Technology for driving comfort and safety
84 >With a medium load:
1 person, cargo area full, or 2 people
without luggage:
approx. 95 miles/150 km
>With a full load:
2 people, cargo area full:
approx. 30 miles/50 km
Drive cautiously and do not exceed a
speed of 50 mph/80 km/h. In the event of
pressure loss, vehicle handling changes. This
includes reduced tracking stability in braking,
extended braking distance and altered natural
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 as soon as possible at a
suitable location. Otherwise, parts of the tire
could come loose, resulting in an accident. Do
not continue driving. Instead, contact your
BMW center.<
Message for unsuccessful system
reset
The warning lamp lights up yellow. A
message will appear on the Control
Display. The system was not reset
after a tire was changed, for example.
Check the tire inflation pressure and reset the
system, refer to page83.
Status display
1. Press the button
The start menu is opened.
2."Vehicle Info"
3."Vehicle status"
4."TPM"
5.The status is displayed.
Malfunction
The small warning lamp flashes in
yellow and then lights up continu-
ously; the larger warning lamp comes
on in yellow. On the Control Display,
the tires are shown in gray and a message
appears. No punctures can be detected.This type of message is shown in the following
situations:
>If there is a malfunction
Have the system checked.
>If a wheel without TPM electronics has
been mounted
>If TPM is temporarily malfunctioning due to
other systems or devices using the same
radio frequency.
Declaration according to NHTSA/
FMVSS 138
Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems
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.
Underinflation 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 underin-
flation has not reached the level at which the
TPMS low tire pressure telltale illuminates.
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
continuously lit. This sequence will continue
upon subsequent vehicle startups as long as
the malfunction exists. When the malfunction
indicator is illuminated, the system may not be
Wheels and tires
194
Wheels and tires
Tire inflation pressures
Information for your safety
It is not merely the tires' service life, but also
driving comfort and, to a great extent, driving
safety that depend on the condition of the tires
and the maintenance of the specified tire
pressure.
Check the tire inflation pressure regularly
and correct it, if necessary: at least twice a
month and before starting long trips. If you fail
to observe this precaution you may be driving
on tires with incorrect tire pressures, a condi-
tion that can not only compromise your vehi-
cle's driving stability, but also lead to tire dam-
age and the risk of an accident. Do not drive
with deflated, i.e., flat tires, except when using
run-flat tires. A flat tire will seriously impair your
vehicle's handling and braking response.
Attempts to drive on a flat tire can lead to loss of
control over the vehicle.<
Checking pressure
Only check tire inflation pressure when the
tires are cold. This means after a maximum of
1.25 miles/2 km driving or when the vehicle has
been parked for at least 2 hours. When tires are
warm, the tire inflation pressure is higher.
After correcting the tire inflation pressure,
reinitialize the Tire Pressure Monitor,
refer to page83, or the Flat Tire Monitor, refer
to page81.<
Inflation pressure specifications
The tables below provide all the correct inflation
pressures for the specified tire sizes at ambient
temperature.
The inflation pressures apply to the tire
sizes approved and tire brands recom-
mended by BMW; a list of these is available
from your BMW center.<
For correct identification of the right tire infla-
tion pressures, observe the following:>Tire sizes for your vehicle
>Load conditions
>Maximum allowable driving speed
Tire inflation pressures for driving up to
100 mph or 160 km/h
For normal driving up to 100 mph or 160 km/h
and to achieve optimum driving comfort, adjust
pressures to the respective tire inflation pres-
sures listed on the following pages in the col-
umns for traveling speeds up to a maximum of
100 mph or 160 km/h.
These tire inflation pressures can also be found
on the driver's side door post when the driver's
door is open.
The maximum permissible speed for
these tire pressures is 100 mph or
160 km/h. Do not exceed this speed; otherwise,
tire damage and accidents could occur.<
Tire inflation pressures for driving
above 100 mph or 160 km/h
In order to drive at maximum speeds in
excess of 100 mph or 160 km/h, adjust
pressures to the respective tire inflation pres-
sures listed on the following pages in the col-
umns for traveling speeds including those
exceeding 100 mph or 160 km/h. Otherwise,
tire damage and accidents could occur.<
Observe all national and local maximum speed
limits; otherwise, violations of the laws could
occur.
