
Reference
At a glance
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Contents
The fastest way to find information on a partic-
ular topic or item is by using the index, refer 
to page236.
Using this Owner's Manual
4Notes
6Reporting safety defects
At a glance
10Cockpit
16iDrive
22Letters and numbers
23Voice activation system
Controls
28Opening and closing
41Adjustments
48Transporting children safely
50Driving
64Controls overview
77Technology for driving comfort and 
safety
88Lamps
93Climate
100Practical interior accessories
Driving tips
112Things to remember when driving
Navigation
120Navigation system
121Destination entry
130Destination guidance
137What to do if…
Entertainment
140On/off and tone
143Radio
146Satellite radio
151CD/DVD player and CD/DVD changer
158Music collection
163External devices
Communications
170Telephone
182Contacts
184BMW Assist
Mobility
192Refueling
194Wheels and tires
201Under the hood
206Maintenance
208Care
212Replacing components
218Giving and receiving assistance
Reference
226Technical data
229Short commands for the voice activation 
system
236Everything from A to Z 

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 you to perform certain 
functions immediately, irrespective of which 
menu item is selected, refer to page229.
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 commands for 
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 unnecessarily 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 abbrevia-
tions.
>Keep the doors, windows and retractable 
hardtop closed to prevent 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
 33Reference
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Entertainment
Mobility
Opening from outside
Press on the top half of the BMW emblem or, for 
approx. 1 second, on the   button of the 
remote control: 
The luggage compartment can be opened.
Emergency release*
Pull the lever in the cargo area. The luggage 
compartment lid is unlocked.
Closing
The handle recesses on the interior trim of the 
luggage compartment lid make it easier to 
pull down.Make sure that the closing path of the 
luggage compartment lid is clear; other-
wise, injuries may result.<
To close the luggage compartment lid, 
press it down lightly. The lid is closed 
automatically.<
Alarm system*
The concept
The vehicle alarm system responds:
>When a door, the hood or the luggage com-
partment lid is opened
>To movements inside the vehicle: Interior 
motion sensor, refer to page34
>When the car's inclination changes, for 
instance if an attempt is made to jack it up 
and steal the wheels or to raise it prior to 
towing away
>When there is an interruption in the power 
supply from the battery
The alarm system signals unauthorized entry 
attempts for a short time by means of:
>An acoustic alarm
>Switching on the hazard warning flashers
>Flashing the high beams
Arming and disarming
When you lock or unlock the vehicle, either with 
the remote control or at the door lock, the alarm 
system is armed or disarmed at the same time.
You can open the luggage compartment lid 
using the   button of the remote control even 
if the alarm system is armed, refer to page30. 
The lid is locked and monitored again as soon 
as it is closed.
Panic mode*
You can trigger the alarm system if you find 
yourself in a dangerous situation:
Press the   button for at least three seconds.
To switch off the alarm: press any button. 

Driving
54
Displays in the instrument cluster
P R N D DS M1 to M6
The selector lever position is displayed, or the 
current gear in the manual mode.
Changing selector lever positions
>With the ignition switched on or the engine 
running, the selector lever can be moved 
out of position P.
>Before moving the lever away from P or N 
with the vehicle stationary, first depress the 
brake; otherwise, the selector lever will 
refuse to move: shiftlock.
To prevent the vehicle from creeping 
after you select a driving position, 
depress the brake until you are ready to 
start.<
A lock prevents you from inadvertently engag-
ing selector lever positions R and P. To cancel 
the lock, press the button on the front of the 
selector lever, see arrow.
P Park
Select this only when the vehicle is stationary. 
The rear wheels are locked.
R Reverse
Select this only when the vehicle is stationary.
N Neutral
You can select this in a car wash, for example. 
The vehicle can roll.
D Drive, automatic position
Position for normal vehicle operation. All for-
ward gears are selected automatically.
Under normal operating conditions, fuel con-
sumption is lowest when you are driving in 
position D.
Kickdown
Kickdown enables you to achieve maximum 
performance. 
Press the accelerator pedal beyond the full-
throttle resistance point.
Sport program and manual operation 
M/S
Move selector lever from position D toward the 
left into the M/S shifting slot:
The sport program is activated and DS is dis-
played in the instrument cluster. This position is 
recommended for a performance-oriented driv-
ing style.
To deactivate the sport program or manual 
mode M/S, move the selector lever to the right 
into position D.
Shifting gears via the selector lever
When you press the selector lever forwards or 
backwards, the manual mode is activated and 
Steptronic changes gear. M1 through M6 are 
displayed in the instrument cluster.
Upshifts and downshifts are executed only 
when they will result in a plausible combination 
of engine and vehicle speed; thus, for example,  

