NHTSA Complaint #10786197 — 2015 ACURA MDX

I WAS DRIVING IN HOUSTON, GOING NORTH ON KIRBY DRIVE, WHICH IS A BUSY CITY STREET, AT APPROXIMATELY 4:30 PM ON MONDAY, OCT. 26, 2015. SHORTLY BEFORE I REACHED THE INTERSECTION OF KIRBY DR. AND SUNSET BLVD, I APPROACHED A STANDARD SIZED STEEL SHEET/PLATE IN THE ROAD. THE BRAKE ALERT FLASHED ON MY DASHBOARD. I IGNORED THE ALERT AND CONTINUED TO DRIVE, BECAUSE MY CAR WAS NOT IN DANGER OF HITTING ANYTHING. AS I GOT CLOSER TO THE STEEL PLATE, THE VEHICLE'S COLLISION MITIGATION BRAKING SYSTEM APPLIED THE BRAKES ON ITS OWN, I ASSUME BECAUSE IT PERCEIVED THE STEEL PLATE TO BE A COLLISION THREAT. I HAD NO CONTROL OVER MY SUV, AND THERE WAS NOTHING I COULD DO TO RESUME NORMAL ACCELERATION. THE COLLISION MITIGATION BRAKING SYSTEM ONLY DISENGAGED ONCE THE SUV WAS DIRECTLY ON TOP OF THE STEEL PLATE. MY CHILDREN AND I NARROWLY AVOIDED A REAR-END COLLISION. AT THE TIME, BECAUSE THE CITY STREET WAS SO BUSY, I WAS ONLY TRAVELING 20-25 MPH, AS WERE THE OTHER CARS AROUND ME. I FEAR WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED AT HIGHER SPEEDS. MANY HOUSTON ROADS, INCLUDING OUR BUSY HIGHWAYS, HAVE STEEL PLATES COVERING ROAD REPAIR PROJECTS. I AM AFRAID THE BRAKES WILL ENGAGE SPONTANEOUSLY ON THE HIGHWAY. WHEN I CALLED MY DEALERSHIP SHORTLY AFTER THE INCIDENT OCCURRED, I WAS INFORMED THAT UNLESS THERE IS AN ACTIVE SIGNAL ON MY CAR SHOWING THE NEED FOR SOME KIND OF SERVICE, THE DEALERSHIP WON'T BE ABLE TO FIX OR IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM. SUPPOSEDLY, MY VEHICLE WAS SUBJECT TO THE MAY 20, 2015 FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE RECALL INVOLVING THE 2015 ACURA MDX COLLISION MITIGATION BRAKING SYSTEM (NHTSA CAMPAIGN #15V301000). THE DEALERSHIP SAID THAT IT ADDRESSED THE RECALL ISSUE AS A PART OF MY AUGUST 2015 CHECKUP, AND THAT AS A RESULT, MY VEHICLE MET ALL STANDARDS. I NOTE THAT MY COMPLAINT IS NOT THE ONLY ONE PERTAINING TO THIS ISSUE (SEE NHTSA ID #10763775). THE RECALL FIX MAY NOT HAVE WORKED.