Stop start system

Page 1 / 2
barbs77, Jul 4, 2:02pm
My new car has stop start, do I get used to it or turn it off? Any benefits to running of car or is it purely about saving a little at the lights?
bwg11, Jul 4, 2:11pm
I'll start this one by being negative. Never owned one but driven two. I consider, unless you are in very slow traffic with lots of long stops, the minimal fuel saving would not compensate the lag in getting mobile when traffic moves and wear and tear on the starting system. Particularly annoying in queued traffic where you move up a few car lengths every minute or so.
frytime, Jul 4, 2:17pm
Heard good things about the Mazda system. Ment to start in .5 of a second by controlling when the piston stops and firing it with the starter. Person ly not keen on what could be expensive batterys
barbs77, Jul 4, 2:33pm
I didn't realise the car had it so I got a hell of a fright when my car "broke down"! At a busy intersection!
ceebee2, Jul 4, 2:38pm
Engine actually fires on a compression cycle of a cylinder and utilising the starter also in 0.35 secs!
barbs77, Jul 4, 2:45pm
I feel like I'm driving a hybrid taxi
skull, Jul 4, 2:56pm
I would say get used to it barbs, they spent millions developing it and you have paid a few hundred to have it so take advantage of the small benefits it is giving you.
franc123, Jul 4, 3:11pm
Try leaving your aircon running :)
barbs77, Jul 4, 3:27pm
A potentially stupid question. The brake lights and running lights would stay on wouldnt they?
msigg, Jul 4, 3:32pm
Yes saves a tiny amount of gas over a long period and save environment a ting bit over a period, I myself don't like it. Each to their own. Use it for a couple of weeks then you will always use it.
pc_uncorrect, Jul 4, 3:34pm
Good questions. The brake lights will remain 'on', as long as your foot is depressing the brake pedal, regardless if the engine is operational or not.

The lights (presume the headlights?) will remain 'on', as long as they are switched on, regardless if the engine is operational or not.
m16d, Jul 4, 3:44pm
It's a stupid idea. won't save you anything.
Get rid of it.
morrisjvan, Jul 4, 4:02pm
I used to have an old Cortina that had the first half of that feature !
sifty, Jul 4, 4:10pm
I've driven a skoda with this. Fecking hate it. Any lag when taking off thru an intersection is terrifying.
beachy, Jul 4, 4:52pm
I had a mini rental in Auckland for a few days. Nearly took the damn thing back till I found the stop start could be disabled. Very dangerous when stopped at an intersection on a hill (slight slope) The thing had no power and nearly stalled every time with the stop start activated.
saxman99, Jul 4, 5:01pm
I have a mate with a mazda with this. I drove the car when it was literally brand new and the system would restart the car almost instantly; rrvroom. Now that the car is nearly 4 years old and has a decent number of Ks on it it is nowhere near as quick, maybe 3 or 4 times as long; rr rr rrvroom. So it don't last forever and quickly gets annoyingly slow. This car is a company car and is always serviced on time and driven pretty conservatively.
smalltrader2, Jul 6, 3:39pm
Personally the system is more trouble than it is worth. I suppose when you factor in economy of scale, the benefits to the environment could be significant. However, I don't think it will save the owner anything. In fact it might cost the owner much more in maintenance because the stop-start battery costs something like 3 times a normal battery ! The stop start battery could go quickly if you don't maintain it properly.

On the Mazda, you can disable the stop-start system per trip but you can't disable it permanently which is annoying.
twink19, Jul 6, 5:14pm
when in Aus had my sisters Audi, dam annoying, but found could turn it off
mimik3, Jul 6, 5:51pm
I love it, here is a system that has potential 20% fuel savings when driving in peak hour traffic, yet the good Ol' New Zealanders hate it. No wonder you are such a backward country.
Anything that will safe a life or reduce fuel consumption is deemed to be backwards yet car companies have spent billions trying to give you the best of both worlds, but unless it's been fixed with some number 8 wire it can't be any good.
I have used it in Europe and it takes a little greeting use to, but overall the savings are there.
muzz67, Jul 6, 6:56pm
This may surprise you pal,, but not all of us drive in traffic jams all day.
sr2, Jul 6, 7:11pm
+1; I couldn't agree with you more mate.
Stop/start systems are the start of a downwards slippery slope that will lead us all to a banal, non-descript existence dependant on technological slavery.
They, (they know who they are) gave us the same argument when they (they know who they are) introduced synchromesh gearboxes as an alternative to the tried and proven 'crash gearbox".

just ask the average driver if they can "double the clutch"? (I rest my case).
fordcrzy, Jul 6, 7:56pm
what about the air conditioning. if your motor has stopped how does that work? does it have a windscreen fog sensor to tell when you cant see anything because the windscreen is fogged up and it restarts the car?
smalltrader2, Jul 6, 8:17pm
Fear not. The engineers and designers have already considered this problem when they design the stop/start system. This is the reason why you end up with a single big/expensive battery to power the accessories when engine is stopping. Mazda uses the single battery system whereas a lot of European cars use dual batteries system for stop/start.

My point is that the saving that you made in fuel is probably not enough to pay for the expensive battery replacement. No argument about that it may be better for the environment but for the owner, the cost/benefit probably does not stack up. Your mileage may vary.
saxman99, Jul 6, 8:25pm
In the mazda the system starts again after a certain time if you haven't moved, presumably to avoid a flat battery.
lugee, Jul 6, 11:40pm
I would probably consider myself a somewhat average driver (I drive to get places basically) and I can double clutch. Had to learn after driving for years a 1980's Honda whose synchro's had long gone.