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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 shift paddles* on the 
steering wheel
The shift paddles allow you to shift gears with-
out taking your hands off the steering wheel.
>When you use the shift paddles on the 
steering wheel to shift gears in automatic 
mode, the transmission switches to man-
ual 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: press one of the shift paddles 
back, arrow 1.
>To shift down: press one of the shift pad-
dles forward, arrow 2.
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 selector 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 
vehicle tool kit, refer to page212, 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: manual mode or drive mode
>Automatic downshifting and protection 
against selecting the wrong gear, even in 
manual mode
>Launch Control acceleration assistant, refer 
to page58
>Automatic double declutch 

Controls
 57Reference
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P Park
The rear wheels are locked.
P is engaged automatically when the following 
conditions are met:
>The driver's door is opened while the 
engine is running, your safety belt is not fas-
tened and neither the brake pedal nor the 
accelerator are activated.
>The engine is switched off unless N is 
engaged and the remote control is in the 
ignition lock.
>The remote control is removed from the 
ignition lock.
Kickdown
T o a cc ele ra te ra pidly, e.g., when passing, press 
the accelerator down past the resistance point. 
This provides maximum acceleration.
Activating the Sport program and 
manual mode M/S
Move the selector lever from position D toward 
the left:
The Sport program is activated.
Sport program
S1 through S7 is displayed in the instrument 
cluster. This position is recommended for a 
performance-oriented driving style.
Manual mode:
When you press the selector lever forward or 
backward, or when you press the shift paddles, 
manual mode is activated and the gear is 
changed.
M1 through M7 are displayed in the instrument 
cluster.The transmission provides assistance in the fol-
lowing situations:
>Upshifts and downshifts are executed only 
when they will result in a plausible combina-
tion of engine and vehicle speed; thus, for 
example, a downshift that would cause the 
engine to overrev will not be executed by 
the system.
>When the vehicle stops, the transmission 
automatically shifts down to first gear.
>Shortly before the vehicle slows down to 
below the minimum speed of the gear cur-
rently engaged, the transmission automati-
cally shifts down without requiring your 
intervention.
Rapid downshifting: in manual mode, you can 
skip several gears to achieve optimal accelera-
tion. Do so by pressing the accelerator past the 
resistance point.
Changing to drive mode
Push the selector lever to the right.
Shifting gears via the selector lever
In manual mode:
>To shift up, pull back the selector lever.
>To shift down, push it forward.
Shifting gears via the shift paddles on 
the steering wheel
The shift paddles allow you to shift gears with-
out taking your hands off the steering wheel. 
You do not need to raise your foot from the 
accelerator when doing so.
>To shift up: press one of the shift paddles 
back, arrow1. 

