Mazda CX-5 brake failure problems

Filed Jul 30, 2026 · Brakes, Electrical · 84,000 miles · PA

The contact owns a 2016 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the electric parking brake module warning light was illuminated and the "Brake failure. Vehicle unsafe to drive," message was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken back to the residence. The failure occurred on several different occasions. The contact expressed concern that the brakes could engage while the vehicle was in motion. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 84,000.

Filed Apr 27, 2026 · Brakes · AZ

The car has 21000 miles and is driven lightly when applying the brakes the steering wheel started shaking and the car made noises - the brakes could have failed at any time and at any speedl The dealer said the rotors were warped. no warning and no notification from the manufacturer that this could happen at such low miles. i didnt bring the vehicle in because i could not believe the brakes would be at fault with such low miles - it started at 10000 miles. a notification from the manufacturer or dealers would prevent a catastrophic brake failure

Filed Apr 19, 2026 · Brakes, Driver assistance · CA · 1 injury

While driving at various speeds, including highway speeds, the vehicle intermittently fails to slow down when the brake pedal is applied. On multiple occasions, the brake pedal was pressed but the vehicle did not respond appropriately and continued moving forward. On December 1, 2025, while traveling at approximately 65 mph on the interstate in rainy conditions, the vehicle began making a grinding sound and started sliding instead of slowing down. The vehicle briefly lost the ability to decelerate, creating a near-collision with a semi-truck. On December 22, 2025, the issue occurred twice in one day. While attempting to brake at a stop sign and in traffic, the vehicle did not slow down, nearly causing collisions with vehicles in front and adjacent lanes. In the instance where approaching the stop sign where a vehicle was stopped, the dashboard flashed “break” while I was breaking as hard as I could. Warning lights and sensor-related alerts have appeared intermittently prior to and during some incidents. The issue has continued intermittently, including additional incidents where the brakes were either unresponsive or overly sensitive. They do not respond in a consistent or predictable manner, making safe driving nearly impossible. This problem places myself and others at significant risk of collision due to loss of braking control. The vehicle has been taken to multiple dealerships for inspection. The problem has not been successfully replicated, and no repairs have been performed to resolve the issue. Dealership documentation includes customer reports of “NOT BRAKING” and brake malfunction concerns.

Filed Feb 19, 2025 · Driver assistance · OH

During snowfall, the front camera becomes obstructed, leading to a malfunction in the smart brake system. When this occurs, an alert appears indicating a “Smart Brake Failure,” accompanied by an audible warning and the illumination of the check engine light. The vehicle then exhibits unpredictable behavior, including unintended braking and sudden acceleration, creating a hazardous driving situation. The only temporary resolution is to restart the vehicle; however, the check engine light remains on for several days before eventually turning off. This issue occurred while I was driving on the highway on February 19, 2025, posing a significant safety risk. This is not the first time the car has done this.

Filed Feb 10, 2022 · Brakes · OH

Brakes failed when at complete stop car lurched forward about 2 car lengths

Filed Dec 3, 2021 · Brakes, Steering · 35,000 miles · TX · crash · 1 injury

The contact owned a 2018 Mazda CX5. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at approximately 35 - 40 MPH, the power steering assist and brakes failed, causing the vehicle to crash into trees. None of the air bags deployed upon impact. All of the warning lights were illuminated. The contact's wife attempted to turn off the vehicle, but it would not turn off. The fire department had to disconnect the battery to turn off the vehicle. A police report was filed. The contact's wife was later taken to the hospital for injuries sustained to her knees. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and was not yet deemed totaled by the insurance company. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.

Filed Oct 26, 2020 · Brakes · 48,784 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 mazda cx5. The contact stated that the parking brake inadvertently engaged while driving at various speeds without warning. While driving, the contact suspected that the parking brake was still engaged. The contact exited the vehicle and smelled a burning odor coming from the rear wheels. The contact then took the vehicle to an independent mechanic who also noticed the same failure with the parking brake while driving the vehicle. The vehicle was then repaired by the independent mechanic for the parking brake failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 48,784.

Filed Sep 22, 2020 · Brakes · 3,200 miles · CA · crash · 1 injury

Bought a mazda cx5 june 2020 and it was involve in a accident sept 17th 2020 do to brake failure. My mother was driving the vehicle and attempted parking in a apartment complex when the vehicle failed to stop and collided with the facility 20ft in front of the parking space. At the incident, I the owner, found 3 damage rotors were the flaw came from heavy grinding at the caliber (see attach photos). Within the caliber's alloy you can also see the chipped alloy produced from a flaw & the alignment of where it grinds the rotor (see attached photos). A witness stated she was present during the time of the collision and a police report was take from the witness. I can provide plenty of more pictures and videos to explain the geographic and demonstrate via video the flaws at the collision. I've attempt contacting mazda four times but they continue to placed the blame on me "for bad driving damaging items they consider tear and wear products (rotors and calibers)" I explained I only had the vehicle for 3months and its three rotors with similar damage. Yet they told me my insurance must find them at blame. My insurance appraiser stated they will not go to that distance; they just fix or pay off the loan. I am fustrated! You all are my last hope! Going through my insurance will cause me a deductable and at fault blame. Going through mazda is insulting their product, yet I find this frighting but it's their responsibility to conduct further research to why the rotor/caliber went bad in such a short span. Explaining! Even if I am to be blamed, for the incident. What about the product? I only owned the vehicle for three months. Within a little over 3,000 miles. Please help

Filed Jan 3, 2020 · Brakes · 9,744 miles · NY

Hello, this car was leased back in oct 2017 as a brand new car from garden city mazda (ny). Six months ago (july 2019), we brought the car to the service to check the huge vibrations when braking. They found a left rear brake caliper was leaking and failed caused plate (rotor) and pad damage. Car was only done 5731 miles. They have replaced the left rear rotor, pads and caliper. Then resurfaced (rr) rotor and pads. After 6 months today (jan 3rd 2020), we had to take the car to the service because of the vibrations re-occurring when braking as it was very concerning. Car is done 9744 miles to date. And this time it was both front brake plates (rotors) and pad are worn out. This car is almost daily driven (4-5 days a week) and have low mileage due to the low distance (+-10 miles/day) it was driven per day. And we had to change the brakes twice within less than 10k miles. Mazda service and mazda (manufacturer) claims this is due to regular wear and tear and car must be sitting there for a long. Which I do not believe is a valid statement from mazda as an experience car owner and a driver. I had other cars that were sitting on my drive way longer than this car and never had this many brake issues. Brake failures are very dangerous and put everyone at risk. My concern is that the brake components used in 2017 mazda cx5 is not up to us consumer safety standards and not suitable for the weather conditions where the vehicles were sold. Really appreciate if you can investigate this issue further and I hope that will help so many consumers using these vehicles today and future. Found more complains on: http://www.carproblemzoo.com/mazda/cx-5/brake-disc-pads-problems.php thanks very much, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).

Filed Oct 24, 2019 · Brakes · 52,000 miles · IL

At times the breaks become unresponsive to pressure and the pedal goes all the way to the floor. The breaks have to be pumped it order to get them to catch. So, I took the car to a repair shop and they changed the break pads and bleed the lines. However, after a test drive the issue happened to the mechanic again. After checking the break system again, they found that the vacuum pump is malfunctioning. There was a recall for other mazda cx-5s in my model year. But my VIN number does not fall in the recall. My auto repair person stated that this is something that shouldn't happen, and is extremely dangerous.