
At a glance
 11Reference
Controls
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
9BMW X6: upshifting or downshifting with 
automatic transmission64
10Instrument panel12
13Ignition lock5814Buttons on steering wheel
15Horn, entire surface
18Releasing hood251 6
Parking lamps111
Low beams111
Automatic headlamp control
*111 
Adaptive Light Control
*112 
High-beam Assistant
*113
7
Head-up Display
*109
8
Turn signals65
High beams, headlamp flasher65
High-beam Assistant
*113
Roadside parking lamps
*113
Time, date, outside temperature, 
Check Control76, 84
Computer78
11
Windshield wipers65
Rain sensor66
BMW X5: rear window wiper66
12Starting/stopping engine and 
switching ignition on/off58
Telephone*:
Accepting and ending calls, start 
dialing
* selected phone number, 
redialing if no phone number is 
selected
Volume
Activating/deactivating voice acti-
vation system
*22
Changing the radio station
Selecting a music track
Scrolling through the redial list
Next entertainment source
Recirculated-air mode, 119
Steering wheel heating
*53
Lane departure warning
*104
16
Steering wheel adjustment52
17
Cruise control
*67
Active cruise control
*68 

Adjusting
44 1Backrest
2Height
Additional depending on seat:
1Backrest width
*
2Shoulder support*
3Thigh support*
4Lumbar support*
Backrest width*
The width of the backrest can be changed with 
the side wings to adjust the side support to your 
own needs.
Shoulder support*
This also supports the back in the shoulder 
area, provides a relaxed sitting position and 
helps relieve stress on the shoulder muscles.
The shoulder support is also used to adjust the 
distance of the head restraint from the back of 
the seat occupant's head.
Lumbar support*
You can also adjust the contour of the backrest 
to obtain additional support in the lumbar 
region.
The upper hips and spinal column receive sup-
plementary support to help you maintain a 
relaxed, upright sitting position.
>Increase or decrease curvature: press front 
or rear section of switch.
>Shift curvature up or down: press upper or 
lower section of switch.
Seat, mirror and steering 
wheel memory*
You can store and retrieve two different driver's 
seat and front passenger seat
*-, exterior mir-
ror-, and steering wheel positions
*.
The adjustment of the backrest width and lum-
bar support is not stored in the memory.
Storing
1.Switch on radio readiness or ignition, refer 
to page58.
2.Set the desired seat, exterior mirror and 
steering wheel positions. 

Controls
 45Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
3.Press the  button: 
The LED in the button lights up.
4.Press the desired memory button1 or2: 
the LED goes out.
The positions of the driver's seat, the exte-
rior mirrors, and steering wheel are stored 
for the remote control currently in use.
Activating
Do not activate the memory function 
while the vehicle is moving. There is a risk 
of accident from unexpected movement of the 
seat or steering wheel.<
Comfort mode
1.After unlocking, open the driver's door or 
switch on radio readiness, refer to page58.
2.Briefly press the desired memory button1 
or 2.
The adjusting procedure is canceled if you 
briefly press a seat-adjusting switch or one of 
the memory buttons.
Safety feature
1.Close the driver's door and switch the igni-
tion on or off, refer to page58.
2.Press the desired memory button1 or2 
and maintain pressure until the adjustment 
process has been completed.
If the  button was pressed inadvertently: 
press the button again; the LED goes out.
Activating with the remote control
The driver's seat position last set is stored for 
the remote control currently in use.
You can select whether or not the seat is reset 
to that position automatically.
When using this feature, always make 
sure that the footwell behind the driver's 
seat is empty and unobstructed. Failure to do 
so could cause injury to persons or damage to 
objects behind the seat as a result of a rearward 
movement of the seat.
the memory buttons.
Selecting automatic activation
1."Settings"
2."Door locks"
3."Last seat position auto."
 The function for automatically recalling the 
last seat position is switched on and is stored 
for the remote control currently in use.
Deactivating automatic recall
Deactivate "Last seat position automatic".
Head restraints
Correctly adjusted head restraint
A correctly adjusted head restraint reduces the 
risk of spinal injury in the event of an accident.
Correctly adjust the head restraint of all 
occupied seats; otherwise, there is 
increased danger of injury in the event of an 
accident.<
Height
Adjust the head restraint so that its center is 
approx. at ear level.
Distance
Adjust the distance so that the head restraint is 
as close as possible to the back of the head. 

