BMW E87 2009 Owner's Handbook Manual page 101

Drive off immediately
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. This is the
quickest way for the cold engine to reach its
operating temperature.
Use an anticipatory driving style
Avoid unnecessary acceleration and braking
operations. To do so, maintain an appropriate
gap between your car and the vehicle in front.
An anticipatory and even driving style reduces
fuel consumption.
Avoid high engine speeds
Only use 1st gear for driving off. As of 2nd gear,
accelerate quickly. In doing so, avoid high
engine speeds and upshift at an early stage.
When you reach the desired speed, shift to the
highest possible gear and drive at low engine
speed and constant speed, if possible.
As a general principle, the following applies:
driving at lower engine speed lowers fuel con-
sumption and reduces wear.
The gearshift point display
cates the gear with the most favourable fuel
consumption, see page 61.
Use the coasting mode
On approaching a red traffic light, take your foot
off the accelerator and allow the vehicle to roll in
the highest possible gear.
On downward stretches, take your foot off the
accelerator and allow the car to roll in the appro-
priate gear.
In the coasting mode, the flow of fuel is cut off.
Switch off the engine during longer
stops
When you stop the car for longer periods, e.g. at
traffic lights, railway crossings or in traffic jams,
switch off the engine. You will save fuel even if
the engine is off for no longer than approx.
4 seconds.
The automatic start/stop function
BMW switches the engine off automatically
Online Edition for Part no. 01 41 2 602 816 - © 08/09 BMW AG Online Edition for Part no. 01 41 2 602 816 - © 08/09 BMW AG
*
of your BMW indi-
*
of your
during a stop. For more information on the auto-
matic start/stop function, refer to page 50.
Switch off functions that are not
absolutely necessary at the moment
Functions such as the air conditioner, seat
heating or rear window heating use a lot of
energy and consume additional fuel. Their influ-
ence is particularly strong in city traffic and stop
and go traffic situations. For this reason, switch
these functions off if they are not really
required.
Have maintenance carried out
Have the vehicle serviced regularly to achieve
the optimal economy and service life for your
vehicle. BMW recommends that you have serv-
icing work performed by BMW Service. See
also the BMW Maintenance System, page 190.
General driving notes
Close the tailgate
Drive only with the tailgate closed; other-
wise exhaust gases could enter the pas-
senger compartment.<
If it is unavoidable to drive with the tailgate
open:
1. Close all the windows and the glass roof.
2. Significantly increase the air flow from the
automatic air-conditioning system, see
page 86.
Hot exhaust system
High temperatures in the exhaust system
occur with all vehicles. Never remove the
heat shields protecting this area, nor apply
underseal to them. Make sure that when the car
is driven or parked and when the engine is
idling, no easily flammable material such as hay,
leaves, grass, etc. comes into contact with the
hot exhaust pipe. It could ignite and cause a fire,
with the risk of severe injuries or damage. Do
not touch hot exhaust tail pipes; otherwise
there is a risk of burns.<
99