2244-5. Using the driving support systems
1Press or of the meter con-
trol switches, select .
2 Press or of the meter con-
trol switches, select “BSM”, and
then press “OK”.
3 Press or of the meter con-
trol switches, select “BSM” or
“RCTA”, and press “OK”.
■Outside rear view mirror indicator visi-
bility
In strong sunlight, the outside rear view mir-
ror indicator may be difficult to see.
■Hearing the RCTA buzzer
The RCTA buzzer may be difficult to hear over loud noises, such as if the audio system
volume is high.
■When “Blind Spot Monitor Unavailable”
is shown on the multi-information dis-
play
Water, snow, mud, etc., may be built up in
the vicinity of the sensor area of bumper.
( P.225) Removing the water, snow, mud,
etc., from the vicinity of the sensor area
bumper should return it to normal.
Also, the sensor may not function normally
when used in extremely hot or cold weather.
■When “Blind Spot Monitor System Mal-
function” is shown on the multi-informa-
tion display
There may be a sensor malfunction or volt-
age abnormality. Have the vehicle
inspected at your Lexus dealer.
■Customization
Some functions can be customized. (Cus-
tomizable features: P.395)
■Certification for the Blind Spot Monitor
For vehicles sold in the U.S.A., Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico
Turning the BSM function/RCTA
function on/off
2254-5. Using the driving support systems
4
Driving
For vehicles sold in Canada
WARNING
■Handling the radar sensor
Blind Spot Monitor se nsors are installed
behind the left and right sides of the rear
bumper respectively. Observe the fol-
lowing to ensure the Blind Spot Monitor
can function correctly.
2264-5. Using the driving support systems
WARNING
●Keep the sensors and the surrounding
areas on the rear bumper clean at all
times.
If a sensor or its surrounding area on
the rear bumper is dirty or covered
with snow, the Blind Spot Monitor may
not operate and a warning message
( P.224) will be displayed. In this situ-
ation, clear off the dirt or snow and
drive the vehicle with the operation
conditions of the BSM function
( P.228) satisfied for approximately
10 minutes. If the warning message
does not disappear, have the vehicle
inspected by your Lexus dealer.
●Do not subject a sensor or its sur-
rounding area on the rear bumper to a
strong impact.
If a sensor is moved even slightly off
position, the system may malfunction
and vehicles may not be detected cor-
rectly.
In the following situations, have your
vehicle inspected by your Lexus
dealer.
• A sensor or its surrounding area is subject to a strong impact.
• If the surrounding area of a sensor is scratched or dented, or part of them
has become disconnected.
●Do not disassemb le the sensor.
●Do not attach stickers to the sensor or
surrounding area on the rear bumper.
●Do not modify the sensor or surround-
ing area on the rear bumper.
●Do not paint the rear bumper any
color other than an official Lexus color.
2274-5. Using the driving support systems
4
Driving
■Operation of the BSM function
The BSM function uses radar sensors to de tect the following vehicles traveling in
adjacent lanes and advises the driver of th e presence of such vehicles via the indi-
cators on the outside rear view mirrors.
Vehicles that are traveling in areas that are not visible using the outside rear
view mirrors (the blind spots)
Vehicles that are approaching rapidly from behind in areas that are not visible
using the outside rear view mirrors (the blind spots)
■BSM function detection areas
The areas that vehicles can be detected in are outlined below.
The range of each detection area is:
Approximately 1.6 ft. (0.5 m) to 11.5 ft. (3.5 m) from either side of the vehicle*1
Approximately 3.3 ft. (1 m) forward of the rear bumper
Approximately 9.8 ft. (3 m) from the rear bumper
Approximately 9.8 ft. (3 m) to 19 7 ft. (60 m) from the rear bumper
*2
*1: The area between the side of the vehicle and 1.6 ft. (0.5 m) from the side of the vehicle
cannot be detected.
BSM function
A
B
A
B
C
D
2284-5. Using the driving support systems
*2: The greater the difference in speed between your vehicle and the detected vehicle is, the farther away the vehicle will be detected, causing the outside rear view mirror indi-
cator to illuminate or flash.
