information on transporting chil-
dren safely, refer to page 48.
Airbags
Always maintain an adequate distance
between yourself and the airbags. Always
grip the steering wheel on the rim, with your
hands in the 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock positions,
to minimize the risk of injury to the hands or
arms in the event of the airbag being triggered
off. No one and nothing is to come between the
airbags and the seat occupant.
Do not use the cover of the front airbag on the
passenger side as a st orage area. Make sure
that the passenger is sitting correctly, e.g.
keeping his or her feet or legs in the footwell
and not on the dashboard; otherwise, leg inju-
ries can occur if the front airbag deploys.
Make sure that passengers do not lean their
heads against the side airbag; otherwise, seri-
ous injuries could result if the airbag suddenly
deployed. <
Even if you follow all the instructions, injuries
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 e ffect is usually only tem-
porary.
For airbag locations and additional information
on airbags, refer to page 85.
Safety belt
Before every drive, make sure that all occupants
wear their safety belts. Airbags complement the
safety belt as an additi onal safety device, but
they do not represent a substitute.
Your vehicle has two seats, each of which is
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 be lt in the lap area sits
low across the hips and does not press against
the abdomen.
The safety belt must not rest against the throat,
run across sharp edges, pass over hard or frag-
ile objects or be pinched. Fasten the safety belt
so that it sits as snugly as possible against the
lap and shoulder withou t being twisted. Other-
wise the belt could slide over your hips and
injure your abdomen in the event of a frontal
collision.
Avoid wearing bulky clothing and regularly pull
the belt in the upper-bo dy area taut, otherwise
its restraining effect could be impaired. <
Safety belts, refer to page 44.
Seats
Note before adjusting
Never attempt to adjust your seat while
the vehicle is moving. The seat could
respond with unexpected movement, and the
ensuing loss of vehicle control could lead to an
accident.
On the passenger seat as well, do not incline
the backrest too far to th e rear while the vehicle
is being driven, otherwise there is a danger in
the event of an accident of sliding under the
safety belt, eliminating the protection normally
provided by the belt. <
Note the information on safety belt damage on
page 45.

Adjustments
46
Automatic heating
Depending on the outside temperature, both
exterior mirrors are heat ed automatically when
the engine is running or the ignition is
switched on.
Passenger-side mirror tilt function –
automatic curb monitor*
Activating
1. Push the switch to the position for the
driver's-side mirror, arrow 1.
2. Engage reverse gear or move the selector
lever to position R.
The glass of the mirror on the passenger
side tilts slightly do wn. This allows the
driver to see the area immediately adjacent
to the vehicle, e.g. a curb, when backing into
a parking space.
Deactivating
Push the switch to the position for the passen-
ger-side mirror, arrow 2.
Interior rearview mirror
Turn the knob to reduce glare from the head-
lamps of cars behind you when driving
at night.
Interior and exterior mirrors, automatic
dimming feature*
The automatic dimming feature of the interior
and exterior mirrors
* is controlled by two photo
cells in the interior rearview mirror. One photo
cell is in the mirror frame, see arrow; the other is
on the back of the mirror.
In order to ensure that the system functions
correctly, keep the photo cells clean, do not
cover the area between the interior rearview
mirror and windshield, and do not affix adhesive
labels or stickers of an y kind to the windshield
directly in front of the mirror.
Steering wheel
Adjustments
Do not adjust the steering wheel position
while the car is in mo tion, otherwise there
is a risk of accident due to an unexpected
movement. <
1. Fold the lever down.
2. Move the steering wheel to the preferred
height and angle to suit your seated
position.
3. Swing the lever back up.

Controls
47Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Do not use force to swing the lever
back up, otherwise the mechanism
will be damaged. <
Steering wheel heating*
To switch on or off, press the button.

Controls
55Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Upshifts and downshifts are executed only
when they will result in a plausible combination
of engine and vehicle speed; thus, for example,
a downshift that would cause the engine to
overrev will not be executed by the system. The
gear selected is briefly displayed in the instru-
ment cluster, followed by the gear actually
in use.
Shifting gears via sh ift paddles* on the
steering wheel
The shift paddles allow yo u to shift gears with-
out taking your hands off of the steering wheel.
> When you use the shift paddles on the
steering wheel to shif t gears in automatic
mode, the transmission switches to
manual mode.
> If you do not accelerate or shift gears using
the shift paddles for a certain amount of
time, the transmission switches back to
automatic mode.
If the selector lever is in the M/S gear
plane, manual mode remains active. <
> To shift up: pull one of the shift paddles.
> To shift down: press one of the shift
paddles.
Upshifts and downshifts are executed only
when they will result in a plausible combination
of engine and vehicle speed; thus, for example,
a downshift that would cause the engine to
overrev will not be executed by the system. The
gear selected is briefly displayed in the instru-
ment cluster, followed by the gear actually
in use.
Overriding selector lever lock
Should the selector lever refuse to move out of
position P although the button on the selector
lever is pressed, the sele ctor lever lock can be
overridden:
1. Unclip the sleeve of the selector lever.
2. Pull the sleeve up over the selector lever
until the sleeve is inside out. 3.
Using the screwdriver from the onboard
tool kit, refer to page 208, press the red
lever while moving the selector lever to the
desired position.
7-gear sport automatic
transmission with dual
clutch*
The concept
This transmission is an automated manual
transmission with two clutches and two gear-
box components in which the gears are
changed without loss of torque.
You operate the transmission using the selector
lever and two shift paddles on the steering
wheel.
It offers the following functions:
> Selection between manual and automatic
operation: sequential mode or drive mode
> Automatic downshifting and protection
against selecting the wrong gear, even in
sequential mode
> Launch Control acceleration assistant, refer
to page 58
> Automatic double de-clutch
System limitations
This transmission is equipped with an over-
heating protection system that protects the
clutches against extremely high loads.