I understand why the cars have the eco mode but to me it's somewhat poorly implemented. It's pretty coarse in its operation across both the F Type and my XJ. I tend to turn it off most of the time.

 

I don't know what you mean by "coarse." It works exactly the same as on a previous BMW, on my wife's '15 MB, and on my '15 Jeep Cherokee. I suppose there will always be some inherent "coarseness" in starting and stopping an engine.

 

I am curious to know how our opinions on eco mode relate to the engine we have.
The V8 auto start stop is not smooth, and causes emotional pain when the v8 stops growling.
I've also had the engine die on me, and I know it's happened to other folks as well. Again, I'm curious if this is a 'v8 only' issue.

 

Not sure what you're saying here... I have the v8 and usually leave ECO mode on. I haven't noticed any lack of smoothness in the auto-stop-start system. When the motor shuts off it does so quickly and doesn't jutter or anything. Likewise when starting back up, it does so immediately and seamlessly. I've never had it not restart properly when lifting up on the brake. But then again I've only had the car since early May '15.

I know the ECO mode is annoying for many who aren't familiar with the auto-stop-start technology. But I'm used to this behavior as I've had this feature in my BMW for the last 3 years. I am pretty comfortable with it and don't even notice it happening most of the time. I actually notice more when I'm driving vehicles that don't have it. Makes me feel like I'm wasting fuel.

 

Well said!

 

I have this tech in our Mercedes, and I disagree, which doesn't prove anything. I am one guy, you are one guy (iirc).
What I am wondering, is if people are more likely to hate eco mode if they have the v8.

 

Has anyone seen this when in ECO engine shutdown? The volume is automatically limited to about 3/4 strength and an icon appears to show you why...

 

Page 127 sub-chapter 2.7 note 23: take single finger( see diagram 47 ) place very carefully on eco button ( see diagram 48 ) and push (see diagram 49 ) and drive without eco mode. Unfortunetly this will cost you 1.25 seconds of your life, can't be helped.

 

It took me 3 seconds of my life to read your post, but it was worth it for the chuckle

 

LMAO bjg625! Yes I've never understood all the complaints since its can be easily turned off. People should be glad we at least have that technology available to use or not use.

 

I initially turned it off most of the time but now that I understand its patterns, I can get it to do what I want pretty easily.[/QUOTE]

I'm using it more now after 6-months than I did when I got it. It is proven to save a bit of gas, I have the dual batteries, it works, why not?

I do turn it off (by habit now!), don't use it in stop-and-go / slow traffic jams but on suburban stretches with lots of traffic lights, why not? I regularly do 50-90 miles runs for work/pleasure and while mostly highway, I'll use ECO at the beginning and the end of the trip (or just leave it on the whole time).

For running errands locally with a lot of on/off short-distance I tend not to use it to maximize the opportunity to charge the batteries.

 

Has anyone tested the fuel savings with auto start/stop on vs off? I live in SF, and the auto start stop is terrible in stop and go traffic. I often have it off and if I do stop at a red light I sometimes turn it on. I personally wish the auto start/stop button was on the steering wheel, so it would be easy to turn on and off depending on the particular traffic situation you are in.

Also do you guys know if the Active Sports Exhaust uses more fuel? I assume that the back fire that you hear with it switched on is from more fuel being used. But the dealer told me it does not affect fuel consumption. Thanks!

 

Sport Mode, and possibly Dynamic will use more fuel, but just active exhaust only opens valves in the exhaust and should make no changes in the fuel economy, EXCEPT for the fact that with Active Exhaust on, most people rev a little higher to hear the wonderful soundtrack, therefore using more fuel.

Driving style being identical, active exhaust should make no change in fuel economy.

 

Yes, it's been tested by every manufacturer for years now. No manufacturer just implements a system on a whim, that increases their costs without extensive cost/benefit analyses. That's why virtually manufacturer has adopted it. It provides a significant benefit in terms of compliance with mandatory US, EU, and other national corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) requirements. Without it, we'd all be driving tiny econoboxes. With it, there are still high performance cars available, at least for a few more years, until the ever-tightening CAFE requirements legislate them out of the fleet.

I couldn't disagree more with your statement that, "it's terrible in stop and go traffic." Metro Washington DC is always somewhere on the top-3 list for worst traffic in the US, we use it all the time on our 3 cars, and it works flawlessly, unless there is something wrong with the car.

What's shocking is that they are currently allowed to install an on-off button and multiple other ways to defeat it. That's likely to change very soon.

 

I never said it didn't work flawlessly. However I personally don't like the fact that in stop and go traffic the engine starts and stops numerous time while the car moves several feet. Personally I just get the feeling that having the engine start and stop that many times in the course of stop and go traffic can't be good for the life of the engine. I personally don't care since I lease all my cars and I get a new one every 30 months or so. But good for you foosh that you enjoy the start and stop and guess what? Good for me for not liking it. Agree to disagree. Btw I already read the thread and I saw that you like it. No need to reiterate it again. Was I challenging your opinion? Not at all. Cheers!

 

My memory is that when it starts back up, it won't shut down again until you exceed 5MPH and then come to a stop. So for extreme stop-and-go where you're creeping along, it isn't so bad.


But I typically put the car in Dynamic when I start it, so I haven't used ECO much lately.

 

I hunted for it as soon as I set foot in the XF loaner yesterday and found the off button but Foosh is right, soon you won't be able to defeat it, CAFE #'s and all.

 

I like my opinions challenged so no worries there. My point was, yes, it has been extensively tested, which was a direct answer to your original question.

If you don't like it now, with an easy on-off button, then you really aren't going to like what's coming down the road in the near future. Be thankful for what you've got.

Cheers!

 

The big impact is on the starter, and when I did my investgation into this when I first got the stop-start system on my BMW, I found that they usually install an extra heavy duty starter that is designed for this kind of abuse. I also learned that from a fuel economy perspective, on average, as long as the car is off for at least 4 seconds each time (vs idle) that you will see a small fuel savings... the longer it is off the more savings you see.

 

I wonder why Dynamic Mode on the AT turns off the ECO, but not on the MT. Maybe a torque converter stall speed issue?