Get Driving hints Guide for BMW Z4 2 Door Second Generation (2009-2016)

Driving hints

Here is a variety of information that you may

need in particular driving situations or operating

modes.

Driving hints

Driving precautions

Tyres

Vehicle equipment

New tyres do not achieve their full road

grip immediately, for production reasons.

This chapter describes all the standard equip‐

ment, national-market-specific equipment and

optional extras offered in the model series.

Consequently, you will find that it contains de‐

scriptions of items not available in a particular

vehicle on account of a combination of options,

for example, or the constraints applying to cer‐

tain national-market versions. This also applies

to safety-relevant functions and systems.

During the first 300 km, 200 miles, drive mod‐

erately.

Brake system

Brake pads and discs only achieve a favourable

wear and contact pattern after approximately

500 km, 300 miles. Drive with caution during

this running-in period.

Country-specific regulations must be observed

when using the corresponding functions and

systems.

Clutch

The clutch does not achieve optimum per‐

formance until the car has been driven for ap‐

proximately 500 km, 300 miles.

Running in

Operate the clutch gently while running it in.

General

After fitting new parts

Moving parts need a certain time to achieve

maximum operating efficiency as a unit.

The same running-in procedures should be

observed if any of the components mentioned

above have to be renewed in the course of the

vehicle's operating life.

The following information helps to achieve

maximum service life and efficiency of the ve‐

hicle.

Engine and final drive

Comply with the speed limits of the country in

which you drive.

General driving tips

Ground clearance

Up to 2000 km, approx. 1200 miles

Note restricted ground clearance

Do not exceed the maximum revs and top

speed:

Bear in mind the restricted ground clear‐

ance of the Z4 sDrive35is, for example when

entering and exiting underground parking fa‐

cilities and when driving over obstacles on the

ground. Otherwise damage to the car could

occur.◀

▷

4500 rpm and 160 km/h, approx. 100 mph.

In principle, avoid full throttle and do not use

the automatic transmission kick-down as well

as the Launch Control function.

From 2000 km, approx. 1200 miles

onwards

Engine and road speeds can be gradually in‐

creased.

114

Driving precautions

Driving hints

Closing boot lid

Mobile communication equipment

Drive with the boot lid closed

Mobile communication equipment

Drive only with the boot lid closed; other‐

wise exhaust gases could enter the passenger

compartment.◀

You are advised not to use mobile radio

devices, for example, mobile phones, inside

the vehicle without a direct connection to an

external aerial. Mutual interference between

the vehicle's electronics and such equipment

cannot be entirely ruled out. There is moreover

no guarantee that the radiation generated

when such devices are transmitting will be dis‐

sipated out of the vehicle's interior.◀

If it is necessary to travel with the boot lid

open, observe the following precautions:

1. Close all windows.

2. Increase the air flow of the air conditioning

or automatic air conditioning to a high

level.

Aquaplaning

Hot exhaust system

On wet or slushy roads, a wedge of water can

form between the tyres and the road.

Hot exhaust system

This situation, known as aquaplaning, means

that the tyre can actually lose contact com‐

pletely with the road surface and the car can

neither be steered nor the brakes properly ap‐

plied.

High temperatures occur in the exhaust

system.

Never remove the heat shields fitted here, or

apply underseal to them. When driving, idling

or parking, ensure that no highly inflammable

materials, e.g. hay, foliage, grass etc. comes

into contact with the hot exhaust system. It

could ignite and cause a fire, with the risk of

severe injuries or damage.

Aquaplaning

On wet or slushy roads, reduce your

speed in order to avoid aquaplaning.◀

Do not touch hot exhaust tail pipes; otherwise

there is a risk of burns.◀

Fording

If the water is calm drive no faster than walking

speed, approximately 10 km/h, 6 mph and only

up to a maximum water depth of approximately

25 cm, 9.8 inches.

Radio signals

Warning

Pay attention to the water depth and

your speed

The vehicle’s performance may be affec‐

ted by interference from high frequency radio

signals. Such signals are output from a series

of transmission systems, for example, from air

traffic beacons or relay stations for mobile tele‐

communications.