■The BSM function is operational when
The BSM function is operational when all of
the following conditions are met:
●The BSM function is on.
●The shift position is in a position other
than R.
●The vehicle speed is greater than approx-
imately 10 mph (16 km/h).
■The BSM function will detect a vehicle
when
The BSM function will detect a vehicle pres-
ent in the detection area in the following sit-
uations:
●A vehicle in an adj acent lane overtakes
your vehicle.
●You overtake a vehicle in adjacent lane
slowly.
●Another vehicle enters the detection
area when it changes lanes.
■Conditions under which the BSM func-
tion will not detect a vehicle
The BSM function is not designed to detect
the following types of vehicles and/or
objects:
●Small motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians,
etc.*
●Vehicles traveling in the opposite direc-
tion
●Guardrails, walls, signs, parked vehicles
and similar stationary objects*
●Following vehicles th at are in the same
lane*
●Vehicles traveling 2 lanes away from your
vehicle*
●Vehicles which are being overtaken rap-
idly by your vehicle.*
*
: Depending on the conditions, detection of a vehicle and/or object may occur.
■Conditions under which the BSM func-
tion may not function correctly
●The BSM function may not detect vehi-
cles correctly in the following situations:
• When the sensor is misaligned due to a strong impact to the sensor or its sur-
rounding area
• When mud, snow, ice, a sticker, etc. is covering the sensor or surrounding area
on the rear bumper
• When driving on a road surface that is wet with standing water during bad
weather, such as heavy rain, snow, or fog
• When multiple vehicles are approaching with only a small gap between each vehi-
cle
• When the distance between your vehicle and a following vehicle is short
• When there is a significant difference in speed between your vehicle and the vehi-
cle that enters the detection area
• When the difference in speed between your vehicle and another vehicle is
changing
• When a vehicle enters a detection area traveling at about the same speed as your
vehicle
• As your vehicle starts from a stop, a vehi- cle remains in the detection area
• When driving up and down consecutive
steep inclines, such as hills, dips in the
road, etc.
• When driving on roads with sharp bends,
consecutive curves, or uneven surfaces
• When vehicle lanes are wide, or when driving on the edge of a lane, and the
vehicle in an adjacent lane is far away
from your vehicle
• When an accessory (such as a bicycle
carrier) or towing eyelet is installed to the
rear of the vehicle
• When there is a significant difference in height between your vehicle and the
vehicle that enters the detection area
• Immediately after the BSM function is turned on
●Instances of the BSM function unneces-
sarily detecting a vehicle and/or object
may increase in the following situations:
2294-5. Using the driving support systems
4
Driving
• When the sensor is misaligned due to a strong impact to the sensor or its sur-
rounding area
• When the distance between your vehicle and a guardrail, wall, etc. that enters the
detection area is short
• When driving up an d down consecutive
steep inclines, such as hills, dips in the
road, etc.
• When vehicle lanes are narrow, or when driving on the edge of a lane, and a vehi-
cle traveling in a lane other than the adja-
cent lanes enters the detection area
• When driving on roads with sharp bends, consecutive curves, or uneven surfaces
• When the tires are slipping or spinning
• When the distance between your vehicle and a following vehicle is short
• When an accessory (such as a bicycle carrier) or towing eyel et is installed to the
rear of the vehicle
■Operation of the RCTA function
The RCTA function uses radar sensors to detect vehicles approaching from the
right or left at the rear of the vehicle and alerts the driver of the presence of such
vehicles by flashing the outside rear view mirror indicators and sounding a buzzer.
Approaching vehicles
Detection areas of approaching vehicles
■RCTA icon display
When a vehicle approaching from the
right or left at the rear of the vehicle is
detected, the following will be dis-
played on the monitor screen.
WARNING
■Cautions regarding the use of the
function
The driver is solely responsible for safe
driving. Always drive safely, taking care
to observe your surroundings.