Wheels and tires
196
Tire inflation pressures Z4 sDrive35i
Tire size Pressure specifications in psi/kPa
Traveling speeds
up to a max. of
100 mph/160 km/hTraveling speeds
including those exceeding
100 mph/160 km/h
All pressure specifications in
the table are indicated in
psi/kilopascal with cold tires.
Cold = ambient temperature
without Sport Package:
225/45 R 17 91 H M+S
225/45 R 17 94 V M+S XL36/250 44/300 36/250 44/300
Front: 225/45 R 17 91 V 36/250 - 36/250 -
Rear: 255/40 R 17 94 V - 39/270 - 39/270
Front: 225/40 R 18 88 W 36/250 - 36/250 -
Rear: 255/35 R 18 90 W - 42/290 - 42/290
Front: 225/35 R 19 88 Y XL 36/250 - 36/250 -
Rear: 255/30 R 19 91 Y XL - 42/290 - 42/290
with Sport Package:
225/45 R 17 91 H M+S
225/45 R 17 94 V M+S XL36/250 44/300 36/250 44/300
Front: 225/45 R 17 91W 36/250 - 36/250 -
Rear: 255/40 R 17 94 W - 39/270 - 39/270
Front: 225/40 R 18 88 W 36/250 - 38/260 -
Rear: 255/35 R 18 90 W - 42/290 - 45/310
Front: 225/35 R 19 88 Y XL 36/250 - 36/250 -
Rear: 255/30 R 19 91 Y XL - 42/290 - 44/300
More details on the permissible load and weights can be found on page228.
Mobility
199Reference
At a glance
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Tire age
For various reasons, such as the development
of brittleness, BMW recommends tire replace-
ment after no more than 6 years, regardless of
the actual wear of the tires.
The manufacturing date of tires is contained in
the tire coding:
DOT ... 3709 means that the tire was manufac-
tured in week 37 of 2009.
Run-flat tires
The symbol identifying run-flat tires is a circle
with the letters RSC on the sidewall.
Run-flat tires comprise a conditionally self-sup-
porting tire and a special rim. The reinforce-
ment in the sidewalls ensures that the tire can
continue to be used subject to certain restric-
tions, even if depressurized.
For information on continuing to drive with a flat
tire, refer to Indication of a flat tire, page81.
New wheels and tires
Have new wheels and tires installed only
by your BMW center or tire shop that
works according to BMW repair procedures
with correspondingly trained personnel. If this
work is not carried out properly, there is a dan-
ger of subsequent damage and related safety
hazards. Make sure that the new wheels are
balanced.<
Retreaded tires
BMW recommends that you do not use
retreaded tires, since driving safety may
be impaired. The causes for this include poten-
tially different tire casing structures and often
wide variations in tire age, which can result in a
limited service life.<
Correct wheels and tires
When mounting new tires or changing over
from summer to winter tires and vice versa,
mount run-flat tires for your own safety. In the
event of a flat, no spare wheel is available. Your
BMW center will be glad to advise you.
BMW recommends that you use only
wheel and tire combinations that BMW
has tested and approved for your particular
vehicle. Variations in factors such as manufac-
turing tolerances mean that even wheels and
tires with identical official size ratings could
actually have different dimensions, which could
lead to body contact and thus to severe acci-
dents. If non-approved wheels and tires are
used, BMW cannot evaluate their suitability,
and therefore cannot guarantee their driving
safety.<
You can inquire about the right wheel/tire com-
bination at your BMW center.
The correct combination of wheels and tires is
also necessary to ensure reliable operation of
various vehicle systems such as ABS, DSC
or TPM.
To maintain good handling and vehicle
response, use only tires of a single brand and
tread configuration. After a tire has been dam-
aged, mount the previous wheel and tire combi-
nation again as soon as possible.
Wheels with Tire Pressure Monitor
TPM electronics
When mounting new tires or changing over
from summer to winter tires, or vice versa, only
use wheels with TPM electronics; otherwise,
the Tire Pressure Monitor may not be able to
detect a puncture, refer to page82. Your BMW
center will be glad to advise you.
Wheels and tires
200
Recommended tire brands
Certain makes of tire are recommended by
BMW for each tire size. They are marked with a
clearly visible BMW designation on the sidewall
of the tire.
When properly used, these tires meet the high-
est standards in terms of safety and handling
characteristics.
Special characteristics of winter tires
BMW recommends winter tires for winter roads
or at temperatures below +457/+76.
