2023 Mazda CX-5 Driver assistance Problems

On October 16, 2025, while slowly pulling into a parking space, my vehicle experienced sudden and unintended acceleration without driver input. I did not depress the accelerator. Despite attempting to stop the vehicle, I was unable to do so. The vehicle mounted the curb, entered the sidewalk area, and struck a community mailbox, a tree, and two legally parked vehicles. My vehicle and the two parked vehicles were declared total losses. At the time of the incident, pedestrians, including toddlers, were present on the sidewalk. This loss of vehicle control created an immediate and severe risk of serious bodily injury or death. Post-incident diagnostics indicated multiple system errors, including but not limited to: •Powertrain Control Module •Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) •Instrument Cluster •Smart Brake Support / Mazda Radar Cruise Control Of particular concern is that Mazda, through its authorized dealer Rosenthal Mazda of Gaithersburg, Maryland, had prior notice of abnormal vehicle behavior. On two separate occasions before the crash, I reported that the vehicle would jolt suddenly, as if struck from behind, and at times felt as though it was attempting to accelerate without input. On each occasion, I was informed that the dealer could not duplicate the issue. No corrective action was taken, and the vehicle was returned to service. This event constitutes a serious safety failure involving unintended acceleration and apparent braking or electronic control system malfunction in this-model vehicle. Given the involvement of advanced driver assistance systems and braking components, this matter warrants immediate and thorough review.

NHTSA ID

11736040

Incident

Oct 16, 2025

Sudden acceleration even. Date April 10, 2026, at around 2:30 PM on a clear sunny day. Car make and model Mazda CX5 bought on 7/4/2023 VIN [XXX] , mileage around 10,000, only one owner. While attempting to park at BJ’s Wholesale Club ,when driver started to make a turn to a parking space, vehicle suddenly accelerated, applying the brakes stopped the forward motion, then driver put the car in reverse to try to properly park in a parking space and the car accelerated in reverse, this sudden motion could have killed or seriously injured any person passing in back of the car, when that motion stopped driver put the car in drive to be able to finally park the car and it sped uncontrollably, brakes didn’t stop the vehicle and it crashed against two vehicles parked nearby, damage to the Mazda vehicle was mainly to the left side, the front grill was not damage because driver was not able to control the rapid forward motion. Mazda dealer wanted the body of car repaired before checking the safety issue. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11735283

Incident

Apr 10, 2026

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? - Smart Brake Support (SBS) & Forward Obstruction Warning system malfunctioned. Front radar sensor malfunctioned. Parking brake malfunctioned. I-activesense system malfunctioned. Emergency lane keep disabled. Dynamic stability control malfunctioned. Traction control system not operating correctly. Anti-lock brake system (ABS) malfunctioned. Brake system not responding. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? In total 10 malfunctions led to brake not responding and could not stop the car and resulted into a car accident. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? NO Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? POLICE report from car accident states brake malfunction. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? Car was totally fine until all 10 error messages appeared on Jan.17th 2026 12:42-12:43PM and immediately the brake system did not respond and resulted in the car accident. **important** Police report documented that the officer on scene is a witness of the car dashboard shows “brake malfunction”

NHTSA ID

11712715

Incident

Jan 17, 2026

Autobraking activates randomly. Mazda scans codes and returns the vehicle. They have refused to service or disable the system. NHTSA laws are dangerous and this tech is not ready for road use. Avoid Mazda at all costs!

NHTSA ID

11710883

Incident

Jan 1, 2023

LKA does not work & mazda seems to ignore its many complaints

NHTSA ID

11705058

Incident

Dec 1, 2025

After driving a few mile, the following two warnings come up * Smart Brake System Malfunction * Forward Radar Sensor System malfunction. If I turn off the car and then restart, the warnings go away. However, it comes back if I drive for a while again. I have visited dealership a few times for the same issue, they replaced the wheel bearing and brake switch. The warning disappeared for days and came back.

NHTSA ID

11691048

Incident

Sep 28, 2025

The driver-side power door mirror on my 2023 Mazda CX-5 vibrates excessively at highway speeds above 75 mph, especially on windy days. The vibration is so severe that it causes a blurred and distorted view, making it difficult to clearly see vehicles in adjacent lanes. This poses a significant safety risk, as it impairs my ability to make safe lane changes and monitor surrounding traffic. I brought the issue to the attention of my Mazda dealership during a scheduled service appointment, but they dismissed it as "normal" and quoted approximately $700 to replace the mirror - despite the fact that this appears to be a known issue with Mazda vehicles. Numerous owners of recent Mazda models have reported similar problems online, yet Mazda has not issued a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) for the 2023 CX-5. I am attaching a previous TSB (09-002/13) that Mazda released for earlier CX-5 models (2013–2014), which addressed the same mirror vibration issue through structural reinforcement and mirror replacement. This suggests the problem may still persist in newer models. The mirror is available for inspection upon request. No warning lights or messages were displayed, and the issue began shortly after I started driving the vehicle on highways. Link to previous TSB - [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11684928

Incident

Jun 1, 2025

The vehicle continues to have safety features malfunctions with its sensors. The forward facing camera sensor and the Blind Spot Monitoring Sensor continues to malfunctions when driving in clear visibility with light to heavy traffic at random times during a day. These features assist the driver to maintain a safe distance from other vehicles while driving. My vehicle has almost crashed several times due to the failures of the features such as the stop and go traffic and forward facing crash detection not working properly.

NHTSA ID

11632012

Incident

Jan 8, 2023

Blind spot sensors blocked error messages. This will happen at least a few times a year. Usually on long freeway drives, using cruise control, at night, and when cooler out (less than 60f). Restarting the vehicle makes the error codes go away and the system functions normally afterwards. Seems like either a software glitch or the system detects a guard rail for a while and gets confused and throws a Error message. This shouldn't be happening on a newer vehicle.

NHTSA ID

11625952

Incident

Nov 3, 2024

Slowly and cautiously entered parking lot of a small strip mall. Proceeded to a parking space located in between two parked vehicles.Maneuvering into parking space I removed foot from gas pedal toward the break pedal; before foot made contact with break pedal the vehicle accelerated on its own surging over the cement parking bumper, over bushes, through the grass, down the curb and into the street. I jammed on the breaks. Lifting foot from break pedal I did not touch the gas pedal in fear the surge might happened again. Instead I allowed the vehicle to coast as I guided vehicle to the curb. In all the commotion, while trying to control vehicle safely I noticed the dashboard transmission indicator lights flash from park to drive to neutral. Safety issues for me and family at risk because we had no control over the acceleration of the vehicle.

NHTSA ID

11584713

Incident

Apr 23, 2024

At 2:00 on a clear afternoon I was slowly coasting into a right hand turn into a parking space, and lightly tapping the brake to finalize the stop, when the car accelerated HARD forward over a curb and a sidewalk into the brick wall of a building. Airbag was deployed. My injuries were a nasty wrist contusion and bloody gashes where the airbag "door" deployed and I also had complete seatbelt brusing on my throat, chest and across my abdomen. This after traveling a mere 7-8 feet. At the time I was very shaken up and incredulous that such a thing could have happened logically, and conceded that perhaps I had made a mistake somehow. As I settled down later I became dubious, especially when I got behind the wheel of my rental car and 100% when I sat in my actual car at the wrecking yard. I am crystal clear I was depressing just the brake. Even if I had accidentally hit the accelerator instead of the brake (I did not) it would not have accelerated to the degree that it did. I am now scared of my car and am just hoping it is declared totaled by my insurance so I don't have to drive it again - any car but that one.

NHTSA ID

11547758

Incident

Sep 26, 2023