2011 BMW X5 tow

Things to remember when driving
142
Stowing cargo
BMW X5
BMW X6
>Load heavy cargo as far forward and as low
as possible, placing it directly behind the
backrest.
>Cover sharp edges and corners.>When transporting very heavy cargo with
unoccupied rear seats, insert the safety
belts, the outer safety belts in the BMW X5,
into the buckles on the opposite sides.
>Do not pile objects higher than the top edge
of the backrest.
>Wrap sharp-edged or pointed objects
which could strike the rear window while
driving.
Securing cargo
BMW X5
BMW X6
>Use the luggage net*, retaining straps*, or
securing straps to hold down small and
lightweight luggage and cargo.
>For larger and heavier pieces, heavy-duty
cargo straps
* are available from your BMW
Sports Activity Vehicle Center. Four lashing
eyes
* mounted in the cargo area are used
to secure these heavy-duty cargo straps,
refer to illustrations.
>Observe the special instructions supplied
with the heavy-duty cargo straps.
Position and secure the cargo as
described above, so that it cannot endan-

Driving tips
143Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
ger the car's occupants, for example if sudden
braking or evasive maneuvers are necessary.
Never exceed either the approved gross vehicle
weight or either of the approved axle weights,
refer to page283, as excessive loads can pose
a safety hazard, and may also place you in viola-
tion of traffic safety laws.
You should never transport unsecured heavy or
hard objects in the passenger compartment, as
they could fly around and pose a safety hazard
to the vehicle's occupants during abrupt brak-
ing or evasive maneuvers.
Use only the lashing eyes pictured to fasten the
heavy-duty cargo straps. Do not secure cargo
with the attachment points for the top tether,
refer to page55; otherwise they could be dam-
aged.<
Roof-mounted luggage rack*
A special rack system is available as an option
for your BMW. Please comply with the precau-
tions included with the installation instructions.
Loading roof-mounted luggage rack
Because roof racks raise the vehicle's center of
gravity when loaded, they have a major effect on
its handling and steering response. You should
therefore always remember not to exceed the
approved roof load capacity, the approved
gross vehicle weight or the axle weights when
loading the rack.
You can find the specified weights under
Weights on page283.
The load on the roof must be evenly distributed
and must not extend outward beyond the limits
of the loading surface. Always stow the heaviest
pieces on the bottom. Be sure that adequate
clearance is maintained for raising the glass
sunroof
*/panoramic glass sunroof* and that
objects do not project into the opening path of
the liftgate.
Secure roof-mounted cargo correctly and
securely to prevent it from shifting or falling off
during the trip.
Drive smoothly. Avoid sudden acceleration and
braking maneuvers. Take corners gently.
Driving on poor roads
Y our B MW is at hom e on a ll r oa ds a nd surfac e s.
It combines a 4-wheel drive system with the
advantages of a normal passenger car.
Do not drive on unpaved terrain, as other-
wise the vehicle may be damaged.<
When you are driving on poor roads, there are a
few points which you should strictly observe for
your own safety, for that of your passengers,
and for the safety of the vehicle:
>Familiarize yourself with the vehicle before
driving off and avoid taking risks at all costs.
>Adapt your driving speed to the road condi-
tions. The steeper and rougher the road
surface is, the lower the speed should be.
>If you want to drive on very steep uphill or
downhill gradients, make sure beforehand
that the engine oil and coolant levels are
near the MAX mark, refer to page252.
BMW X5: you can operate your vehicle on
uphill and downhill gradients with a maxi-
mum slope of 50 %.
>On very steep downhill slopes, use Hill
Descent Control HDC, refer to page97.
BMW X5: it is possible to start off on inclines
of up to 33 %. The permissible body roll is
50 %.
>While driving, watch carefully for obstacles
such as rocks or holes. Try to avoid these
obstacles whenever possible.
>Make sure that the undercarriage does not
touch the ground, for example on crests and
bumpy roads. The ground clearance of the
vehicle is a maximum of approx. 8 in/20 cm.
Please note that the ground clearance can
vary depending on loading and the driving
conditions of the vehicle.
>Only drive through road surface water up to
a maximum water depth of
>BMW X5 20 in/50 cm
>BMW X6 17 in/45 cm
And only drive at walking speed; do not
remain stationary.

