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      04-15-2011, 04:44 PM   #1
xxx333
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Exclamation Start/Stop Function

I had X3 20D Automatic Transmission, drive almost 1800 km, start stop function is not working properly.Sometimes It is working properly , sometimes not. Once in a BMW service . Service reset the log files. but problem still exists.Does anyone has the same problem?
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      04-16-2011, 12:27 AM   #2
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Originally Posted by xxx333 View Post
I had X3 20D Automatic Transmission, drive almost 1800 km, start stop function is not working properly.Sometimes It is working properly , sometimes not. Once in a BMW service . Service reset the log files. but problem still exists.Does anyone has the same problem?
it works properly but in smarter ways. The system detects the battery level or the outside temp. Below 3c or with a low level of battery the system does not work.
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      04-16-2011, 02:55 AM   #3
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I'm not convinced mine is working properly either. It's intermittent and it's nothing to do with charge because the engine will be running for 30 minutes, stop start will kick in once for 10 seconds and then a mile later it won't. It's probably software "deciding" when it should stop the engine and getting it all wrong. Outside temp never less than 10C
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      04-16-2011, 09:26 AM   #4
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So, is the feature anoying? Are you seeing a fuel savings? If so by how much?
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      04-16-2011, 01:04 PM   #5
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Outside temp usually 15 c. seatbelt fastened. hood locked. A/c is off. no extra load on battery. even the screen of proffesional radio is switched off.
we have also another x3 20 d bought on the same day. almost all conditions are same (driven 1600 km) and Its' Start/Stop functioning properly .
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      04-16-2011, 01:12 PM   #6
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as far as I know, system not only detects the battery level or the outside temp, but also hood position (open/closed), seatbelt(fastened or not) a/c of or on ( inside temperature) and engine temperature, poistin of the steering wheel.
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      07-04-2011, 01:46 AM   #7
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Just wondering, how loud is it when the engine stops. Mine seems to be just as loud as when it starts up again. Is this normal?

thanks
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      07-04-2011, 03:25 AM   #8
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If you are drawing a decent amount of power e.g. Lights, A/C, Radio, Heated Seats, 12V Power Socket in use then the Stop Start Function will not activate.
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      07-04-2011, 03:29 AM   #9
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Trying to second guess how it works is pointless. My 20d stop/starts once the engine has been running for a few mins at most junctions. Sometimes it doesn't stop, and I think the manual tells the story here, in that it says it won't do it in 'stop/start traffic'. Quite what constitutes that I don't know, but it doesn't do the stop/start thing when it deems you are in queueing traffic that keeps moving forward in short bursts.

Also, it doesn't do it if the A/C is working hard, plus you can tell the car not to do it at a particular junction by pressing hard on the brake once you've stopped. I think sometimes it thinks you've done that when you didn't actually intend to.

It seems stop/start is mostly there to get the published fuel economy figures down, and actually it is a bit annoying in real life. It just stops you wasting fuel at some junctions when stationary, but as a percentage of the whole journey, I think the fuel savings are very minimal.

Didn't really understand Tsambi's comment, it should be silent when the engine is off!
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      07-04-2011, 04:01 AM   #10
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I was told if steering wheel is not straight wont work. Re my other comment when the engine switches off does it do it quite silently when it goes to sleep or is it quite noisy upon shut down . i know when it is off its silent but i thought when the actual stop happens your not suppose to hear some form of motor noise kicking in to activate the stop. does this make sense?
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      07-04-2011, 04:28 AM   #11
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Mine stops silently, just as if it had stalled. The auto-restart is just like a normal start in terms of noise.

The bit about the steering wheel is not quite right. It won't activate if the steering wheel is on full lock, I guess because it thinks you might be doing a complicated or tight manoeuvre so would need the power steering to be active. The manual is quite detailed on all this.

It is quite disconcerting that the steering goes extra heavy when the engine is off. In fact you can bring the engine back on by tugging on the steering wheel, as the car thinks you need the power steering back.
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      07-04-2011, 07:36 AM   #12
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I hope Stop/Start doesn't catch on!
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      07-04-2011, 09:13 AM   #13
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This sounds though no where near as bad as a colleague's stop/start function in their VW. simply leaving your foot on the brake activates it. I travelled with him on a 10 mile journey and it drove me totally nuts with the engine cutting out every single time the car came to a halt.

Better not to always kick in than do it the whole time.

