Audi Start/Stop System
 

Daughter has a 2017 Audi A6 which I drove quite a bit over the weekend, my first exposure to a start/stop system. I guess you get used to it but I found it annoying. I wonder if it really cuts down on emissions that much when driving in traffic like we encounter in this area (Houston in general) ??

Any other opinions/thoughts on this ??

I recently started driving a Ford F150 rental that has the start/stop system. Bugs the heck out of me, I always turn it off but it defaults to back on again after you turn off the ignition. PITA.

My general thought is that it is a last-ditch attempt to attain some kind of compliance for a strictly IC powertrain. The wear in the starter and engine bearings must be horrible. (I wonder if they use any kind of pre-oiler to reduce wear? I never could find info on that.)

https://www.audi-technology-portal.de/en/drivetrain/engine-efficiency-technologies/start-stop-system_en

https://www.knowyourparts.com/technical-resources/drive-train/audi-startstop-system-tsb/

Bought the wife a 2016 Audi Q5 . Has the start/stop feature. It can be overridden via button on the dash. That button is pushed - ALL the time.

Side note; Carista is an awesome little tool for customizing the settings on your Audi. $13.00 and I have several new/customized settings that the dealer would literally charge me $100's to complete.

My wife's 2017 Macan has that. The first time I drove her car I went around the block, came to a stop and I started cussing the POS that can't idle and just died. Then I let off the brakes and it started up and off I went. It is fairly easy to program the key to turn that off as default. So it no longer dies at stops. I presume in a mild climate, and doing a LOT of stop and go driving it might save a little fuel and pollution. For our driving, it is just annoying, and turned off.

A single car? Doesn't save much, but if hundreds of thousands of cars all had it, it would add up to something I'd guess.

My first experience with a stop/start feature. I rented a car and the first time I came to a stop, the car died. I thought the car broke down. I will admit it took getting use to. I don't care for it either. In was a PITA in start/stop traffic.

Drove an Audi all over Germany with it. At first I thought it would stall when stopped until the light bulb clicked. Took a couple of days to get used to but after that, it’s starting was so seamless that I never thought of it again.

If you fixate on anything enough you can make it annoying.

My Q5 Hybrid does this of course, but after a bit I stopped even noticing it.

It wasn't all that long ago when cars/trucks didn't always just start right up when you hit the key. Sometimes it took a bit of cranking to get them fired up, and occasionally they wouldn't start at all. The IC engine is now so advanced that starts are virtually guaranteed each & every time, which makes this start/stop technology possible in the first place.

For the record, I don't like this feature either and will turn it off every time. Kind of reminds me of those old motorized seat belts that were a lame attempt to get people to buckle up. More "fixes" forced upon automakers in order to meet ever-tightening safety/emission standards.

I think it's about fuel economy and emissions, but I think the bigger factor is the economy.

I don't much care for it either. I think if you've got a Porsche and hit the "sport" button (if you've got the Sport-Chrono option) it disables it or changes it some way.

I'm sure that you get used to it.

You're wrong, unless you only stop at stop signs and never have to wait for someone else to go first, so your stop is super short.

I'll summarize the video below.
1 start-stop systems depending upon the traffic can increase fuel economy anywhere from 4-9% over the same vehicle without it.
2 The starters for cars with a start-stop system are different and designed to be more robust to start and stop the vehicle many, many more times, more frequently than the starters that the rest of us are used to.
3 In a very particular study (1.5L 4cyl) starting the car takes as much gas as it takes to let the car idle for ~7 seconds. Since pretty much any stoplight that we have to stop at is longer than 7 secs, it'll help.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dFImHhNwbJo" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

4-9% savings over cars without it.

So, if everyone drove vehicles 15,000 miles a year and they all got 30 mpg over the course of that 15k miles, they'd use 500 gallons of gas. If they had a car with start stop, then they'd use 455-480 gallons of gas instead (depending upon whether they were in light or heavy traffic).That's probably 1.5-3.5 tanks of gas a year, which is not completely inconsequential. And that's assuming the average fuel economy is 30 which I suspect is way off.

My wife's X3 has it and it's annoying. On top of that, there is some sequence of events that will occasionally put the trans in neutral and refuse to re-start.

Not inconsequential when multiplied over 100s of thousands of cars in the next few years. I know I want cleaner air for my grandchildren since the current rate of children with asthma is off the charts.

My Hyundai Ioniq does it, but it always pulls away from rest in electric motor mode only, and if there is enough juice in the battery it carries on in electric until it reaches a steep uphill or you push the gas pedal down hard.It will go over 70 mph on the highway in electric mode again until it reaches a steep hill or you mashbthevthrottle

My BMW has that feature. One click of the button and it disables it (has memory too so its disabled for good.) The owners manual warns that it puts more wear and tear on the car so even the manufacturers acknowledge it.

I like it. I hate idling, and in the M2 it is a fun muscle memory exercise since you have to be in neutral with the clutch out. I then time the light, my foot, and my gear selection to make it as seemless as possible, while still “winning” the stoplight drag.

Our new GTI doesn’t have it, and I actually find myself missing it.

I drove a Scota Superb in Ireland with that feature in it. (Horrible car overall but that is another thread) It was a 4cyl turbo diesel with a 6 speed manual. I have heard cars next to me at red lights with it in the states with the engine stop, when this thing shut off the first time, I looked down to see if something was being indicated as wrong on the dash and it was functioning properly so I just assumed we had the engine stop feature.

I guess because I was in a strange car in a strange place it was the least of my worries, so it did not bother me.

One cool feature I did like, I stalled it once in a parking garage, I pushed the clutch in real fast and reached for the ignition and it was already restarting the engine. I thought that was pretty slick.

Super annoying, I default to defeating the feature when I have it in rentals. I suspect it’s another feature that helps the manufacturers meet the CAFE requirements but not that useful in the real world. Especially since most people turn it off.;)