Navigation
Driving tips
149Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Entertainment
Mobility
Destination entry
In entering your destination you can select from
among the following options:
>Entering a destination manually, see below
>Selecting destination from address book,
refer to page151
>Last destinations, refer to page152
>Special destinations, refer to page152
>Entering a destination on the map, refer to
page154
>Selecting home address, refer to page152
>Entering destination via voice*, refer to
page155
>Destination entry via BMW Assist
*, refer to
page153
You can also store a navigation destination on
the programmable memory buttons, refer to
page20.
Enter data only with the vehicle station-
ary, and always give priority to the appli-
cable traffic regulations in the event of any con-
tradiction between traffic and road conditions
and the instructions issued by the navigation
system. If you do not observe this precaution,
you can endanger the vehicle occupants and
other road users.<
Entering a destination
manually
The system's word-matching principle makes it
easier for you to enter the names of streets or
towns, refer to page157. This allows you to
enter different spellings and completes your
entry automatically, so that stored names can
be called up quickly.
1.Press the MENUbutton.
2."Navigation"3."Enter address"
The system also supports you with the follow-
ing features:
>If you do not enter a street, the system will
guide you to the downtown a r e a o f a t o w n o r
city.
>You can skip the entry of country and town/
city if the current entries should be retained
for your new destination.
Entering a state/province
1."Navigation"
2."Enter address"
3.Select "State/Province" or the displayed
state/province.
Entering a town/city
1.Select "Town/City/Postal Code" or the dis-
played town/city.
2.Select letters, if necessary.

Destination entry
150 To delete letters:
>To delete individual letters:
Turn the controller to select , and
then press the controller.
>To delete all letters:
Turn the controller to select , and
then press the controller for an extended
period.
To enter spaces:
>Select the symbol.
The list gradually grows smaller each time
you enter a new letter.
3.Move the controller to the right.
4.Select the name of the town/city from the
list.
If there are several towns/cities with the same
name:
1.Change to the list of town/city names.
2.Highlight the town/city: a preview map is
displayed.
3.Select the town/city.
Entering the postal code
1.Select "Town/City/Postal Code" or the dis-
played town/city.
2.Select the symbol.
3.Select the digits.
4.Change to the list of postal codes and
towns/cities.
5.Highlight postal code: a preview map is dis-
played.
6.Select the postal code.
Entering street and intersection
1.Select "Street" or the displayed street.
2.Enter a street and intersection as you would
the town/city.
After the street you can also enter the intersec-
tion or the house number.
If there are several streets with the same name:1.Change to the list of street names.
2.Highlight the street: a preview map is dis-
played.
3.Select the street.
Entering a street without a destination
town/city
You can also enter a street without entering a
town/city of destination. In this case all streets
of the entered country are offered for selection.
The related town/city is displayed after the
street name.
If a town/city has already been entered, you can
undo this entry. This may be practical if the
desired street does not exist in the entered des-
tination, because, for example, it belongs to
another part of the town/city.
1."Navigation"
2."Enter address"
3.Select "Street" or the displayed street.
4.Change to the list of street names.
5.Select "In" with the state/province currently
displayed.
6.Select the letters.
7.Change to the list of street names.
8.Highlight the street: a preview map is dis-
played.
9.Select the street.
Entering house number
You can enter any house number stored in the
navigation data for the street.
1."House number"
2.Select the digits.

Destination entry
154
Displaying special destinations in the
map
To display symbols of the special destinations
in the map:
1."Navigation"
2."Map"
3.Open "Options".
4."Display Points of Interest"
5.Select the settings.
Entering the destination via
map
If you only know the location of the town or
street, you can enter the destination using the
map.
Accessing map
1."Navigation"
2."Map"
A map section is displayed on the Control Dis-
play. The map shows the current position of the
vehicle.
Selecting the destination
1.Select the symbol.
"Interactive map" is started.
2.Select the destination with the cross-hairs.
>Changing scale: turn the controller.
>Moving map: move the controller in the
corresponding direction.
>Shifting map diagonally: move the con-
troller in the corresponding direction and
turn the controller.
3.Press the controller to display other menu
items.
>Select the symbol: "Start guidance"
or "Add as another dest.".
>"Return": return to the map view.
>"Find points of interest": the search for
special destinations is started.
Specifying the street
If the system does not detect any street, then a
street name in the vicinity or the coordinates of
the destination are displayed.
Interactive map
In the interactive map, the scale can be adjusted
and the visible map section can be shifted. In