Do not exceed the water depth and walking

speed, as otherwise the engine, electrical sys‐

tem and transmission could be damaged.◀

We recommend you consult your Service Cen‐

tre should you experience any difficulties.◀

Safe braking

Your vehicle is equipped with ABS as standard.

Applying the brakes fully is the most effective

way of braking in situations in which this is

necessary.

115

Driving hints

Driving precautions

The vehicle can be steered. Any obstacles can

be avoided with steering wheel movements

that are as calm as possible.

Downshift with the 7-speed sport-automatic

transmission with double clutch, see page 60,

in manual mode.

A pulsing of the brake pedal and hydraulic reg‐

ulating sounds indicate that ABS is regulating.

Avoid excessive braking

Avoid excessive loads on the brake. Even

slight, continuous pressure on the brake pedal

could cause overheating, brake pad wear or

even brake system failure.◀

Objects in the range of movement of

the pedals

No objects in the range of movement of

the pedals

Do not drive with the transmission in

neutral

Foot mats, carpets or other objects must not

breach the range of movement of the pedals,

as otherwise they could influence the function

of the pedals when driving.

Never drive with the transmission in neutral,

with the engine switched off, or the clutch

pedal depressed. Otherwise, the braking ac‐

tion of the engine will either not be present, or

there will be no power assistance to the brakes

or steering.◀

Do not place additional foot mats on top of ex‐

isting floor mats or other similar objects.

Only use foot mats that have been approved

for the vehicle and that can be fastened ac‐

cordingly.

Corrosion of the brake disc

Corrosion of the brake discs and contamina‐

tion of the brake pads increase with:

Ensure that foot mats are securely reattached

after having been removed, for example for

cleaning.◀

▷

Low mileage.

Extended periods when the vehicle is not

used.

Wet roads

In damp weather or heavy rain, apply the

brakes lightly every few kilometres/miles.

▷

Infrequent use of the brakes.

Corrosion occurs when the minimum pressure

that must be exerted by the pads during brake

applications to clean the discs is not reached.

In doing so, do not obstruct other road users.

The resulting heat dries the brake discs and

pads.

Should corrosion form on the brake discs, the

brakes will tend to respond with a pulsating ef‐

fect that generally cannot be corrected.

The braking force will be available immediately

if needed.

Condensate when vehicle is parked

Downhill gradients

When driving on long or steep downhill

stretches, use the gear in which the least brak‐

ing is required. Otherwise the brake system

can overheat and braking action is reduced.

When using the automatic air conditioning,

condensation water develops that exits under‐

neath the vehicle.

Traces of water on the ground are therefore

normal.

The braking effect can be additionally in‐

creased by shifting down, even into first gear, if

applicable.

Downshift with the 8-speed sport-automatic

transmission, see page 57, in manual mode.

116

Driving precautions

Driving hints

Lower boot partition, see page 33.

Loads

Overloading the vehicle

Behind-seat storage

So that the permitted load capacity of the

tyres is not exceeded, do not overload the ve‐

hicle. The tyres could then overheat and sus‐

tain internal damage. Under certain circum‐

stances, sudden tyre pressure loss will be the

consequence.◀

Loading behind-seat storage

When loading the behind-seat storage

area, do not simultaneously push both seats to

the front, bring to the upper most position and

fold rests forward. Otherwise seats could col‐

lide with the windscreen seals, sun visor or the

roof lining and damage these.◀

Securing heavy objects

Do not carry heavy and hard objects un‐

secured in the passenger compartment be‐

cause they could break loose and endanger

the occupants if you have to brake sharply or

swerve to avoid an obstacle, for example.◀

No fluids in the boot

Ensure that fluid leakage does not occur

in the boot. Otherwise the vehicle could be

damaged.◀

Light and small items may be transported in

the behind-seat storage.

Loading

Boot

Securing the load

Boot

Secure small and light objects with tensioning

straps, a boot net or other suitable straps.

