ABS enhances active safety by helping to prevent the wheels from locking under braking. When the front wheels slide, the driver loses steering control over the vehicle. Traction loss at the rear wheels can cause the rear end to break into uncontrolled over steer.

ABS is designed to meet two essential requirements during every application:

* to help provide vehicle stability on all types of road surface (asphalt, cement, dirt, moisture, snow and ice).
* to help to retain steering and maneuvering capability under the same conditions

However, certain important considerations must be borne in mind in connection with these requirements: Not even ABS can suspend the normal laws of physics. ABS alone can not prevent accidents when the brakes are applied without an adequate safety interval between vehicles, when the car reaches excessive rates of lateral acceleration in curves, or if aquaplaning occurs. Responsibility for these types of situations remains in the hands (and feet) of the driver. You should never allow the added safety of ABS to lull you into a false sense of security, or mislead you into taking increased risks that could affect your own safety and that of others.


Driving with ABS
The yellow ABS warning in the instrument panel goes out as soon as the engine is started.

The system becomes operative once the vehicle exceeds a speed of 5 mph (8 km/h). The ABS is deactivated whenever the vehicle's speed drops below approx. 2 mph (3 km/h). This means that the wheels can lock in the final phase of a braking action - a factor of no signifi- cance in actual practice.

The ABS system closed-loop control circuit cycles in fractions of a second. A pulsation at the brake pedal indicates to the driver that ABS is active, that is, that the car is within its maximum braking range. In addition, the audible pulsation that accompanies the control operation calls your attention to the reduced traction between tires and road surface (marginal adhesion), and reminds you that the vehicle's speed should be reduced to adapt to road conditions.

On road surfaces featuring a loose top layer on a firmer substratum, e.g., on gravel or snow, the braking distances with ABS may be longer than with the wheels locked. However, ABS continues to provide enhanced vehicle and steering control under these conditions

To ensure that the system remains completely operational, never modify the ABS. Service procedures on ABS are to be performed by authorized technicians only.

ABS may fail to function with maximum efficiency when tires of different sizes are mounted (e.g., winter tires/spare tire; remount the correct tires at all wheels as soon as possible).

In the event of a fault, the ABS warning lamp in the instrument cluster lights up, refer to page 18. The braking system then reverts to conventional operation as on a vehicle without ABS. However, have the brake system checked by your BMW Retailer as soon as possible. To prevent undetected defects and cumulative faults from adversely affecting the brake system, refer any problems to your authorized BMW Retailer at the earliest opportunity.