Auris 1.33vvt-i Tr Stop/start Technology

[ironfist]

Hi Guys and Gals,

I'm a new member and this is my first posting. I'm picking up my new Auris on thursday but am a bit apprhensive about the stop start engine. Is it possible to switch off this feature? Plus is it easy to get on with? I'd be obliged if anyone could give me some answers to put my mind at ease.

Thanks

ironfist

[reece]

Yes you can switch it off, however when you turn your engine back on it will default to the On setting.

It takes a little getting use to. When you are stationary and in neutral the engine will cut out, everything stays on as thought your engine was running. As soon as you touch the clutch pedal to engage first gear, the engine will re start.

The system won’t self terminate, i.e. if it senses that the Battery will go flat due to having everything on like air con, lights etc, it will start again by itself. If you start to roll downhill it will re start.

You will also have a timer on your dash with the milometer, one for the continuous time the engine has been stopped and one for the time for that journey.

It’s a good system and gives you a smug feeling that while stuck in traffic or at lights you aren’t wasting fuel. If you want to confirm the savings, check the timer on your dash and see how many hours your engine has been stopped during normal driving and equate that to real money

[Mick G]

Yes, everything Reece said above. I've got a new Yaris with the same engine in it. I've had it for a few months now and I'd say I'm almost used it it now. It is a bit disconcerting at first but I've never had a problem with it. You'll be surprised how quickly it starts up, you might think you would have to do everything slowly to allow it to get started but you don't, it's just all ready by the time you come to move off.

There's an "ECO OFF" switch down by the gearstick which'll turn it off (until you restart the engine next time) but I can't imagine using it. I suppose a boy racer wanting a real quick start at the lights may want to turn it off. But even in this situation you can just press the clutch pedal a few seconds before the lights change and it would be all fired up.

About 2 weeks ago I got stuck in an M1 closure and my normal 1 hour journey took about 2 and a half. I put the eco timer display on and over the course of that one journey the engine had been switched off for 40 minutes. That's 40 minutes of idling saved just on one journey. It was one of those really hot days we've had and cars were overheating left, right and centre (including a 2009 Volvo monster-truck-thing sat behind me). Chances of me overheating were slim as the engine was off for most of time.

That said, on that journey, I did have to turn the air con off. Even though it was a scorcher. If I'd sat there with the air con on the engine would not have turned off as much as it did. So you pay your money and take your choice. Air con or stop/start, you decide.

It now really bugs me if the engine doesn't turn off at the lights (the state of the Battery will decide). I'm starting to wonder whether playing the stereo really loud makes a difference too. Quite often when I've got the music on real loud it doesn't turn off, I'm wondering whether the Speakers are considered to be drawing too much power from the Battery.

One final thing is that when you switch the engine on initially the stop/start mode will not come into play until you've driven a few feet. When it was new I was trying to demo it to some people and they didn't seem that impressed cause it was never switching off. So if you want to play with it you've got to drive it a few feet first.

That said, it all just works and it will soon become the norm for you.

Enjoy it when it arrives,

Mick

[mad1969]

i go with whats been said above youll soon get used to it save me over 1 hour running time afew weeks ago when we drve to silverstone to see world serise renault

i do find it abit of a pain sometimes when your in traffic and your stop staring all the time and ive noticed with ours that sometime in will start up itself without me even touching the clutch pedal ??

end of the day its got a button to turn it off but mines down near the headlight hight adjustment ?? not the gear stick

[ironfist]

Yes you can switch it off, however when you turn your engine back on it will default to the On setting.

It takes a little getting use to. When you are stationary and in neutral the engine will cut out, everything stays on as thought your engine was running. As soon as you touch the clutch pedal to engage first gear, the engine will re start.

The system won’t self terminate, i.e. if it senses that the battery will go flat due to having everything on like air con, lights etc, it will start again by itself. If you start to roll downhill it will re start.

You will also have a timer on your dash with the milometer, one for the continuous time the engine has been stopped and one for the time for that journey.

It’s a good system and gives you a smug feeling that while stuck in traffic or at lights you aren’t wasting fuel. If you want to confirm the savings, check the timer on your dash and see how many hours your engine has been stopped during normal driving and equate that to real money

[ironfist]

Hi guys, thanks for all the info. It certainly makes me feel a lot better.I am looking forward to tomorrow and the shiny new car!!

Will keep you informed as to how it's going. Hoping I won't experience all the rattles and squeaks as posted by other members

Thanks again

ironfist :)

[Mick G]

... mines down near the headlight hight adjustment ?? not the gear stick

Yes, I've got the Yaris with the same engine. In the Yaris it's down by the gearstick I wasn't sure where it was on the Auris. Obviously somewhere else.

Enjoy the new wheels tomorrow Ironfist,

Mick

[s m smith]

stop start, and i stand corrected was out in the Early 1980s, its nothing new, just remember the extra wear and tear on the engine components , when starting all the time i think personally i would prefer the engine to idle when the car is stationary

[Mick G]

stop start, and i stand corrected was out in the Early 1980s, its nothing new, just remember the extra wear and tear on the engine components , when starting all the time i think personally i would prefer the engine to idle when the car is stationary

That's the first thing my old man said when I mentioned it to him - "Golfs used to have that years ago".

I see that as a good thing, they've had 20-30 years to improve / perfect it. I'm presuming they haven't just lifted the bits out of an 80's Golf and shoved them in the new Toyotas. While the concept is old I image the technology and implementation is not. It's not surprising that there wasn't the financial / political / consumer will for it to take off in the 80's but things have changed a lot since.

I see what you mean about engine wear, I've always thought that startup was a big strain on the engine, but again I imagine that's been considered and mitigated to some extent in the new implementations. Look at who is implementing it: Toyota, BMW, VW (who should have some experience from it the first time around), etc. I can't see BMW risking their massive reputation on a concept that would make their engines fall to bits in 5 years time, can you?

As far as idling is concerned, taking the real-world example I mentioned, if I was to go out to the car now, turn it on and sit in there with it idling and try to stay there for 40 minutes, at what point might I think it's a bit wasteful and turn the engine off? I wonder, but I doubt I'd make it much past a few minutes.

These are just some thoughts as, presuming they have factored in and tried to resolve heavy engine strain at startup, it seems like a no-brainer to me. Each to their own of course.

Take care,

Mick

[reece]

It now really bugs me if the engine doesn't turn off at the lights (the state of the battery will decide). I'm starting to wonder whether playing the stereo really loud makes a difference too. Quite often when I've got the music on real loud it doesn't turn off,

It’s a protection feature, it may also cut off the audio to save power If the engine isn’t running then there is no wear and tear, leaving it idle when stationary is causing more wear and tear surly? No overheating, no fuel use, that has to be good?

The concept maybe isn’t new but the technology behind it in modern cars certainly is. The Toyota version has a permanently engaged starter motor, conditions have to be right for it to stop when in neutral and stationary. As mentioned BMW Smart Land Rover Citroen as well as Toyota are now realising that Stop/Start is the way forward to reduce emissions and save fuel.