Behind-seat storage

Luggage straps are available from your Service

centre. There are four lashing eyes behind the

seats to fasten luggage straps.

Please observe the information provided with

luggage straps.

▷

Heavy transported load: position low down

and as far forward as possible, ideally di‐

rectly behind the boot bulkhead.

Lashing eyes of the behind-seat

storage

Wrap protective material round sharp cor‐

ners and edges.

Use lashing eyes only for securing load.

Loading with hardtop open

Use lashing eyes only for securing load.

Do not engage an upper ISOFIX retaining

strap. Otherwise the protective effect of the

child retaining system can be impaired.◀

Before opening the hardtop lower the

boot partition; make sure that all items are

stowed correctly as otherwise parts of the

hardtop could be damaged.◀

117

Driving hints

Driving precautions

Top:

Add-on parts on the car interfere with its aero‐

dynamic performance and inflate fuel con‐

sumption.

Close both windows

An opened window increases drag and thus

fuel consumption.

Tyres

General

Bottom:

Tyres can affect consumption figures in vari‐

ous ways, for example fuel consumption can

be influenced by tyre size.

Checking tyre pressures regularly

Check and, if necessary, correct tyre inflation

pressures, see page 157, at least twice a

month and before setting off on a longer jour‐

ney.

Insufficient tyre pressure enlarges the rolling

resistance and thus increases fuel consump‐

tion and tyre wear.

Saving fuel

Driving off immediately

General

Do not warm up the engine with the car at a

standstill; it is preferable to set off straight

away, driving at moderate engine speeds.

Your vehicle contains wide-ranging technolo‐

gies for reducing consumption and emission

levels.

A cold engine will then reach its operating tem‐

perature faster.

Fuel consumption depends on various factors.

A number of measures, driving style and regu‐

lar maintenance, see page 166, can influence

the fuel consumption and the burden on the

environment.

Driving with foresight

Avoid accelerating and braking unnecessarily.

Keep an appropriate distance from the preced‐

ing vehicle.

Removing transported load that is not

required

Extra weight increases fuel consumption.

Anticipating the road situation and adopting a

smooth driving style will reduce fuel consump‐

tion.

Removing add-on parts after use

Remove auxiliary mirrors and rear-mounted

racks after use.

Avoid high engine speeds

Use 1st gear to drive off. As from 2nd gear, ac‐

celerate quickly. Avoid high engine speeds and

shift up quickly.

118

Driving precautions

Driving hints

Shift into the highest possible gear when you

have reached the desired speed and drive at a

constant speed with the lowest possible en‐

gine speed.

additional fuel, especially in city traffic and

stop/go traffic.

For this reason, switch these functions off if

they are not required.

Basic principle: driving at low engine speeds

reduces fuel consumption and wear.

Having the car serviced

The shift point indicator, see page 65, of your

vehicle indicates the most economical gear.

Have the vehicle serviced regularly to achieve

optimal economy and service life. It is recom‐

mended to have maintenance work performed

by your Service centre.

Making use of coasting

When approaching a red traffic light, take your

foot off the accelerator and let the vehicle roll

in the highest possible gear.

See also the BMW Maintenance System, see

page 166.

On downward stretches, take your foot off the

accelerator and allow the car to roll in the

matching gear.

The fuel supply is interrupted when coasting.

Switching off the engine when

stationary

When you stop the car for longer periods, for

example at traffic lights, railway crossings or in

traffic jams, switch off the engine.

Automatic start/stop function

The automatic start/stop function switches the

engine off during a stop.

If the engine is stopped and subsequently re‐

started, fuel consumption and emissions fall in

comparison with an engine that runs perma‐

nently. Savings can be achieved even with an

engine stop of a few seconds.

Moreover, fuel consumption depends on other

factors, for example driving style, road condi‐

tions, maintenance or environmental factors.

Further information on the automatic start/stop

function, see page 49.

Switching off functions that are not

necessary at the moment

Functions such as automatic air conditioning

require a great deal of energy and consume

119

Driving hints for Your BMW Z4 2 Door Second Generation (2009-2016)

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