NHTSA Complaint #11253330 — 2007 MAZDA MAZDA5

SUDDEN POWER STEERING LOSS WHILE DRIVING ON AN ENTRY RAMP OF A HIGHWAY, ACCOMPANIED BY ILLUMINATION OF MULTIPLE LIGHTS ON THE DASHBOARD. STEERING LOSS OCCURRED WHILE VEHICLE STEERING WHEEL WAS TURNED AND VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION AND PREPARING TO MERGE ONTO HIGHWAY. STEERING WHEEL SUDDENLY AND VIOLENTLY JERKED FROM MY HANDS, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO STEER IN THE DIRECTION OFF THE ROAD. DASH LIGHTS (INCLUDING POWER STEERING) FLASHED INTERMITTENTLY, HOWEVER WOULD REMAIN CONSTANTLY ON WHEN STEERING WAS PULLED FROM CENTER POSITION. POWER STEERING LOSS WAS SPONTANEOUS, INTERMITTENT, AND WITHOUT WARNING. VEHICLE DID NOT RECORD ANY DIAGNOSTIC FAULT CODES WHILE LIGHTS WERE DISPLAYED. SYMPTOMS VEHICLE DISPLAYED COINCIDE WITH "RECALL SUMMARY" FOUND DOCUMENTED ON NHTSA RECALL 10V374000 FOR THE 2007 MAZDA5. INCIDENT OCCURRED BRIEFLY AT LOW SPEEDS WHILE PARKING ON 08/23/2019 AND RESOLVED AFTER VEHICLE WAS TURNED OFF AND RESTARTED. INCIDENT REOCCURRED WHILE MERGING ONTO HIGHWAY AT HIGH RATE OF SPEED AS DESCRIBED ABOVE ON 08/25/2019. WHILE INCIDENT OCCURS AND LIGHTS ILLUMINATED ON DASHBOARD, THE STEERING WHEEL MOTION IS VERY RESTRICTED AND THE WHEEL AUTOMATICALLY FORCES ITSELF BACK TO THE CENTER (NEUTRAL) POSITION. THE LIGHTS ON THE DASHBOARD WILL REMAIN CONSTANTLY ILLUMINATED WITH ANY MOVEMENT OF THE STEERING WHEEL AWAY FROM THE CENTER/NEUTRAL POSITION. THE RADIO ALSO HAS HELLO DISPLAYED, AS IF THE VEHICLE WAS JUST STARTED, EVEN THOUGH THE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION AND WAS NEVER TURNED OFF.