Adjusting
52
Tilting down passenger-side exterior 
mirror – automatic curb monitor*
Activating
1.Slide switch into the driver's side mirror 
position, arrow 1.
2.Engage transmission position R. 
The mirror glass tilts downward somewhat 
on the passenger side. This allows the 
driver to see the area immediately adjacent 
to the vehicle – such as a curb – when park-
ing, etc.
Deactivating
Slide switch into the passenger side mirror 
position, arrow 2.
Interior rearview mirror
To reduce the dazzle effect of following vehi-
cles at night, turn the knob.
Interior and exterior mirrors, 
automatic dimming feature*
This feature is controlled by two photocells in 
the interior rearview mirror, one on the front and 
one on the back.
For trouble-free operation, keep the photocells 
clean and do not cover the area between the 
interior rearview mirror and the windshield. Do 
not attach stickers of any kind to the windshield 
in front of the mirror, either.
Steering wheel
Adjusting
Do not adjust the steering wheel while the 
vehicle is moving. There is a risk of acci-
dent as the result of unexpected movement.<
Manual adjustment*
1.Flip the lever down.
2.Adapt the longitudinal direction and height 
of the steering wheel to the seat position.
3.Return the lever back to its locked position. 

Controls
 53Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Power adjustment*
The steering wheel can be adjusted in four 
directions.
Storing steering wheel positions, refer to Seat, 
mirror and steering wheel memory on page44.
Easy entry/exit*
To facilitate entry and exit, the steering wheel 
temporarily moves into the uppermost position.
Steering wheel heating*
Press the button.
When the steering wheel heater is switched on, 
the LED in the button lights up. 

Controls
 107Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Airbags
The following airbags are located under the 
marked covers:
1Front airbags
2Head airbags
3Side airbags
Protective action
To ensure that the safety systems con-
tinue to provide optimized protection, 
observe the adjustment instructions on 
page42.<
The front airbags help protect the driver and 
front passenger by responding to frontal 
impacts in which safety belts alone cannot pro-
vide adequate restraint. When needed, the 
head and side airbags help provide protection in 
the event of side impact. The relevant side air-
bag supports the side upper body area. The 
head air bag supports the head.
The airbags are deliberately not triggered in 
every impact situation, e.g. less severe acci-
dents or rear-end collisions.
Do not apply adhesive materials to the 
cover panels of the airbags, cover them or 
modify them in any other way.
Keep the instrument cluster and window in the 
region of the passenger seat free of foreign 
materials, i.e. do not cover them with adhesive 
film or covers and do not attach mounts, e.g. for 
a navigation device or mobile phone to them.
Do not install cosmetic covers, seat cushions, 
or other items on the front seats that are not 
especially approved for seats with integrated 
side airbags. Do not hang articles of clothing 
such as jackets over the backrests.Do not attempt to remove the airbag restraint 
system from the vehicle. Do not modify or 
tamper with either the wiring or the individual 
components in the airbag system. This includes 
the upholstery in the center of the steering 
wheel, on the instrument cluster, the doors, and 
the roof pillars as well as the sides of the head-
liner. Do not attempt to remove or dismantle the 
steering wheel. Do not touch the individual 
components immediately after the system has 
been triggered, because there is a danger of 
burns. 
In the event of malfunctions, deactivation, or 
triggering of the airbag restraint system, have 
the testing, repair, removal, and disposal of air-
bag generators executed only by a BMW Sports 
Activity Vehicle Center or a workshop that 
works according to BMW repair procedures 
with correspondingly trained personnel and has 
the required explosives licenses. Otherwise 
unprofessional attempts to service the system 
could lead to failure in an emergency or undes-
ired airbag triggering, either of which could 
result in personal injury.<
Warnings and information on the airbags is also 
provided on the sun visors.
Automatic deactivation of front 
passenger airbags
The occupation of the seat is detected by eval-
uating the impression on the occupied seat sur-
face of the front passenger seat. The front and 
side airbags on the front passenger side are 
activated or deactivated accordingly by the sys-
tem.
The current status of the front passenger 
airbag, i.e. deactivated or activated, is  

