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PPF over ultrasonic sensors
- Thread starter Forcelite
- Start date
Hello leonwu ,
Your thinking of the radar that is behind the bumper . Everyone still has the ultrasonic sensors . These are 2 different sensor types .
Ultrasonic - round on bumper and staying ( covered up by PPF)
Radar - behind bumper and not seen and not installed anymore
Your thinking of the radar that is behind the bumper . Everyone still has the ultrasonic sensors . These are 2 different sensor types .
Ultrasonic - round on bumper and staying ( covered up by PPF)
Radar - behind bumper and not seen and not installed anymore
Back to the original question - After having the same concerns, my PPF installer informed me that they make cut-outs for the sensors to avoid any issues. But he thought it’s still the customers decision and will do whatever they request.
If you google it, you hear answers for and against. I left mine not covered.
If you google it, you hear answers for and against. I left mine not covered.
black knight 3
Member
I just had full PPF installed by OCDetailing which IMO is arguably one of the best shops in the country for PPF(certainly the bay area). They covered the sensors with PPF. The reasoning behind this is that cutting them out will likely leave exposed edges that creates a potential entry point for dirt to get in over time.So the main goal is eliminating exposed edges.
So I went in a week after the install for follow up and got an error saying "parking sensors may be obstructed". This went on for about 30 minutes and then went away. Oddly enough, this happened on the highway and my FSD lane changing wouldn't work at all while the message was present on the dashboard. FSD lane change BTW is a feature for the FSD package not covered by the standard autopilot. It allows you to use your turn signal and the car will change lanes for you.
I wouldn't expect FSD lane change to be affected by the ultrasonic sensors but it appeared to be the case. I'm going to leave it alone and give it a few more weeks of sunshine and warm weather and hope the moisture dries out and the issue self resolves.
So I went in a week after the install for follow up and got an error saying "parking sensors may be obstructed". This went on for about 30 minutes and then went away. Oddly enough, this happened on the highway and my FSD lane changing wouldn't work at all while the message was present on the dashboard. FSD lane change BTW is a feature for the FSD package not covered by the standard autopilot. It allows you to use your turn signal and the car will change lanes for you.
I wouldn't expect FSD lane change to be affected by the ultrasonic sensors but it appeared to be the case. I'm going to leave it alone and give it a few more weeks of sunshine and warm weather and hope the moisture dries out and the issue self resolves.
black knight 3
Member
possible answer??
"This feature can also detect objects in blind spots and assist the car when automatically switching lanes".
So it looks like the Ultrasonic sensors are a functional requirement to allow FSD lane changing along with the cameras. and the radar being phased out and replaced by tesla vision and cameras do the following:
Forward-looking radar: The radar used by Autopilot can see up to 160m ahead of the car, through “sand, snow, fog–almost anything,” according to Musk. Radar is the primary sensor used to detect the vehicle’s surroundings, along with the front-facing cameras
If you leave the sensors fully covered with the PPF stretched across the bumper and sensors, as the PPF heats in the sun it will shrink and lift off the sensor leading to errors with summon etc.
highly recommend cutting around each sensor and leaving the thin PPF film on just the circular sensor face (not connected to the bumper). That way the gloss will be the same and no risk of the PPF lifting off causing errors.
Installers don't like doing it b/c it's a lot of extra detail work (many sensors around the car) but you should insist otherwise you'll waste time going back later to get it carved out
highly recommend cutting around each sensor and leaving the thin PPF film on just the circular sensor face (not connected to the bumper). That way the gloss will be the same and no risk of the PPF lifting off causing errors.
Installers don't like doing it b/c it's a lot of extra detail work (many sensors around the car) but you should insist otherwise you'll waste time going back later to get it carved out
Good morning all. After 2 weeks with sensor errors a few times a day (usually in the morning) I had the shop cut around the sensors . The car is now working well again . I used summon allot so need the sensors working , especially in the morning.
They all say that so they don't have to put in the extra time. If you don't do it, you'll likely be coming back. If you live close to the shop, then feel free to give it a try. If it's a hassle to get over there, just let them cut it out from the beginning.
oh, what i meant was, they installed over my sensors anyway. they typically install, and have clients come back 2 weeks later to fix any bubbling, lifting, etc.
when i went back after 2 weeks i told them my parking sensors basically tripped out the entire 2 weeks, so they cut out around the sensors... no more errors!
either way, any good shop should put it on first and remove if it's causing issues.
black knight 3
Member
Agreed. My shop said they would be happy to cut around the sensors if this is what I want. I told them to hold off a few weeks and I'll monitor the situation. So far, no warning messages except for that single event. They don't seem to impact accuracy measuring distance between car and wall when entering into the garage.
I didn't get errors until I parked out in direct sunlight. Then the film shrinks and lifts off the recessed sensors. You can use your finger to push it back down, but it's hard to figure out which sensor (if not more than one) and inevitably will happen when you're trying to show off summon mode to someone.
chickensworth
Member
Any updates on this? If it cleared, how long did it take? I’m going on 10 days post install and it’s still erroring out… not a big deal around town, but won’t auto lane change on the freeway.
I ended up having the shop cut around the sensors like they used to do. Was a good choice as it is working flawlessly now. They used to always cut around them however stopped due to saving time/effort .
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