The BSM function is a supplementary
function which alerts the driver that a
vehicle is in a blind spot of the outside
rear view mirrors or is approaching rap-
idly from behind into a blind spot. Do not
overly rely on the BSM function. As the
function cannot judge if it is safe to
change lanes, over re liance could lead to
an accident resulting in death or serious
injury.
As the system may not function correctly
under certain conditio ns, the driver’s own
visual confirmation of safety is necessary.
RCTA function
A
B
2314-5. Using the driving support systems
4
Driving
■Conditions under which the RCTA func-
tion will not detect a vehicle
The RCTA function is not designed to
detect the following types of vehicles and/or
objects:
●Vehicles approaching from directly
behind
●Vehicles backing up in a parking space
next to your vehicle
●Vehicles that the sensors cannot detect
due to obstructions
●Guardrails, walls, signs, parked vehicles
and similar stationary objects*
●Small motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians,
etc.*
●Vehicles moving away from your vehicle
●Vehicles approaching from the parking
spaces next to your vehicle*
*
: Depending on the conditions, detection of a vehicle and/or object may occur.
■Conditions under which the RCTA func-
tion may not function correctly
●The RCTA function may not detect vehi-
cles correctly in the following situations:
• When the sensor is misaligned due to a strong impact to the sensor or its sur-
rounding area
• When mud, snow, ice, a sticker, etc. is covering the sensor or surrounding area
on the rear bumper
• When driving on a road surface that is wet with standing water during bad
weather, such as heavy rain, snow, or fog
• When multiple vehicles are approaching with only a small gap between each vehi-
cle
• When a vehicle is approaching at high
speed
• When a towing eyelet is installed to the rear of the vehicle.
• When backing up on a slope with a sharp
change in grade
• When backing out of a shallow angle parking spot
• Immediately after the RCTA function is turned on
• Immediately after the engine
• When the sensors cannot detect a vehi- cle due to obstructions
●Instances of the RCTA function unneces-
sarily detecting a vehicle and/or object
may increase in the following situations:
• When a vehicle passes by the side of your vehicle
• When the parking space faces a street
2354-5. Using the driving support systems
4
Driving
■ECB (Electronically Controlled
Brake System)
The electronically controlled system
generates braking force correspond-
ing to the brake operation
■ABS (Anti-lock Brake System)
Helps to prevent wheel lock when the
brakes are applied suddenly, or if the
brakes are applied while driving on a
slippery road surface
■Brake assist
Generates an increased level of brak-
ing force after the brake pedal is
depressed when the system detects a
panic stop situation
■VSC (Vehicle Stability Control)
Helps the driver to control skidding
when swerving sudden ly or turning on
slippery road surfaces
■Secondary Collision Brake
When the airbag sensor detects a colli-
sion, the brakes and brake lights are
automatically controlled to reduce the vehicle speed and that helps reduce
the possibility of further damage due to
a secondary collision
■TRAC (Traction Control)
Helps to maintain drive power and pre-
vent the drive wheels from spinning
when starting the vehicle or accelerat-
ing on slippery roads
■Hill-start assist control
Helps to reduce the backward move-
ment of the vehicle when starting on an
uphill
■VGRS (Variable Gear Ratio Steer-
ing) (if equipped)
Adjusts the front wheel turning angle in
accordance with the vehicle speed and
steering wheel movement
■DRS (Dynamic Rear Steering) (if
equipped)
Contributes to the turning characteris-
tics and responsiveness of the vehicle
by slightly adjusting the rear wheel
angle of the vehicle in accordance with
steering wheel movement
■EPS (Electric Power Steering)
Employs an electric motor to reduce
the amount of effort needed to turn the
steering wheel
■AVS (Adaptive Variable Suspen-
sion System)
By independently controlling the
damping force of th e shock absorbers
for each of the 4 wheels according to
the road and driving conditions, this
system helps riding comfort with supe-
rior vehicle stability, and helps good
Driving assist systems
To keep safety and performance,
the following systems operate auto-
matically in response to various
driving situations. Be aware, how-
ever, that these systems are supple-
mentary and should not be relied
upon too heavily when operating
the vehicle.
Summary of the driving assist
systems