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Driving your X5
On bad roads
When you are driving on bad 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:
Driving on unpaved terrain can
cause damage to the vehicle.<
>Always adjust your driving speed to
the road conditions – the rougher or
steeper the road surface, the lower
your speed should be
>You can operate your vehicle on
uphill and downhill gradients with a
maximum slope of 50%. If you want
to drive on uphill or downhill gradi-
ents of this kind, make sure before-
hand that the engine oil and coolant
levels are near the max mark, refer to
pages 143 and 145.
For very steep downhill driving, use
HDC Hill Descent Control, refer to
page 93.
It is possible to start off on grades of
up to 32%.
The permitted side tilt is also 50%
>While driving, watch carefully for
obstacles such as rocks or holes.
Try to avoid these obstacles when-
ever possible
>Please note that, for example on
crests and bumpy roads, the body
can make ground contact.
The ground clearance of the vehicle
is:
– 8 in/200 mm with up to four per-
sons
– 7 in/180 mm fully loaded – without
self-leveling suspension
>Only drive through water up to a
maximum depth of 20 in/50 cm and
only at walking speed, making sure
not to stop in the process.
After leaving the water, press on the
footbrake gently several times while
driving at a low speed. The brake
applications will help to dry the
brakes, thus preventing a reduction in
braking performance caused by the
moisture.
Back onto the paved road
In recommending that you observe the
following points after driving on adverse
road surfaces, it is not as a beauty
treatment for your BMW. Instead, it is
intended for the maintenance of driving
safety:
>Wash the body
>Clean mud, snow, ice etc. from the
wheels and tires and check the
wheels for damage
>Check to determine whether rocks,
gravel or accumulations of dirt on the
brake rotors and calipers could influ-
ence braking performance. Remove
all such foreign objects
>In order to clean the brake rotors,
apply the footbrake gently several
times while driving at a low speed. Be
sure that following traffic is not
endangered by this
>For cleaning the handbrake, apply
the lever slightly at approx. 25 mph/
40 km/h and continue to drive for
approx. 200 yards/200 meters, pro-
vided that traffic conditions allow you
to do so.
Online Edition for Part No. 01 41 0 157 897 - © 08/03 BMW AG