What 9 owners told NHTSA about the 2022 Mazda Cx-90 Phev

The contact owns a 2022 Mazda CX-9. The contact stated that the vehicle was being operated with the front driver's side seat warmer activated to the highest heat level. After driving for several hours, the vehicle was parked. While exiting the vehicle, the contact experienced pain in the rear thigh area of each leg. Upon inspect the contact discovered that the rear thigh area of both legs had sustained burning and blistering despite having pants on as a barrier during the failure. During the injuries, the contact was wearing pants. The contact was later treated at the local urgent care center for first-degree burns and blistering caused by excessive heat from the seat warmer. The manufacturer was notified of the injuries and advised to have the vehicle examined by the local dealer. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to detect a failure in the operation of the seat warmer, and no problem was found. The contact inquired about the temperature of the seat warmer and what its highest temperature level is; however, that information was not provided, and the manufacturer stated that it is the temperature at which the occupant felt comforable with. No further information was available. The failure mileage was 53,000.

NHTSA ODI 11728503

My wife has a cold. She picked it up during several uncomfortable hours in the emergency room. Our driveway is on a bit of a slope. She stopped the car, put it in park (she thought), turned off the engine, and got out. Something in the dashboard compartment had blocked the shift lever and the car was actually in reverse. It started rolling backwards down the driveway. She grabbed it and tugged with all her might and actually succeeded in stopping it when it got to the street. She managed to prevent our car from rolling into our neighbor's parallel parked car immediately across from our driveway. She also managed to hurt her arm quite badly. X-rays and CAT scans and exposure to every sniffling, coughing person in the ER later, and we learned she was lucky and did not break any bones, just sprained her elbow and shoulder. Very very lucky that she didn't get knocked under the wheel by the still open door of the car! My question is this: Can automakers create a safety device to prevent this? If the engine is off and the car is not in park, and no driver is detected in the driver's seat, can they automatically apply the brake? There could be a button or switch to undo the brake for towing. It seems the technology to do this has been around for decades, but the X-ray tech, the ER admissions nurse, my wife's orthopedist, even the lady at our insurance company all had stories of similar happenings. How can such a safety device become standard?

NHTSA ODI 11633972