[jmclane187]

Hi, I have a service appointment scheduled for this, but wanted to see if anyone knows what this notice means on my dash (it popped up about 2 weeks ago).

"bsd/rtca disabled notice on dash"

 

[DonSwin]

BSD is Blind Sight Detection. Perhaps a sensor is damaged or covered up?

 

[AnacortesArmyGuy]

Hi, I have a service appointment scheduled for this, but wanted to see if anyone knows what this notice means on my dash (it popped up about 2 weeks ago).

"bsd/rtca disabled notice on dash"

Pages 360 thru 364 in the manual will tell you the potential issues that will cause this.

 

[Sigmonster]

RCTA is Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and as mentioned, BSD is Blind Spot Detection. definitely check the man, might be as simple as having accidentally turned them off (one can hope anyway).

 

[xydadx3]

I have no luck and seriously dislike the general public ?
So I had my Ascent parked while I was out on a boat. I didn’t notice until I got home that the rear bumper seam had to be pushed back together and as I was fixing that I see a nice wheel mark on the corner of the rear bumper. So some idiot ran into my car and didn’t leave a note...
It didn’t look like much and it was just on the plastic so i assumed all was good until the next time I drove it and the BSD/RCTA disabled alert came on and stayed on. I’m hoping the sensor is just misaligned but I’ll be pulling the rear bumper cover to check. I’ll also be getting that battery pack now for my dashcam that someone mentioned in another thread ?

 

[xydadx3]

For the above issue, I decided to remove the rear bumper today...

I noticed a couple things while I was under there. First, the right side radar box thing was bent downward. Fixed it with a little elbow grease:

Next, on the left side of the bumper cover, it seems to collect dirt and moisture inside. It shouldn’t be a problem since it’s all plastic in there:

And then there was the right side on the vehicle itself. It looks like rust stains so I’ll be keeping an eye on this one:

And I thought it was strange they used this plastic wire harness connector thingy to hold a wire harness to a screw inside the bumper. Not a problem or anything just looked out of place to me:

And finally, on a good note, this is the first time I’ve removed the bumper cover in about 10 months. I checked the torque on the hitch after I installed it from underneath and it was good then. It’s still good now, as expected.

 

[FirstSubie]

And... did straightening the radar sensor fix the BSD/RCTA alert?
F.S.

 

[xydadx3]

And... did straightening the radar sensor fix the BSD/RCTA alert?
F.S.

Yes. I suppose I should have included that. I took a 23 mile round trip with no disabled message. I’m pretty sure it’s fixed

 

[jmclane187]

Hi, I should give me own update:

Apparently my neighbor rear ended my car when it was parked on the street. She said it was just a bump to the bumper as she parallel parked behind me. There wasn't any visible damage to the bumper or body that I could see, so I figured it was fine. Thats when the BSD alert started. Took it to the dealer, they asked if I had been in an accident. Said the antenna was bent and would need to be replaced. Don't remember the exact cost but it was about 300 or so out of pocket for part and service. I didn't file a claim with insurance because I like my neighbor.

Watch that street parking!

 

[xydadx3]

Don't remember the exact cost but it was about 300 or so out of pocket for part and service.

That sensor is on a fairly thin bracket; thin enough that I was able to manipulate it by hand. The sensor looked robust enough, but an impact could certainly break it.I have a feeling this may be a common fix in the future, not just for Ascents but for any vehicle that come with a lot of extra sensors n stuff. So if anyone has a BSD/RCTA disabled warning it could be from a rear impact, however slight. For now, I'll consider having potentially saved myself $300 by going in there myself!

 

[zoorodoc]

That sensor is on a fairly thin bracket; thin enough that I was able to manipulate it by hand. The sensor looked robust enough, but an impact could certainly break it.I have a feeling this may be a common fix in the future, not just for Ascents but for any vehicle that come with a lot of extra sensors n stuff. So if anyone has a BSD/RCTA disabled warning it could be from a rear impact, however slight. For now, I'll consider having potentially saved myself $300 by going in there myself!

Just wanted to say thank you for posting this along with your pictures. My wife backed ever so slightly into another parked vehicle earlier this year and has been beating herself up over it every time the BSD/RCTA message came up. Our dealer was quoting $800 to fix it. With your help I was able to fix it this weekend in just a couple hours!

 

[bigfoot]

My Ascent just came back from my dealer for this exact problem. They determined that the rear radar module had an internal failure. They replaced the radar and the brackets. Everything covered under warranty. They also asked if I had had an accident which I had not. Sounds like it might become a common problem for Ascent?

 

[xydadx3]

They also asked if I had had an accident which I had not. Sounds like it might become a common problem for Ascent?

Definitely not common yet but its something to watch for. Sounds like most of the reports are due to accidental bumps damaging/misaligning the radar. I wasn't in an accident with mine but I could tell looking at the rear bumper someone had hit it.

 

[barreg]

Adding my "thank you" here for posting this. My wife had gotten into a minor fender bender and then had the same issue. I took off the bumper, realigned the sensor, and now it all works fine.

 

[Slagmi]

Do the sensors require any sort of calibration - or recalibration - to work correctly?

 

[Robert.Mauro]

Proper alignment is all that's generally needed. Generally, I've seen numerous Ascents or Outbacks bumped in parking lots, which bends the bracket, and often leaves no or minimal sign of damage - that plastic cladding can take a LOT of abuse (as those of you who watch my videos know). So, people get in their cars, don't realize the bumper cover has been bumped and the radar unit's bracket bent, and, suddenly continuous or intermittent BSD/RCTA errors.

 

[Luis Padilla]

This is definitely resourceful information to have.Love when something looks so catastrophic but can be resolved fairly easy,good stuff folks.

 

[SammieC]

I can confirm this after my ascent got hit in the right hand quarter panel/bumper area, just bent the bracket enough to throw the distance off. My friend who works at the autobody said it actually stated the distance (unit to wherever) was off when he ran a scanner and told him exactly what the issue was. He just ordered a new bracket and it seemed to put unit exactly back in the correct position, so I no longer get those errors as well.

But still having it hit and down for awhile was awful...

 

[Harly]

I have a 2020 Limited and recently I started getting warnings that my BSD/RCTA is disabled, but only at highway speeds, 70MPH or so. The warning stays on until I stop & shut down and restart. It then works fine until I again resume highway speed. I don’t see any external damage to the bumper, but it sounds like I may have a mis-alignment of the sensor. I’m not able to remove the bumper myself so I guess I’ll have to let the dealer fix it. $$$!

 

[Robert.Mauro]

I have a 2020 Limited and recently I started getting warnings that my BSD/RCTA is disabled, but only at highway speeds, 70MPH or so. The warning stays on until I stop & shut down and restart. It then works fine until I again resume highway speed. I don’t see any external damage to the bumper, but it sounds like I may have a mis-alignment of the sensor. I’m not able to remove the bumper myself so I guess I’ll have to let the dealer fix it. $$$!

Yep, someone probably hit your car and damaged a rear corner radar unit, or bent the bracket and mis-aligned it. You won't notice if it wasn't a moderate to hard bump, as the bumper will flex without breaking.

I nudged a tree in reverse, and did exactly that to mine (bent bracket).