Your Ford Super Duty may be equipped with the feature that is designed to help alert you when a vehicle is in your blind spot while travelling with or without a trailer.
It can also alert you of vehicles approaching when backing out of a parking space.
What is BLIS?
BLIS, or Blind Spot Information System, is active anytime you put your vehicle in drive and are driving forward above five miles per hour. When a vehicle enters into a lane to the right or left, BLIS warns you with a solid light on the corresponding side view mirror. The light will stay on until the vehicle has moved out of your blind spot.
Also, whenever you activate your turn signal, if a vehicle is within the blind spot zone, BLIS will give you a flashing light warning on the corresponding side view mirror. When a trailer is properly connected and driving over five miles per hour, BLIS with trailer coverage uses sensors in the vehicle’s tail end to extend the detection area rearward from the vehicle’s side mirrors to the end of the trailer.
Blind spot detection setup
To set the blind spot detection on a trailer, use the five way switch on your steering wheel and select type of trailer. Keep in mind, BLIS only supports conventional-type trailers. Other types selected will automatically turn off the BLIS and cross-traffic alert feature.
Next, you’ll be asked if you want to set up BLIS with a trailer. If no, BLIS turns off. If yes, you’ll be asked if the trailer is less than nine feet wide and 33 feet long. Now, enter length of trailer, which is the length of the hitch ball to the end of the trailer. You do so by toggling up or down, using the menu buttons to increase or decrease the measurement by three feet. You’ll need to select the length that is equal to or greater than three feet of the actual trailer to allow for full coverage. For example, if the actual measured length is 25 feet, input the length to 27 feet.
Once the length has been entered, the setup is saved. If the trailer has been connected but no information for that trailer has been entered, the system will ask for trailer information. If no trailer information is entered, BLIS and cross-traffic alert will be disabled. It’s important to remember that if you select a trailer in the display screen prior to connecting the trailer, the system will load that configuration, and you’ll get a message in the instrument cluster when the trailer is connected.
Correct trailer information must be stored under towing information for BLIS with trailer blind spot coverage to be active while towing.
How Cross-traffic alert works
Cross-traffic alert warns you of moving cars coming from either side when you’re in reverse or backing up and gives you three warnings. A light on the corresponding side view mirror, a chime, and a message in your message center.
Keep in mind, anytime a trailer is connected and information is input, cross-traffic alert automatically turns off. And finally, extreme weather conditions could block the sensors, but if that happens, you’ll get a warning message and a chime to let you know. As with most radar, infrared and ultrasonic type sensing systems, there is a possibility of false alerts.
