After owning way too many beaters back in the day, I totally hear that. The worst feeling just before trying to start the car and getting only -click- is being stopped at a light, engine stalls, light changes to green and the damn thing won't start.

Wouldn't this put a lot of strain on the battery?

My brother in law has a BMW 5-series that is start/stop. It shudders at every light and drives me crazy every time I ride with him. HATE IT.

Do they not give the option to disable it?

TSUAggie said:

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Do they not give the option to disable it?

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I haven't found it yet in the rental. The linked article suggested that at least some do.

91AggieLawyer said:

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Wouldn't this put a lot of strain on the battery?

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Yes. These cars are engineered with more robust (and more expensive) batteries and starters. Think about how much harder the starter has to work - many multiples the number of normal starts.

TSUAggie said:

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Do they not give the option to disable it?

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My 2015 F150 has start/stop. There is a button above the Nav screen that will turn it off, but you have to remember to press it every single time you start the engine. So, if you are running a bunch of errands, and you stop at 4-5 places, that's 4-5 times you have to get back in your car, start it up, and remember to turn the function off.

Personally, I hate the function. The A/C stays on, but it turns the fan down. On 100 degree days, you start to feel it pretty quick. When it just starts to get uncomfortable, it automatically turns back on and the A/C cranks back up. It's obnoxious. Call it millennial whining, but my personal preference is for the engine/AC/radio/etc to just stay on and at the setting I picked.

There are two ways around it, and neither is very appealing. The first is to "lightly" sit on the brake. The auto start/stop won't activate if you don't push the brake all the way down. There is a sweet spot where the truck will stay put, but you're not pressing down on it hard enough to activate the function.

The other option is to pull the dash apart and get it disabled. I don't know **** about how to do it, and I'm not about to pay someone a bunch of money to possibly screw up electrical work inside the dash.

I had a rental (Chevy Malibu) with this feature a few weeks ago. Hated it.

I had an Infiniti Q50 loaner car with the Start/Stop Feature and it scared the crap out of me the first time the engine shut off. The feeling of the brake pedal moving closer to the floor and then the push back on the brake pedal when the engine turns back on was a little unnerving. I finally found the button on the left side of the dash right before I turned it back in but like most cars, you have to push the button every time you get in the car.

The main thing I didn't care for was there was basically a delayed lurch when it had shut off and I was attempting to accelerate again. It would shut off so quickly, like at a stop sign or a right-on-red. I would briefly stop, it would cut off, and then it would delay and lurch when I was trying to go again.

It is extremely annoying and it is a "feature" in most of the rental cars I end up with so I have learned how to turn it off in multiple cars. Sorry I haven't had a Buick so I can't help. There is usually a button somewhere on the dash. If the car has a sport mode that tends to disable it.

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The first is to "lightly" sit on the brake. The auto start/stop won't activate if you don't push the brake all the way down. There is a sweet spot where the truck will stay put, but you're not pressing down on it hard enough to activate the function.

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I have a 2016 F150 3.5L so fortunately I do not have start/stop. However, I have noticed several times sitting at a red light that after a while I notice the truck start to creep forward. I come to a complete stop and sit for a bit and then notice the truck move. When I press down on the brake pedal more it stops. I have never had this problem in the past so I don't know if the brake pedal is more sensitive to foot pressure in this truck versus my old ones. Rather odd occurrence and it freaked me out the first few times it happened.

Had this in a Chevy Cruze rental recently and it drove me nuts. At first, I thought something was wrong with it since it would jolt us forward every time I let me foot off the brake at a stop light.

I googled if there was a way to disable it, but they don't let you at all in that pos. After that experience, I will definitely be considering that when I purchase a new car. I'm sure most will have the feature by that point, but I'll only look at ones that give you the option to disable it.

My mom's jaguar has it, but it is very smooth & hardly noticeable. I've tried beating it to acceleration before the engine starts, but to no avail.

That being said, I still don't like it.

I'm planning to wire up my own "button pusher" over the Start/Stop button. It will be connected to the ignition relay and will therefore receive power when you start the truck, wait a predefined number of seconds, then automatically push the button for you.

Easily removable for visits to the dealer.

Had a Buick Lacrosse as a courtesy vehicle that did this. Also took me a while to realize what was going on. It started making me car sick at lights cause I expected it to roll after I let off the brake and then there was that lag time. Hated it.

Also, screw that shifter. First time I "backed it up" I was actually in Neutral and wondering why the backup camera didn't come on.

It's pretty common. Every vehicle I've driven with it had an override button. Some have to be overridden every time you drive the car, and some will stay off until you push the button again no matter how times you drive the car.

I haven't ridden with anyone that doesn't override it though.

Some vehicles can override the stop function by slightly turning the steering wheel when it kicks the engine off. As others have said - I hate it. Remembering to push the disconnect button every time you crank the engine is a royal PIA.

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just get a manual car.

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Several years ago in Italy I rented a manual turbo diesel Mini. It had the auto start stop feature and would re-start the engine as soon as you pressed down on the clutch. As if driving in Italy wasn't unnerving enough, I had to figure out that goofy system.

Does having the AC on disable it?

robertf03 said:

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Does having the AC on disable it?

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Nope stayed on in mine at least.

I had it in a rental in the UK years ago and did not like it, but I had to ask myself WHY I didn't like it. I couldn't really think of a good reason other than it's just not what I was used to, it really had no impact on my ability to drive. I do wonder about wear and tear on starter, I was of the belief growing up (Im mid-40's) that it was actually preferable to keep car running rather than subject to multiple start/stops. But that's probably old antiquated thinking and I'm sure it can be engineered to reliably work. It makes sense as far as saving fuel, and as long as the A/C is able to keep running I see no reason why I should have a legit complaint.

All that said, I still don't like it and probably never will. Other things I totally get why they are happening but can't force myself to want: electric motors, self drive cars

DannyDuberstein said:

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I had a rental (Chevy Malibu) with this feature a few weeks ago. Hated it.

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I wish I could give this more stars. Same here.

I had start/stop on a Renault Espace in Europe a couple of years ago. It took some getting used to. That was my first experience.

My current SUV has it and I'm not sure how I feel about it. It's slightly annoying at times, especially in stop & go traffic. I also can't floor it when the light turns green. I have to lift off the brake and wait for the engine to turn over before pressing the accelerator. That took some adjustment because I have a serious lead foot.

I don't mind it too much and don't know how much fuel it saves me. But, I wouldn't add the option if given the choice.

Can it be turned off permanently with software, such as the HP tuning suite?

Token said:

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just get a manual car.

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Manual fusion in the U.K. Had the same feature. Restarted when you clutched in. Was a diesel too. Can't believe how much pressure that puts on the starter system.