How about a non-political question?

[Jaybeaux]

Well this went sideways quickly…

 

[Nater Potater]

Well this went sideways quickly…

I dunno; I thought everyone was being pretty civil, all things considered.

 

[Henry Boyd]

I guess I am lucky, my two BMW's have a button above the push start and pressing that disables the atuo-off when you come to a stop. That button will survive multiple starts and stops of the engine and will stay off until the battery cable is removed or I turn it back on. Got lucky on something I guess.

It all depended on whether the manufacturer’s certification of the car fuel mileage to the EPA required the use of auto stop or not. My previous Porsche remembered the setting of the auto off switch when the ignition was turned off, the current one requires the switch to be turned on each time. Our new Jeep has an auto off switch and the Jeep obd tool I bought will leave the auto off switch set off.

 

[play dough]

Do you guys at least have racing stripes on your minivans?

Nope. I'm not looking for attention. Just need to move my butt and gear from point A to point B as efficiently as possible.

 

[Henry Boyd]

Nope. I'm not looking for attention. Just need to move my butt and gear from point A to point B as efficiently as possible.

Have I ever told you guys about the expert witness assignment I had in the nineties? It involved a Plymouth mini-van that ran over a large piece of metal that had fallen off a semi-trailer and burst into flames? Nope? Really horrific story…

 

[Stee6043]

Nope. I'm not looking for attention. Just need to move my butt and gear from point A to point B as efficiently as possible.

Minivans are like the cargo pants of automobiles

 

[OllieC]

You must have it on your f150 Ecoboost? I have it on mine. I don’t even notice it.

Mine is a 2011. The 1st year it came out (I'm that guy). It doesn't have it. It's currently at the shop with a $3400 bill attached to it. Been there for almost a month.

 

[Espos4]

Mine is a 2011. The 1st year it came out (I'm that guy). It doesn't have it. It's currently at the shop with a $3400 bill attached to it. Been there for almost a month.

Lemme guess….
Water pump leaked and mixed coolant with oil?

 

[Nater Potater]

Minivans are like the cargo pants of automobiles

That's a good analogy.

 

[Creekwood]

I hate it too. My Acura MDX has a button on the console to turn it off, but it has to be pressed again each time you start the car. One tip related to the jerky start though---> At least on my MDX, if I slightly turn the steering wheel after the auto stop has engaged (like a second before the light turns green) the car restarts before I release the brake. That avoids the jerky start up.

 

[OllieC]

Lemme guess….
Water pump leaked and mixed coolant with oil?

No. New plugs, coil packs, brakes, fuel system clean out including the valves (DI turbos) struts, I had a gas smell which turned out to be a PCV, and software update. Went to pick it up last week and it was worse than when I dropped it off. So I turned around in the parking lot and back to their garage.

Before you flame me on cost, yes I’m aware. It’s a dealership. I didn’t have time to do this stuff myself and they were convenient. Not sure what they’re doing over there tho.

 

[firecadet613]

No. New plugs, coil packs, brakes, fuel system clean out including the valves (DI turbos) struts, I had a gas smell which turned out to be a PCV, and software update. Went to pick it up last week and it was worse than when I dropped it off. So I turned around in the parking lot and back to their garage.

Before you flame me on cost, yes I’m aware. It’s a dealership. I didn’t have time to do this stuff myself and they were convenient. Not sure what they’re doing over there tho.

Damn... and that's why I typically get out of them at 75,000 miles and start over... nothing but oil changes and sometimes tires...

 

[MrHappy]

Best friend told me if I ever saw him driving a minivan. Kill him.

 

[highslice]

Lemme guess….
Water pump leaked and mixed coolant with oil?

That happened to my wife's Ford 3.7L powered CX 9. Almost $4K. It is a known problem and should have been a recall.

 

[Gofirstclass]

OK, so we know who has it and who doesn't, and I understand it was for CAFE standards, but does it really save on gas, and if so, how much?

 

[mrsrobinson]

Is this the stopping/restarting of the engine I hear from newer cars at stoplights? That has got to wreak havoc on a started.

I worked in the LTL Freight Shipping industry for a couple of years. They implemented this on the trucks, the drivers hated it.

 

[play dough]

I asked the engineers at FCA (now Stellantis) what the savings was with the stop/start system. I don't think I ever heard a savings number because that would be dependent on the driving situation, but I do remember the statement that the engine needed to be idle for 7 seconds to realize a benefit. Conversely, I would then have to assume less than a 7 second shut down would result in a fuel usage penalty. Either way, unless you're in traffic with long durations of idling, the savings has to be minimal.

 

[OllieC]

Damn... and that's why I typically get out of them at 75,000 miles and start over... nothing but oil changes and sometimes tires...

Same Super Crew would be $70k. As much as I’d love a new one, I can’t justify it for towing a boat 3 months out of the year. Of course we use it for many other things, and would never be without one. We’ll just run this into the ground. Only has 117k.

 

[Nater Potater]

...I do remember the statement that the engine needed to be idle for 7 seconds to realize a benefit. Conversely, I would then have to assume less than a 7 second shut down would result in a fuel usage penalty. Either way, unless you're in traffic with long durations of idling, the savings has to be minimal.

If that's the case, we could stand to save some fuel around here, as some of our traffic lights at the bigger intersections can have you parked for close to 2 minutes. To add insult to injury, there's times where we sit through 2 full cycles before getting close enough to make it through on the third cycle. In those instances, we could be parked for somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 minutes. So, yeah; we might be saving a measurable amount of fuel. That, and the 50 cars sitting with us wouldn't be puking out exhaust fumes that whole time.

 

[highslice]

If that's the case, we could stand to save some fuel around here, as some of our traffic lights at the bigger intersections can have you parked for close to 2 minutes. To add insult to injury, there's times where we sit through 2 full cycles before getting close enough to make it through on the third cycle. In those instances, we could be parked for somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 minutes. So, yeah; we might be saving a measurable amount of fuel. That, and the 50 cars sitting with us wouldn't be puking out exhaust fumes that whole time.

You have traffic lights in Idaho???