Although all-season M+S tires provide better
winter traction than summer tires, they gener-
ally fail to provide the same levels of cold-
weather performance as winter tires.
Pay attention to speed
Always comply with the speed limit for the
winter tires mounted on your car; failure
to do so could result in tire damage and acci-
dents.<
If the car is capable of speeds higher than that
permitted for the winter tires, a label stating the
maximum permitted speed for the mounted
tires must be displayed in your field of view.
Specialist tire dealers and your BMW center
can supply these labels.
Storage
Always store wheels and tires in a cool, dry
place with as little exposure to light as possible.
Always protect tires against all contact with oil,
grease and fuels. Do not exceed the maximum
tire inflation pressure indicated on the sidewall
of the tire.
Swapping wheels between axles
BMW advises against swapping wheels
between the front and rear axles, even if all tires
have the same size, as this could impair driving
characteristics. If the tires are of mixed sizes,
swapping wheels between the axles is not per-
missible.
Snow chains*
Only certain fine-link snow chains have been
tested by BMW, classified as safe for use and
recommended. Consult your BMW center for
more information.
Snow chains must be mounted in pairs and on
the rear wheels only. Observe the manufac-
turer's instructions when mounting snow
chains. Do not exceed a speed of 30 mph or
50 km/h.
Do not initialize the Flat Tire Monitor if
snow chains are mounted; otherwise, the
instrument might issue an incorrect reading.
When driving with snow chains, you may find it
helpful to activate DTC temporarily, refer
to page78.<
Everything from A to Z
248 Steering wheel46
– adjustment46
– buttons on steering
wheel11
– lock50
– locking with Comfort
Access35
– shift paddles57
Steering wheel buttons, refer
to Shift paddles57
Steptronic, refer to Automatic
transmission with
Steptronic53
Storage211
Storage compartments104
Storage nets106
Stored trip, calling up129
Storing a destination in the
address book123
Storing music158
Storing seat positions, refer to
Seat and mirror memory43
Storing tires200
Stowage, refer to Storage
compartments104
Stowing cargo116
Street, entering,
navigation122
Summer tires, refer to Wheels
and tires194
Surface ice, refer to Outside
temperature warning64
Surround141
SVCD153
SW, waveband143
Switches, refer to Cockpit10
Switching off
– engine52
Switching off the engine
– start/stop button50
Switching on
– audio140
– CD changer140
– CD player140
– radio140
Symbols4
– status information20
T
Tachometer64
Tailgate
– opening from inside32
Tailgate, refer to Luggage
compartment lid32
Tail lamps214
– replacing bulb214
Tank contents, refer to
Capacities228
Technical data226
– capacities228
– dimensions227
Technical modifications, refer
to For your own safety5
Telephone170
– installation location, refer to
Center armrest104
– refer to separate Owner's
Manual
– voice commands178
TeleService185
TeleService Diagnosis186
TeleService Help186
Temperature
– air conditioner95
– automatic climate control96
– changing unit of measure68
– coolant, refer to Coolant
temperature65
Temperature display
– outside temperature64
– outside temperature
warning64
– setting the units68
Tempomat, refer to Cruise
control61
Tensioning straps, refer to
Securing cargo116
The individual vehicle5
Third brake lamp, refer to
Center brake lamp215
Through-loading opening with
integrated transport
bag106
Tilt alarm sensor34
Tilt function, passenger-side
mirror46Tire inflation pressure194
– loss81,83
Tire pressure monitoring,
refer to Flat Tire Monitor81
Tire Pressure Monitor
TPM82
– resetting the system83
– system limitations82
– warning lamp83
Tire puncture, refer to Flat Tire
Monitor81
Tire Quality Grading197
Tires
– age197,199
– air loss83
– breaking in112
– changing, refer to Changing
wheels215
– condition198
– damage198
– inflation pressure194
– labels197
– minimum tread depth198
– new wheels and tires199
– pressure monitoring, refer to
Flat Tire Monitor81
– pressure monitoring, refer to
Tire Pressure Monitor
TPM82
– puncture81
– replacing199
– run-flat199
– size197
– storage200
– tread depth198
– wear indicators, refer to
Minimum tread depth198
– wheel/tire combination, refer
to Correct wheels and
tires199
– winter tires200
TMC station, refer to Traffic
bulletins133
Tone
– control140
– middle setting142
Tools, refer to Onboard
vehicle tool kit212