Navigation
Driving tips
155Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Entertainment
Mobility
addition, pressing the controller makes further
functions available:
> Select a symbol and "Start guid-
ance", if necessary.
>"Exit interactive map"
>Map display
>"Display destination"
The map section around the destination
is displayed.
>"Display current location"
The map section around your current
location is displayed.
>"Find points of interest", refer to
page152.
Entering destination via
voice*
General information
You can enter a desired destination with the
voice activation system. When entering the
destination, it is possible to change between
voice command and iDrive at any time. Reacti-
vate the voice activation system for this pur-
pose if necessary.
You can use {Voice commands} to have
the possible commands read aloud to
you.<
Saying the entries
>Countries, towns/cities, streets, and inter-
sections can be either spoken aloud as an
entire words or spelled in the system lan-
guage, refer to page86.Example: to enter a destination in a US state
as a complete word, the system language
must be English.
>The town/city, street and house number
can be said as a single sentence.
*
>Spell the entry if the language of the area is
different from the system language.
>Speak the letters smoothly and avoid
excessive emphasis and pauses.
Entering an address*
1.Press the button on the steering wheel.
3.Wait for the system prompt.
4.Say the town or city, street and house num-
ber in a single sentence.
5.Continue entering as prompted by the sys-
tem.
6.If necessary, say the parts of the address
individually, e.g. town/city.
Entering a town/city
The town/city can be spelled or entered as an
entire word
*.
The methods of entry depend on the nav-
igation data in use and the country and
language settings.<
2.Wait for the system prompt for the town/
city.
3.Say the name of the town/city or if neces-
sary, spell at least the first three letters.
Depending on the entry, up to 20 towns/cit-
ies are suggested.
Similar-sounding towns/cities that can-
not be differentiated by the system are
compiled in a separate list and displayed as a
2.{Enter address}
1.{City} or {Spell city}.
4.Select city/town:
>To select a recommended town/city:
{Yes}
>Select other city/town: {New entry}
>To select an entry, e. g. {Entry 2}
>Spell the entry: {Spell city}

Destination entry
156 town/city followed by three dots.
If necessary, select this entry with {Yes}. Then
select the desired city/town in this list.<
The town/city can also be selected from the list
using iDrive: turn the controller until the desired
town/city is displayed and press the controller.
Entering a street or intersection
The street or intersection is entered in the same
way as the town/city.
Entering house number
You can enter house numbers up to the number
999:
Starting destination guidance
Destination guidance starts immediately.
Adding further intermediate
destinations
Further intermediate destinations can be
added.
Saving destination
The destination is automatically added to the
list of last destinations.
Planning a trip
New trip
Various intermediate destinations can be
entered for a trip.
1."Navigation"
2."Map"
3.Move the controller to the left, if necessary.
4.Select the symbol.5."Enter new destination"
6.Select the type of destination entry and
enter the intermediate destination.
7.Enter the intermediate destination.
8."Start guidance"
Entering intermediate destinations
A maximum of 30 intermediate destinations can
be entered for one trip.
1."Enter new destination"
2.Select the type of destination entry and
enter the intermediate destination.
3.Select "Add as another dest.".
4.Select the location where the intermediate
destination is to be inserted.
Starting the trip
After all intermediate destinations have been
entered:
"Start guidance"
Storing a trip
Up to 30 planned trips can be stored in the trip
list.
1.Open "Options".
2."Store trip" 1.{House number}
2.Say the house number.
3.{Yes} to confirm the house number.
4.{Accept destination}
{Start guidance}
{Add as another destination}

Navigation
Driving tips
157Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Entertainment
Mobility
3.Enter the letters.
4."OK"
The trip is stored in the trip list under the
entered name.
Starting a stored trip
1."Navigation"
2."Stored trips"
3.Select the desired trip.
4."Start guidance"
Changing trips
Changing the trip direction
Intermediate destinations can be displayed in
reverse order after destination guidance is
started.
1."Map"
2."Guidance"
3.Open "Options".
4."Reverse order of trip dest."
Rearranging the intermediate
destinations
1."Map"
2."Guidance"
3."Display all trip destinations"
4.Select an intermediate destination.
5."Reposition dest. in the trip"
Deleting an intermediate destination
1."Map"
2."Guidance"
3."Display all trip destinations"
4.Select an intermediate destination.
5."Delete dest. in the trip"
Deleting a trip
1."Navigation"
2."Stored trips"
3.Select the desired trip.
4.Open "Options".5."Delete all trips" or "Delete trip".
Word-matching principle
The system supports the word matching princi-
ple to make it easier for you to enter the names
of streets or towns/cities. The system runs
ongoing checks, comparing your destination
entries with the data stored in the vehicle as the
basis for instant response. The user benefits
include:
>Names of specific locations can also vary
from the official versions if you are using a
spelling that is customary in another coun-
try.
Example:
Instead of "München", you can also enter
the English spelling "Munich" or the Italian
spelling "Monaco".
>When you are entering the names of towns/
cities and streets the system will complete
them automatically as soon as enough let-
ters are available to ensure unambiguous
identification.
>The system offers only those letters for
selection of name entries that are stored in
the vehicle. The system will not accept non
existent names and addresses.