Ps the function is fine with the manual gearbox. You can dictate very easily whether to activate it or not and it never gets in the way.
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      07-04-2011, 10:00 AM   #14
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I am sooooo glad we don't have this ridiculous "feature" in the U.S. yet. This is a perfect example of doing something purely for marketing hype and to appease the current quasi-religious "green" mentality.

Even if the function worked perfectly, and no one was experiencing any of the problems or quirks described here, it is a stupid and highly expensive (to the owner) system. The majority of wear and tear to the engine and related components occurs when it is started. This is a well known fact since the introduction of the internal combustion engine... ask any pro or shade-tree mechanic. So, let's stop and start the engine as frequently as possible.... genius!! I'm going to be curious to see how many X3's need a new starter and battery the day after the warranty runs out... and then every couple of years thereafter. You can burn a LOT of petrol at stop lights for what that will cost.

*The preceeding was the sole opinion of the poster, and does not reflect the views of the forum management, its sponsors, or anyone who disagrees.
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      07-04-2011, 12:13 PM   #15
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So apart from the fact it's completely unpredictable, often kicking in when it shouldn't, and then not kicking it when it should, and it increases wear and tear on the car and can be annoying in traffic, it's a good feature

I still like the silence at the lights when there is a long wait and my engine has stopped. All around me are wasting fuel. Sure their engines might last longer than mine but I don't care right at that moment
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      07-04-2011, 12:15 PM   #16
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It's a totally annoying feature. Also think it's not very good for the engine - oil pressure and all. And it certainly isn't "green" either, with the typically incomplete combustion of the first few revs.

I remember when the start-stop thing first appeared I had a rental car with it, and once during a tight u-turn I killed the engine three times because the system killed the engine every time I pressed the clutch to go from first into reverse (or vice versa) and I automatically hit the start button, by which time the electronic had figured out what I was doing and had started the engine again, but the lag in the system led to a kill - start - kill reaction three times till the whole dashboard lit up red and said "engine failure" or something. And I was standing with the car across the street looking like an idiot, unable to get that car going.

Same half-baked crap system as with the first electric handbreaks that had the car roll back a few centimeters before biting. Remember a scary situation in an extra tight Italian underground garage, also a rental car.

No nanny systems for me!!
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      07-04-2011, 05:25 PM   #17
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Does anyone know if there is a fuse that can be taken out to deactivate?
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      07-04-2011, 06:20 PM   #18
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It'll be software operated, you need a patch, or push the button to turn it off each time you start the car.
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      07-04-2011, 07:03 PM   #19
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I guess this 'feature' really gives away any advantage at the green light drag race, eh? By the time your engine restarts, the other guy is 300 feet down the road.
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      07-04-2011, 10:50 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LEDZEP View Post
Even if the function worked perfectly, and no one was experiencing any of the problems or quirks described here, it is a stupid and highly expensive (to the owner) system. The majority of wear and tear to the engine and related components occurs when it is started.
That's definitely true on a cold start, because there isn't always a proper film of oil on key parts for lubrication purposes. On a warm start (and by warm I mean soon after the engine was shutoff) it's much less of an issue. I would hope that BMW, and all those hybrids that do frequent stop/start, have worked out some sort of system to minimize any issues.

As for other components, the starter and solenoid are likely the hardest hit, though I can imagine AC compressors and any other pumps may have some lube issues on a cold start.
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      10-15-2011, 07:22 AM   #21
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I feel as though I am giving a 'Lotus' anaswer; In the last 2 weeks of my F25 ownership the auto start/stop has bugged met too, sometime on, somtimes off. Well my bed time reading has been the thick owners manual and I spotted one night something about 'auto start/stop depends on brake pressure'. Today I found a quiet road and worked it all out; it works well and is cleverley deisgned - if you know how to use it.

Breaking to a Stop and require enginer to stop: if you apply braking pedel pressure and maintainor increase that pressure up to a stop the engine will cut out.

Breaking to a stop but you dont want engine to cut out: break to the stop position but just ease off the break pressure before the F25 actually stops. This will keep the engine running whilst you are stationary.

To restarting engine after it stops but before you move away just ease off the break pedal pressure slightly and the enginer starts!

Give it a try, and once mastered this feature is just fine. It needs driver input to decide if your stationary postion will be long enough to warrant stopping the engine and, you control the start/stop via the brake pedal pressure.
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      10-15-2011, 08:53 AM   #22
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But.....any decent driver will ease off the brake pedal before stopping otherwise you end up with a harsh stop, rather like American movies where cars almost invariably screech to a halt. Best is to use the on/off button methinks.
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