Last night was the first time I took my car for a drive around town with family. I wasn't aware of the feature where the car turns off the engine at every stop such as at the traffic light and turns back on when you press on gas.

I haven't had time yet to go through the manual or spend time with the car so I'm not yet familiar with everything this car has - in fact, at this point I'm not really sure if this is a feature or an issue. What do you all think about this feature? Can this be turned off? If so, do most of you leave it on or off? I'm not liking it too much and I'm also concerned that by switching on & off so many times, something can go bad quickly. Is this only available on 2014 models or earlier ones as well?

 

I think there is an "Eco" button on the center dash to make it stop. Most new MB have this feature but I'm not sure the year it started. My car current car does not have it but my new one will. I've had a few loaner cars with it and I don't like it. I always turned it off. I believe it uses a separate way to "re crank" the car though.

 

Yes, I saw the "ECO" on the dash and through this must be the culprit. I think I'll turn it off once I figure out how. Plan to spend some time this weekend to get to know the car.

 

its not that bad actually. most new cars will start having them . Its always nice to turn the feature off before the car turns off. I dont think BMW allows that

 

The ECO Start/Stop feature can be manually turned off by pushing the ECO button on the dash center console. It will reset to ON at every start of the vehicle and has to be manually turned off every time. Some of the forumites find it annoying but as of right now it is not possible to permanently disable it.

Having driven other cars with this feature, a Euro spec VW Touareg TDI, I must say that the ECO Start/Stop in the E-class is one of the best behaving and least intrusive ECO system there is. I have no problems with it and I'll keep it on.

 

On or off! Drive it and see how the fuel economy changes. I never had a loaner car long enough to see the difference. Let us know your thoughts and findings.

 

I think it is a matter of getting used to it.

Hopefully this doesn't take a toll on any engine part. There is a lot of stop & go traffic in my area especially during the rush hour commute and I would hate to have anything fail prematurely because of this.

 

I was worried about the starter, but I have since learned that the engine doesn't use the starter to restart Apparently, the system remembers which cylinder should fire next and the restart is done by firing that cylinder which spins the engine. Clever....and with no obvious areas for excess wear if you keep your oil clean.

 

OK, that's good to know. Starter was the first part that came to my mind also in terms of impact. Next was the battery. But at the same time I'm sure the MB engineers must have thought everything through before introducing this feature

 

The car has a second battery in the trunk.

 

I think there is only 1 battery in the trunk and nothing in the engine compartment to balance the weight.

I am starting to get used to it. Where I don't like it yet is when I am waiting to turn right at a red light. When you creep forward, it starts and shuts down right away. I just flip to S mode and that turns it off.

 

I noticed when you turn ECO off the tranny will start you rolling from 2nd gear for the traditional smooth takeoff.

When you turn ECO ON and start-stop is in action then the car will start you off in 1st gear. It's actually easier to leap off the line with ECO on.

 

"How the ECO start/stop system works in detail: as a general principle, the engine is switched off every time the vehicle comes to a standstill (auto-stop function. Restarting the engine (auto-starting function) takes place almost imperceptibly; and moving off without any noticeable time lag compared to a stationary vehicle with its engine running. This rapid action is attributable to two special features: a crankshaft Hall sensor which is able to identify the rotational direction of the crankshaft enables the engine control unit to identify the cylinder in which the piston is ideally positioned for starting. The fuel is injected into this cylinder first, thereby speeding up the starting process. An additional electric transmission oil pump supplies the clutches of the automatic transmission with oil pressure prior to starting, so as to enable a swift resumption of the journey after direct starting of the combustion engine via the ECO start/stop function. The starter motor (starter) has also undergone thorough modification: it is now designed to cope with eight times as many starting procedures, ensuring that it will last a car's lifetime in continuous urban driving involving frequent auto-starting. In addition, the on-board electrical system is supported by a second battery."

There is a starter motor as well as a second battery involved in the system.

 

This was discussed in another thread and the starter is used and it's a redesigned starter built for the extra wear and tear. You still need a compression cycle for that 'next' cylinder to fire.

 

The other thread: https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...top-start.html

 

Thanks. Very informative

Its funny how last night I thought there was an issue with the car and was about to return home to take our other car.