auto start/stop

Hermione_Granger

PAS on stop start cars is electric, not the old fashioned hydraulic pump system which needed the engine to be running to operate, so even when the engine is stopped the PAS still operates.

On some maybe, certainly not on all.
Volvo eDrive cars still have hydraulic PAS. Anyway, why would you need PAS if the engine isn't running?

custardy

Gloomendoom wrote: »

But why is running down the battery a problem? It just gets charged up again. If the battery drops below a certain level, the stop/go is disengaged.

exactly my experience
start/stop simly doesnt happen when the battery is below certain levels

Hermione_Granger

Running down the battery is even less of a worry on some stop/start cars as there is sometimes a second battery fitted which is only used for this function, and if this drops below a certain voltage, the stop/start is disabled until it has recharged a bit.

emmell

movilogo wrote: »

I think this auto start/stop is only fitted in manual cars - not in automatics.

Auto start/stop is fitted on my Audi A1 auto, but to be honest, the first thing I do when I've started the car is to switch the auto start/stop off.
ML.

jaydeeuk1

People knocking stop/start seem to either not know how it works (running down the battery?!) or don't how to use it properly (coasting... seriously?? Uses more petrol than being in gear!)

And if stop start does somehow fail- presumably on a french car, you switch the car off and start it off as normal - just like a regular poverty spec one.

neilmcl

emmell wrote: »

Auto start/stop is fitted on my Audi A1 auto, but to be honest, the first thing I do when I've started the car is to switch the auto start/stop off.
ML.

Next time you're out, reset your avg. mpg display and when you come to stop at some traffic lights watch just how quickly the reading drops whilst sitting with the engine on. You may reconsider the auto start/stop after this.

tillycat123

Premier wrote: »

I can't really comment on the Smart car functionality, and I guess their answer would be that you shouldn't be coasting out of gear, but I can assure you that Ford has a system to check the rotational speed of the wheels before cutting the engine.

Surely this is needed if for no other reason than to ensure you maintain operational PAS?

When I say coasting I mean I'm slowing down as the traffic ahead is crawling, so it's not stopped but barely moving. SO you come to an almost stop then you are off again.

Smart cars are not manuals they are triptronic I think its called, so even if you have it set to manual mode it changes down gears itself as you slow down, you can't be out of a gear in a Smart.

Trebor16

Many years ago I remember when cars had contact breaker points and distributors and manufacturers started to introduce electronic ignition systems. The prophets of doom and gloom abounded and it was "what if the electronic ignition fails, you won't be able to fix the car at the roadside". But electronic ignition worked and was far more reliable than contact breaker points and didn't need the same level of maintenance.

It was the same when they started to introduce tubeless tyres on motorcycles at the end of the 70's. "Oh, you won't be able to repair them at the side of the road" came the cries from the luddites. They ignored the safety advances, with tubeless tyres a lot less likely to suffer a sudden deflation when punctured, something which was far more likely with a tyre fitted with an inner tube. It didn't take long for repair kits to become available to enable temporary repairs to be carried out at the roadside.

It seems with every advance in technology there will always be those who will complain about it and profer "what if" scenarios. The best way is to see how these systems work in the real world.

gord115

TrickyWicky wrote: »

Read my original post.

My point was that once it gets to an age where it becomes difficult to start, auto stop/start would become more of a hinderance than a help.

Only if you've bought french....or a vauxhall

Sgt_Pepper_2

daveyjp wrote: »

If you read the whole thread you will see I have already stated stop start doesn't use the starter motor.

In the last week I have been held up by three cars which have broken down in traffic, all over 10 years old, because thats what old cars do.

No they don't. The £80 starter motor has been replaced by a unit costing £2500.