Driving
58 >To shift down: press one of the shift pad-
dles forward, arrow2.
Gears can be shifted using the shift paddles in 
drive mode or in manual mode.
Gear change in manual mode:
When manual mode is active, refer to page57, 
gears can be changed using the shift paddles or 
the selector lever.
Gear change in drive mode
The shift paddles can be used to change gears 
in drive mode as well.
Afterwards, if the shift paddles are not used for 
some time and vehicle acceleration is insuffi-
cient, the forward gears are changed again 
automatically.
Launch Control
Launch Control enables you to drive off with an 
optimal vehicle acceleration on a high grip road 
surface.
Do not use Launch Control too often, as 
the higher loads on the vehicle lead to 
premature component wear.<
Launch Control is available when the engine is 
at operating temperature, i.e., after driving con-
tinuously for at least 6 miles/10 km.
1.With the engine running, depress the brake 
pedal with your left foot.
2.Activate the SPORT+ program of the 
Dynamic Driving Control, refer to page79.
3.With the vehicle stationary, activate manual 
mode and select first gear.
4.Press the accelerator all the way down. The 
engine speed when driving off is controlled. 
A flag symbol appears in the instrument 
cluster.
5.The vehicle accelerates when you release 
the brake pedal. Keep the accelerator 
pressed all the way down.
6.The transmission shifts up automatically as 
long as the accelerator is pressed all the 
way down.Launch Control only becomes available again 
after a certain distance has been driven.
Launch Control can only be used after the 
break-in phase, refer to page112.
To maintain driving stability, activate DSC 
whenever possible.<
Manually releasing and engaging the 
transmission lock
If a power failure occurs, e.g., if the battery 
is discharged or disconnected or if there 
is an electrical malfunction, the transmission 
lock must be released manually; otherwise, the 
rear wheels are blocked and the vehicle cannot 
be towed.<
Release the transmission lock manually for tow-
ing only and set the parking brake beforehand 
to prevent the vehicle from rolling. After parking 
the vehicle, lock the transmission lock again 
manually, refer to page59.
Manual release
1.Unclip the sleeve of the selector lever.
2.Pull the sleeve up over the selector lever 
until the sleeve is inside out.
3.Insert the Allen wrench from the onboard 
vehicle tool kit, refer to page212, into 
the cap. 

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assistant will not hold the car in place after 
approx. 2 seconds, the car would otherwise 
start to roll backwards.<
Flat Tire Monitor FTM*
The concept
The Flat Tire Monitor detects pressure loss in a 
tire by comparing the rotating speeds of the 
individual tires while moving.
In the event of pressure loss, the rolling circum-
ference changes and, thus, the rotating speed 
of the affected wheel. This change is detected 
and is reported as a flat tire.
Functional requirement
In order to assure the reliable reporting of a flat 
tire, the system must be initialized for the cor-
rect tire inflation pressure.
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.<
In the following situations, the system could be 
delayed or malfunction:
>System has not been initialized
>Driving on snowy or slippery road surface
>Performance-oriented style of driving: slip 
in the drive wheels, high lateral acceleration
>Snow chains are attached
Initializing the system
The initialization is completed during driv-
ing, which can be interrupted at any time. 
When driving resumes, the initialization is con-
tinued automatically. 
Do not initialize the system while snow chains 
are attached.<1."Vehicle Info"
2."Vehicle status"
3."Reset"
4.Start the engine - do not drive away.
5.Start the initialization using "Reset".
6.Start to drive.
The initialization is completed during the trip.
The initialization is completed during driving, 
which can be interrupted at any time.
When driving resumes, the initialization is con-
tinued automatically.
Indication of a flat tire
The warning lamps come on in yellow 
and red. A message appears on the 
Control Display. In addition, an 
acoustic signal sounds. There is a flat 
tire or substantial loss of tire pressure.
1.Cautiously reduce speed to below 50 mph 
or 80 km/h. Avoid sudden braking and 
steering maneuvers. Do not exceed a speed 
of 50 mph or 80 km/h.
If the car is not equipped with run-flat 
tires, refer to page199, the standard 
equipment by design, do not continue driv-
ing. Otherwise, a severe accident could 
result if you continue driving.<
2.At the next opportunity, check the air pres-
sure in all four tires.
If all four tires are inflated to the cor-
rect pressures, the Flat Tire Monitor 
might not have been initialized. The system 
must then be initialized.<