A vehicle object warning system and method that differentiates between expected and unexpected objects. A sensor detects a set of objects external to the vehicle upon the occurrence of different triggering conditions. A controller determines locations of the sets of objects detected by the sensor. Further, the controller can store the locations of a set of objects in a memory as well as determine if the location of an object is not stored in the memory. An alarm provides a different type of warning if the controller determines that the location of an object is not stored in the memory.