Wow compression starts reliably enough to stop and start ! That's impressive. How durable is it?
Can someone school me on the stop and start vehicles
- Thread starter rollinpete
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My focus has one and it's natural for me now to disable it the moment I start the car up and put it into gear. On my car the auto start/stop will do it's work when the engine is sufficiently up to temp and when none/only the brake pedal is depressed and the car is not moving. While the car is off the water pump keeps going and all electronics are still on. If the air conditioner is on, you will notice the cold air start to go warm (for obvious reasons.) Once the clutch is depressed or the gas is tapped then the car will turn back on. It also feels like the car will turn back on if the battery needs to recharge (not really an issue since the OEM battery and starter is pretty beefy, but I also have a decently big aftermarket amp.)
I actually own and drive one in wife's Tiguan.
I am used to feature now and think nothing of it. The lack of key to shut off vehicle trips me up more then the start/stop.
It seems to save fuel, the vehicle managed about 28.5 mpg average with a mix of city (start/stop) and highway.
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Originally Posted by UncleDave
Not all start stop is the same.
on my RX400h everything runs while the engine is stopped - air conditioner compressor, all power and accessories.
In most gas autos - when the engine stops so does the AC.
UD
Mercedes started offering it on the E350 in 2014. Mostly the forums state that the auxiliary battery ends up dying early and then the start stop feature is disabled, but then you just end up with a warning on the dash about the bad battery. The starters seem to be fine though, even those with higher mileage don't report any failure on the starter. I remember a previous car which was a Ford where I had over 200k on it and it was still the original starter, I guess they last longer these days and it doesn't appear to be an issue, just the battery. Same complaints as everyone else, can't be permanently disabled, only disabled on start up and afterwards it defaults to back on.
This may be just my experience, but I had a rental Chevy Malibu with the Stop-Start feature and while I completely understand the advantages offered, I didn't like it. I have driven a manual for so long that I have become somewhat trained to only keep my foot lightly on the brake pedal at a light. When the rental car would start the engine again, the car would lurch forward a bit.
My Audi has it and i hardly notice it anymore. It can be turned off with a switch that is a couple inches from the Starter Button so its easy to disengage if desired but if the car is turned off the start stop is active again. This system is very sensitive to brake pressure and if you come to a smooth stop and just apply enough pressure to keep the vehicle from moving it never shuts off. if you mash down harder it goes into start/stop mode. Once it has stopped you cannot get your foot off of the brake pedal before the motor has started again. Initially it jerked the car a bit when it restarted but now as the miles have broken it in it is barely noticeable. I have the OBDeleven phone app/dongle and it can be switched off permanently but ive grown accustomed to it so i dont planing on doing so even though i easily could.
Sounds like Chevy is unsorted. Our VW I leverage the slight movement in brake to restart motor when light changing. Not really noticeable and does not lurch.
Originally Posted by RamFan
The Alfa has this and I disable it 99% I'm in the car. Not because I don't like start-stop tech, but because on this particular vehicle, it takes too long to engage when I release my foot from the brake. I drove one other vehicle with this a loooooong time ago, a Saturn Vue. On that vehicle, the re-ignition was seamless. From what I remember, my foot wouldn't completely leave the brake pedal and it had fully restarted. On the Alfa, there's a hesitation of sorts, almost like the car is trying to figure out if I'm actually going to hit the gas. If it weren't for this, I'd keep the system engaged (once the engine is fully warm). Where it really comes in handy for me is that if I'm driving with it disabled and I'm at a train crossing or a known long red light, I can hit the deactivate button (to activate) and it will kill power to the engine but not the other features; radio, heat, a/c, etc. and when I'm ready to roll again I simply deactivate again and it kicks power on without going through an entire starting cycle which would temporary kill those features.
For those stating that these systems cause increased starter wear. That's simply not the case. The starters in these vehicles are not like an ordinary starter, they're specifically built for this kind of usage.
Originally Posted by rollinpete
Is there a deactivation switch in these vehicles?
Starting and shutting off for a 45 seconds to 1 min. traffic light seems useless to me, (how much gas are you really saving)?
Seems you could be doing harm to your engine and other parts, (starter wearing out)
( loss of oil pressure ) when having to restart, not long ( but still doesn't seem well for the engine).
Any thoughts
Any of you guys own one of these vehicles?
My F22 has it, and there is a permanent "Off" switch on the dash. I usually leave it on, as it doesn't bother me at all. Putting the car and/or the transmission in Sport or Sport+ mode also disables start/stop, so it's not a hindrance if I want to accept a challenge at the Stoplight Grand Prix.
My wifes 2017 Ford Escape has it. You get used to it after a while, but you can always deactivate it right after startup. The engine has to be warmed up before it will auto-stop. As soon as your foot starts to lift up, it restarts the engine, and it does help mpg to some extent. The battery seems to be far larger than I would expect. I did not notice if the feature completely shuts off when trailering- I seem to recall that it was unaffected by trailering but I might be wrong.
Some older cars have stop-start technology. When there is something wrong, the car will stall and you have to restart the car 
And of course, all manual transmissions can be made to do the stop-start too. Just let it idle in gear 
And of course, all manual transmissions can be made to do the stop-start too. Just let it idle in gear My wife's new Escape has it. It works well....She is used to it. For me I either turn on sport mode which deactivates it (I like the way it drives) or I manually deactivate it with a switch. Also in drive mode after stopping I know to ease off the brake pedal a tad (while still being stopped) which stops the system from activating. In hot weather with the A/C on it seems to sense that and after turning off a time or two keeps the car and A/C running keeping the car interior cool
Originally Posted by supton
Don't forget, they oversized the starter (and battery?) on these models. Or they said they would...
The feature has been around for a while. Has anyone noticed an uptick in starter failure on these models? I mean, it's been a few years now--I'd think we'd have seen problems by now. If it was a problem.
Originally Posted by TheLawnRanger
I can't stand the sound of the start/stop feature in a parking lot after a game or concert. Engines constantly off and on. It sounds like the driver is not BITOG enough to maintain their ride.
Originally Posted by MNgopher
In some cars, yes, there is a switch. Most will require you to re-engage the switch each time you turn the car off and back on again. Some can be programmed / jumpered / bpyassed out.
Studies have shown for any stop greater than about 10 seconds, you come out ahead if the engine is turned off (fuel mileage wise).
Starters and batteries are typically beefed up versus the same vehcile/engine that doesn't have start stop. (In my trucks case, regular engines get standard lead acid batteries, the start stop ones get an AGM battery).
There is literature out there on the needs for bearings in these types of vehicles.
All that being aid, I have it on my F150, and the only time it gets disengaged is when I am towing - I put the truck in tow/haul mode, and when the truck detects a trailer is connected / plugged in, start stop is disabled. No problems or troubles to report in 36,000 mile and 2 1/2 years. You realize how long you spend just idling when you have one of these.
Stop Start came standard on the 2015-2016 F150's with the Ecoboost 2.7 V6, and then it was added to the 2017 3.5 Ecoboost V6, and now is standard on all F150's in the 2018 lineup regardless of engine.
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