Technology For Driving Comfort And Safety; Park Distance Control Pdc - BMW 323i Owner's Manual

Technology for driving comfort and safety

Park Distance Control PDC*

The concept
The PDC assists you with maneuvering in tight
parking spaces. Acoustic signals warn you of
the presence of an object behind your vehicle.
To measure the distance, there are four ultra-
sonic sensors in either bumper.
An acoustic warning does not sound until an
object is closer than approx. 2 ft/60 cm to the
corner sensors, or closer than approx. 5 ft/
1.50 m to the center sensors.
PDC is a parking aid that can indicate
objects when they are approached
slowly, as is usually the case when parking.
Avoid approaching an object at high speed; oth-
erwise, physical circumstances may lead to the
system warning being issued too
Switching on automatically
With the engine running or the ignition switched
on, the system is activated after approx. 1 sec-
ond when you engage reverse gear or move the
automatic transmission selector lever to
position R. Wait this short period before driving.
Switching off automatically
After approx. 55 yd/50 m of driving or above
approx. 20 mph/approx. 30 km/h, the system
switches off and the LED goes out.
Signal tones
When nearing an object, its position is indicated
correspondingly by an interval tone. As the dis-
tance between vehicle and object decreases,
the intervals between the tones become
shorter. If the distance to the nearest object
falls to below roughly 1 ft/30 cm, then a contin-
uous tone sounds.
An interval tone is interrupted after
approx. 3 seconds
Online Edition for Part no. 01 41 2 604 250 - © 02/10 BMW AG
> If you remain in front of an object that has
been detected by only one of the corner
sensors
> If you are driving parallel to a wall.
Malfunction
To avoid this problem, keep the sensors clean
and free of ice or snow in order to ensure that
they will continue to operate effectively. When
using a high-pressure cleaner, do not spray the
sensors for extended periods of time and only
from a distance of at least 1 ft/30 cm.
System limitations
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vehicle and any obstructions always remains
with the driver. Even when sensors are pro-
vided, there is a blind spot in which objects can
no longer be detected. The system is also sub-
ject to the physical limits that apply to all forms
of ultrasonic measurement, such as those
encountered with trailer towbars and hitches,
thin or wedge-shaped objects, etc. Low objects
that have already been displayed, e.g. curbs,
can disappear again from the detection area of
the sensors before or after a continuous tone
sounds. Higher, protruding objects, e.g. ledges,
cannot be detected. Therefore, always drive
cautiously; otherwise, there is a risk of personal
injury or property damage.
Loud sound sources outside or inside the car
can drown out the PDC signal. Therefore,
always drive cautiously; otherwise, there is a
risk of personal injury or property
The indicator lamp in the instrument
cluster comes on. PDC is malfunc-
tioning. Have the system checked.
Even with PDC, final responsibility for
estimating the distance between the
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