What 18 owners told NHTSA about the 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 5 Bev

Vehicle: 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 5 Description of Safety Defect:The Reverse Parking Collision-Avoidance Assist (PCA-R) system exhibits a severe software logic flaw that creates an immediate traffic hazard. When a standard, hitch-mounted bike rack is installed, the vehicle’s rear sensors detect the rack as an imminent collision obstacle while in reverse. The system responds by executing an abrupt, violent emergency brake application, bringing the vehicle to an unexpected dead stop. The primary safety failure is a lack of non-volatile memory retention for driver settings. In the infotainment system under "Parking Safety," a driver can manually deselect or disable the "Rear Safety" automatic braking feature to accommodate hitch accessories. However, this setting completely resets to "Enabled" by default every single time the vehicle is restarted. Safety Risk & Real-World Consequences:This defect has caused multiple documented near-miss incidents. Specifically, when attempting to reverse off a main roadway into a driveway with cross-traffic present, the vehicle suddenly slams on the brakes due to the bike rack. This leaves the vehicle unexpectedly stranded and protruding into active lanes of traffic, nearly causing severe rear-end and T-bone collisions with passing vehicles. Requested Corrective Action: Hyundai must issue a software update changing the ADAS memory logic. The Reverse Parking Collision-Avoidance Assist state should persist in the exact state it was in when the vehicle was last turned off (Last-Mode Memory). If a driver explicitly disables the feature to safely operate a bike rack or hitch accessory, it must remain disabled until the driver intentionally re-enables it.

NHTSA ODI 11740966

I am a tall driver (6'4") and I need to wear sunglasses when driving most of the time. The eye tracking device seems generally incompatible with both of these conditions. When the eye tracker fails to recognize my eyes are looking at road it disables driver assist features such as lane centering which can occur unexpectedly and has almost caused me to wreck once. I have tried without sunglasses and squinting at the glare also causes the system to fail. I often have to lift my glasses and stare at the sensor to make the warning go away (in effect forcing me to take my eyes off the road. If sunlight hits it, it also fails. So in summary, this device does not work in the daytime. I have contacted the dealer, and they basically read the Hyundai response I've found online verbatim: summarized, you can't wear sunglasses, prescription glasses, be over 6 foot tall and several other conditions and expect the system to work. There is no way to disable the tracker. There is an option the dealer pointed to, but it is ignored when you turn on any of the assist features. Since this system is currently so unreliable, at best, this is an expensive feature I am unable to use. At worst, the distractions it is causing is going to cause an accident. This is an ongoing issue, date indicates first time issue was noticed.

NHTSA ODI 11737531

Every 7 minutes of driving electrical failure , happens, which results in Check driver assistance system warning. Once vehicle is turned off, driving 7 minutes error pops again. Due to this all systems : Adaptive Cruise Control , Automatic Emergency Braking , Blind Spot Warning , Forward Collision Warning , Lane Departure Warning , Lane Keeping Assistance , Parking Collision Warning , Rear Cross Traffic Warning gets disabled. This creates a huge risk driving.

NHTSA ODI 11725393

While driving at highway speeds (approximately 70 MPH) with the vehicle's Assistive Driving functions engaged, the Driver Monitoring System (DMS) malfunctioned. Despite maintaining constant visual attention on the road ahead, the system issued repeated, erroneous audio warnings claiming driver inattention. I attempted to adjust my head and eye position to satisfy the sensors, but the system failed to register my compliance and continued to cycle through warnings. ​Consequently, the vehicle initiated an unwarranted "fail-safe" maneuver and suddenly applied the brakes while traveling in the flow of traffic. This uncommanded, rapid deceleration created an immediate and severe risk of a high-speed rear-end collision with following vehicles. The failure appears to be a false-positive defect in the eye-tracking software logic and its integration with the braking system. The vehicle is available for inspection to analyze the system data logs.

NHTSA ODI 11714869