On/off and tone
168
On/off and tone
The following audio and video sources share 
the same control elements and adjustments:
>Radio
>CD/DVD player
>CD/DVD changer
*
>Video*
>External devices, e.g. MP3 player
Controls
The audio and video sources can be controlled 
using:
>Buttons near the CD/DVD player
>iDrive
>Buttons on the steering wheel, refer to 
page10
>Programmable memory buttons, refer to 
page20
>Voice activation system
Buttons near the CD/DVD player
1Sound output for entertainment on/off, vol-
ume
>Press: switch on/off
When you switch on the unit, the last set 
radio station or track is played.
>Turn: adjusting volume
2 Ejecting CD/DVD
3Drive for CD/DVD
*
4 Station scan/track search
>Change the radio station
>Select a track for the CD/DVD
* player, 
CD/DVD changer
* and certain multime-
dia devices
5MODE: change the audio and video 
sources
6FM/AM: change the radio station wave-
band
Switching on/off
To switch the Entertainment sound output on 
and off:
Press button1 next to the CD/DVD player.
 This symbol on the Control Display indicates 
that sound output is switched off.
The sound output is available for approx. 
20 minutes after the ignition was switched off.
Switch on the sound output again for this pur-
pose.
Adjusting volume
Turn button1 next to the CD/DVD player until 
the desired volume is obtained.
You can also adjust the volume with buttons on 
the steering wheel, refer to page10.
Tone control
You can alter various tone settings, e.g. treble 
and bass or the speed-dependent volume 
increase.
The tone settings are set for all audio sources at 
once.
The settings are stored for the remote control 
currently in use.
Treble, bass, balance, fader
>"Balance": left/right volume distribution 

Everything from A - Z
292
Everything from A - Z
Index
A
ABS Antilock Brake 
System95
ACC, refer to Active cruise 
control68
Accessories5
Access to 3rd row seats47
Acoustic signal, refer to Check 
Control82
Activated-charcoal filter121
Active cruise control68
– distance, selecting70
– indicator lamp72
– radar sensor72
– warning lamps72
Active seat51
Active seat ventilation50
Active steering105
– malfunction105
– warning lamp105
Adaptive brake lamp
– brake force display106
Adaptive Drive98
Adaptive fixing system133
Adaptive Light Control112
Address, entering149,155
Address for navigation
– entering149
Adjusting opening 
height31,33
Adjusting temperature with 
expanded-scope automatic 
climate control118
Adjusting the tone during 
audio operation, refer to 
Tone control168
Adjusting thigh 
support43,44
Airbags107
– sitting safely42
– warning lamp108Air distribution
– automatic117,121
– manual118
Airing, refer to Ventilation120
Air recirculation119
– AUC Automatic 
recirculated-air control119
– recirculated-air mode119
Air vents116
– refer to Ventilation120
Air vents of automatic climate 
control116
Air volume118,
122
AKI, refer to Fuel 
specifications235
Alarm system34
– avoiding unintentional 
alarms35
– interior motion sensor35
– switching off alarm34
– switching off tilt alarm 
sensor and interior motion 
sensor35
– tilt alarm sensor35
Albums of music 
collection189
Alloy wheels259
All-season tires, refer to 
Winter tires250
All-wheel drive, refer to 
xDrive97
Alterations, technical, refer to 
For your own safety5
AM, waveband171
Antenna for mobile phone212
Antifreeze
– coolant255
– washer fluid67
Antilock Brake System 
ABS95
Anti-theft system, refer to 
Alarm system34Anti-theft system, refer to 
Central locking system27
Approved axle weights, refer 
to Weights283
Approved engine oils255
Approved gross vehicle 
weight, refer to Weights283
Armrest, refer to Center 
armrest, front128
Around the center console14
Around the steering wheel10
Arrival time, refer to 
Computer79
Ashtray
– front129
– rear129
Assist, refer to separate 
operating instructions
Assistance systems, refer to 
Driving stability control 
systems95
AUC Automatic recirculated-
air control119
Audio168
– controls168
– switching on/off168
– tone control168
– volume168
Audio CDs, DVD system in 
rear202
Audio device, external128
Automatic
– air distribution117,121
– air volume
117,121
– cruise control68
– headlamp control111
– liftgate operation31
– steering wheel adjustment, 
refer to Easy entry/exit53
Automatically switching high-
beams on and off, refer to 
High-beam Assistant113
Automatic car washes258