diff --git a/docs/How-to/installation.md b/docs/How-to/installation.md
index 23d97efd..0099bc4f 100644
--- a/docs/How-to/installation.md
+++ b/docs/How-to/installation.md
@@ -118,3 +118,16 @@ PETSC_ARCH=arch-xxx-yyy
     export PETSC_ARCH=arch-xxx-yyy
     ```
 
+## Troubleshooting
+
+### PETSc configure: "Downloaded sundials2 could not be used"
+
+PETSc configure on macOS stops with:
+
+```
+Downloaded sundials2 could not be used. Please check install in .../arch-darwin-c-opt
+```
+
+and `configure.log` reports `_CVDense` and `_CVSpgmr` as undefined symbols.
+
+A SUNDIALS 7 from Homebrew is in the linker search path ahead of the SUNDIALS 2.5 that PETSc downloads, and SUNDIALS 7 has no `CVDense`. `get_petsc.sh` passes no Homebrew library path, so on Apple Silicon, where Homebrew lives in `/opt/homebrew`, PETSc builds with a Homebrew SUNDIALS installed. On an Intel Mac, Homebrew installs into `/usr/local/lib`, which the linker searches by default, so a Homebrew SUNDIALS can still hide the downloaded one there. `brew list --versions sundials` shows whether Homebrew's SUNDIALS is installed.
diff --git a/tests/test_get_petsc_ldflags.py b/tests/test_get_petsc_ldflags.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..89bd4cce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_get_petsc_ldflags.py
@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+"""Tests for the macOS configure arguments of ``tools/get_petsc.sh``.
+
+The platform and configure steps are read from the shipped script and run with stub tools
+and a stub ``configure``: no build and no network.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import subprocess
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import pytest
+
+pytestmark = [pytest.mark.unit, pytest.mark.timeout(30)]
+
+SCRIPT = Path(__file__).resolve().parents[1] / 'tools' / 'get_petsc.sh'
+
+
+# A stub configure: records its arguments, its environment and four named variables.
+CONFIGURE_STUB = """#!/bin/bash
+printf "%s\\n" "$@" > args
+export -p > env
+for v in LDFLAGS LIBRARY_PATH LIBS CPATH; do printf "%s=%s\\n" "$v" "${!v-unset}"; done > named
+"""
+
+
+def _run_macos(tmp_path, tools, path_extra=':/usr/bin:/bin'):
+    """Run the shipped platform and configure steps as macOS with stub ``tools``."""
+    text = SCRIPT.read_text()
+    start = text.index('current_step="Determining platform-specific flags"')
+    block = text[start : text.index('# 9. Build PETSc')]
+    for name in tools:
+        (tmp_path / name).write_text('#!/bin/bash\necho /sdk\n')
+    (tmp_path / 'configure').write_text(CONFIGURE_STUB)
+    for stub in tmp_path.iterdir():
+        stub.chmod(0o755)
+    snippet = 'set -euo pipefail\nannounce() { :; }\nOSTYPE=darwin24\nworkpath=.\n' + block
+    return subprocess.run(
+        ['/bin/bash', '-c', snippet],
+        capture_output=True,
+        text=True,
+        cwd=tmp_path,
+        env={'PATH': f'{tmp_path}{path_extra}'},
+    )
+
+
+def _configure_args(tmp_path) -> list[str]:
+    """Return the configure arguments, after checking no build variable names a library path."""
+    named = (tmp_path / 'named').read_text().split()
+    assert named == [f'{v}=unset' for v in ('LDFLAGS', 'LIBRARY_PATH', 'LIBS', 'CPATH')]
+    assert 'homebrew/lib' not in (tmp_path / 'env').read_text()
+    args = (tmp_path / 'args').read_text().splitlines()
+    assert [a for a in args if '-L' in a] == []
+    return args
+
+
+def test_configure_on_macos_gets_no_library_path(tmp_path):
+    """On macOS with a system MPI, PETSc configure gets LDFLAGS=-Wl,-w and no -L in any
+    argument or build variable, so no library directory comes ahead of the SUNDIALS 2.5 it
+    downloads."""
+    result = _run_macos(tmp_path, ('xcrun', 'mpicc', 'mpirun'))
+    assert result.returncode == 0, result.stderr
+    args = _configure_args(tmp_path)
+    assert {'LDFLAGS=-Wl,-w', '--download-sundials2'} <= set(args)
+    assert '--download-mpich' not in args
+
+
+def test_configure_on_macos_without_mpicc_downloads_mpich(tmp_path):
+    """Without mpicc on PATH, PETSc downloads MPICH and still gets only LDFLAGS=-Wl,-w."""
+    result = _run_macos(tmp_path, ('xcrun',), path_extra='')
+    assert result.returncode == 0, result.stderr
+    args = _configure_args(tmp_path)
+    assert {'LDFLAGS=-Wl,-w', '--download-sundials2', '--download-mpich'} <= set(args)
+
+
+def test_macos_without_xcrun_stops_before_configure(tmp_path):
+    """Without xcrun the script stops with its install hint and never runs configure."""
+    result = _run_macos(tmp_path, ('mpicc', 'mpirun'), path_extra='')
+    assert result.returncode == 1
+    assert 'xcrun not found' in result.stderr and 'xcode-select --install' in result.stderr
+    assert not (tmp_path / 'args').exists()
diff --git a/tools/get_petsc.sh b/tools/get_petsc.sh
index fd9adffd..512a714a 100755
--- a/tools/get_petsc.sh
+++ b/tools/get_petsc.sh
@@ -341,13 +341,9 @@ if [[ "$OSTYPE" == "darwin"* ]]; then
     # macOS provides Accelerate framework with BLAS/LAPACK
     blas_flag=""
 
-    if [[ "$(uname -m)" == "arm64" ]]; then
-        default_brew_prefix="/opt/homebrew"
-    else
-        default_brew_prefix="/usr/local"
-    fi
-    brew_prefix="$(brew --prefix 2>/dev/null || echo "$default_brew_prefix")"
-    ldflags="-L${brew_prefix}/lib -Wl,-w"
+    # -Wl,-w: macOS 26+ turns deprecated-flag warnings into configure errors. No Homebrew -L:
+    # mpicc brings its own, and a Homebrew SUNDIALS there would hide PETSc's SUNDIALS 2.5.
+    ldflags="-Wl,-w"
 fi
 
 if [[ -z "$mpi_flag" ]] && ! command -v mpirun >/dev/null 2>&1; then