
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.

Things to remember when driving
144 >After driving through water at low speed,
lightly press the brake pedal several times
to dry the brakes and to prevent the braking
effect from being reduced by wetness.
>Depending on the condition of the surface,
it may be practical to briefly activate DTC,
refer to DTC Dynamic Traction Control on
page96.
>If the drive wheels spin on one side, depress
the accelerator pedal sufficiently so that the
driving stability control systems can distrib-
ute the drive forces to the individual wheels.
Please note the following points after driving on
poor roads to maintain the driving safety of your
BMW:
>Clean the coarsest dirt from the body.
>Clean mud, snow, ice etc. from the wheels
and tires and check the tires for damage.

Navigation
Driving tips
151Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Entertainment
Mobility
3.Change to the list of house numbers.
4.Select a house number or range of house
numbers.
Starting destination guidance after
entering the destination
1."Accept destination"
2."Start guidance" or "Add as another dest.".
>Set your "Route preference",
Refer to page158.
>Search for "Points of Interest at loc.",
Refer to page152.
Address book
To create contacts, refer to page224.
Selecting a destination from the
address book
1."Navigation"
2."Address book"
Contacts with addresses are displayed if
these have been checked as destinations.
If the contacts with addresses from the
mobile phone
* are not displayed, they first
need to be checked as destinations, refer to
page225.
3.Select a contact from the list or, if neces-
sary, using "A-Z search".
4.If necessary, select "Business address" or
"Home address".
Storing a destination in the address
book
Store the destination in the address book after
entering the destination.
1.Open "Options".
2."Store as new contact" or "Add to existing
contact".
3.Select an existing contact, if available.
4.Select "Business address" or "Home
address".
5.Enter "Last name" and, if necessary, "First
name".
6."Store in vehicle"
Storing the position
Your current position can be stored in the
address book.
1."Navigation"
2.Open "Options".
3."Store position as contact" or "Add position
to contact".
4.Depending on the selection, select an exist-
ing contact from the list or the type of
address and enter the last and first name.
5."Store in vehicle"

Destination entry
152
Editing or deleting an address
1."Navigation"
2."Address book"
3.Highlight the entry.
4.Open "Options".
5."Edit in Contacts" or "Delete entry".
Using home address as destination
The home address must be stored as a destina-
tion. Refer to Specifying a contact as the home
address, page224.
1."Navigation"
2."Address book"
3."Home"
4."Start guidance"
Last destinations
The last destinations are stored automatically.
These destinations can be called up and used
as a destination for destination guidance.
Accessing last destinations
1."Navigation"
2."Last destinations"3.Select the destination.
4."Start guidance"
Editing a destination
Destinations can be edited, for example, to
change the house number of an existing entry.
1."Navigation"
2."Last destinations"
3.Highlight the destination.
4.Open "Options".
5."Edit destination"
Deleting the last destinations
1."Navigation"
2."Last destinations"
3.Highlight the destination.
4.Open "Options".
5."Delete entry" or "Delete all last destina-
tions".
Special destinations
You can search for a special destination, e.g. a
hotel or place of interest, and start destination
guidance to the corresponding location.
The scope of information provided
depends on the particular set of naviga-
tion data you are using.<
Accessing search for special
destinations
1."Navigation"
2."Points of Interest"
The search can be narrowed by entering the
location and type of special destination.
Special destination location
Search for a special destination according to its
location relative to a locality or route.

Navigation
Driving tips
153Reference
At a glance
Controls
Communications
Entertainment
Mobility
1."Search area"
2.Select the location where the system is to
search for the special destination:
>"At current location"
>"At destination"
>"At a different destination"
>"Along route"
Special destination category
1."Category"
2.Select "All" or a specific category, e.g.
hotels or restaurants.
Category details
For some special destinations, it is possible to
display additional details that are recorded in
the navigation data, e.g. restaurant type: Italian.
"Category details"
Starting the search for special
destinations
1."Start search"
2.A list of the special destinations is dis-
played.
>"At current location"
Special destinations are listed according to their distance from the current loca-
tion and are displayed with a directional
arrow pointing to the destination.
>"At destination", "At a different destina-
tion", "Along route"
Special destinations are listed according
to their distance from the location where
the search is being performed.
>Destinations of the selected category
are displayed in the map display as sym-
bols. The display depends on the map
scale and the category.
3.Highlight the special destination: the desti-
nation is displayed in the preview map.
4.Select the special destination.
5.Select the symbol.
6."Start guidance" or "Add as another dest.".
If a phone number is available, a connection
can be established, if desired.
Destination entry using BMW Assist*
A connection is established to the BMW Con-
cierge service, refer to page227.
1."Navigation"
2."Enter address"
3.Open "Options".
4."BMW Assist dest. entry"
Entering special destinations by name
1."Navigation"
2."Points of Interest"
3."Name, A-Z search"
4.Enter the letters.
Depending on the distance, the search may
take some time. The list can contain a max-
imum of 100 entries.
5.Change to the list of special destinations.
6.Highlight the special destination: the desti-
nation is displayed in the preview map.
7.Select the special destination.
8.Select the symbol.
9."Start guidance" or "Add as another dest.".

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

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.