[fredct]

Driving to work yesterday morning (one of only twice that I've driven in active snow/slush), I got the message "AEB Disabled, Radar Blocked" on my dash with a couple associated icons. After a few minutes it went away, and then a few minutes later came back again. After being on for 10-15 minutes I was stopped at a light, so I stopped the car and restarted it and the message was gone.

Just a minute or two after doing that, the system correctly gave me a warning beep when a guy in front of me was turning right and I got a little close to him since I was continuing straight. The message has not come back since.

Has anyone seen this? Could snow or slush getting into the wrong place cause this? Does it need line of sight? Does anyone know where that equipment is installed? Above the window? Looking out through the grills in front of each wheel well? I have gotten the car covered with an inch or two of snow once when I was at work and I did not get that message at that time.

 

[NJ Niro]

Yes. This happens in snow and icy conditions when the sensors in the front bumper are frozen over. I would have hoped they had a fix for this during these types of conditions because that's when you need the warning the most. But outside of a heated bumper, I don't know how they could prevent it from happening.

 

[KK6PD]

If you look at the front grill, you will notice a small, approx 5" X 7" Black plastic plate, directly behind that is the radar XMIT/RCV antenna. If it gets blocked, you can stop, wipe it off, but in a snow storm & driving it's going to get covered thus killing the radar!
Possible dressing the plate with a non stick Super Hydrophobic coating may help, I don't live in snow land, not a problem for me!
I did however consider, for about 13 seconds, mounting my front license there, but didn't!!

 

[realto]

There are no sensors in the AEB, it does not use a camera or lens. It is a type of radar unit, and is mounted behind the rectangular flat black plate below the bumper and licence plate. The radar units I've been familiar with aren't too much affected by snow or ice, even the beam or array sent back to it. They can get some refraction in say a blizzard condition and cause them to give a false reading. But that's rare. These car units are apparently a bit different and can be affected by snow or slush.

 

[KK6PD]

It's dependent on what frequency range this thing transmits at. The higher in Ghz the radar goes, the more susceptible to external things like rain, IE "Rain Fade" a term Directv just hates, Snow, Ice!! I have worked with 3Ghz, 12Ghz, 24Ghz band units, they all have their own strengths and weaknesses, depending on frequency! If you can keep the antenna as clear as possible, the more likely the unit will work properly!

 

[yticolev]

There are no sensors in the AEB, it does not use a camera or lens. It is a type of radar unit...

Radar is a sensor. Just saying! An active sensor just like lidar, sends a signal and reads the bounce back. Most cameras are passive sensors, although the resulting image can be digitally analyzed to affect driving behavior.

 

[chereeag]

2018 NIRO Touring

I was driving to work and the warning light came on "Blind Spot Radar Detector Blocked". I'm in Northern California and was in fog/mist by the coast at a standstill on the freeway due to an accident. Once I got moving the light remained on until I got to work. When I shut the car off it went off. The climate it's parked in is sunny so that may restart it. I'm wondering if all vehicles with BSD experience the same thing or is this a KIA thing?