UK-POLOS.NET - THE VW Polo Forum

Hi all

Been a while, I hate the stop start system, obviously I can switch Stop start off every time I start the car or change driver mode...which I do. Obviously the cars system is Auto start stop ON by default on start up.

Following research it seems this system is never going to save enough fuel to save the kind of money to pay for the additional wear & tear on my starter motor or engine. It is clear the system is only there to get VW fleet emissions numbers down with no thought to the vehicle user. I actually wouldn't mind quite as much if the system was not as intrusive as this one is. I would go as far to say its dangerously intrusive. Too eager to shut the engine down sometimes before the car has even stopped.

I really want to know if there is a permanent way of making the car Auto stop start default to OFF yet, in the old days I would simply reverse the on off switch wires but this switch is electronic so no wires to switch.

I have a Carista and I'm able to disable start-stop. You can purchase one for about £30. You are also able to change various other things which may tickle your fancy.

Think there is a thread about here somewhere in depth.

You can also do it with OBDEleven as well, it's not actually possible to switch it off, you have to set the parameters for it to a condition it can never be in, ie you set the minimum voltage for Stop\Start to activate to something it will never be, thus it never kicks in. I currently have it set in my Leon (and will be changing it back today as I get it ready to be swapped for my Polo next week). In the Leon you do get a small icon on the screen between the dials (same place it shows what gear the DSG is in) when stationary showing Stop\Start is unavailable, no idea how it shows on a Polo with LCD dash.

Yeah the same as the polo to 'disable'.

The icon is also the same, top right of the screen. The logo with a line through it.

Muscle memory.
1.Turn on car
2 Push button.

peeceeuk wrote: ↑Sat Jun 08, 2019 10:01 am Muscle memory.
1.Turn on car
2 Push button.

This is what I do. It becomes second nature very quickly. I usually only activate stop start if I’m in a queue of cars at traffic lights and the lights have just turned red, so there’s a fair chance I’ll be waiting a while before moving off. Once I’ve cleared the traffic lights, stop start gets switched off again.

I find it amusing that VW thankfully removed the necessity of fiddling with the wiper stalk to adjust the wipers when cleaning a windscreen on the older 6c Polo but frustrate us now with start stop systems... It must be an inside joke with VW staff who knows.

I personally hate it and disable it whenever I remember to do so.

SRGTD wrote: ↑Sat Jun 08, 2019 11:02 am

peeceeuk wrote: ↑Sat Jun 08, 2019 10:01 am Muscle memory.
1.Turn on car
2 Push button.

This is what I do. It becomes second nature very quickly. I usually only activate stop start if I’m in a queue of cars at traffic lights and the lights have just turned red, so there’s a fair chance I’ll be waiting a while before moving off. Once I’ve cleared the traffic lights, stop start gets switched off again.

Becomes second nature.
I've got push button start and the two are right next to each other.

I have become use to it.

I just think the start/stop engages too early sometimes when coming to a halt.

It did on an SE I had as a loan.
Not actually encountered it on my GTI.
I might never have had it trigger at a junction as I do turn it off all of the time.
I did forget a few times when I first got the car but never had the same experience as the SE loaner.

My biggest "crib" with the stop/start is that on my wife's Jan 2019 basic 1.0 Litre (petrol) is that it will operate with a stone cold engine, as long as the ambient is, I think, > 4C then even if you drive a few hundred yards, the engine will cut out even though it clearly states in the users manual that one of the criteria is that the engine must have reached a minimum operating temperature. This is crazy IMO and can't help emissions, fuel economy or engine longevity not to mention the interior staying frozen on short runs.
My wife just inhibits it when she starts the engine, I use it selectively once the engine is up to temperature.
There is also a 2018 diesel golf in the family which does have to reach normal engine temperature before the stop/start is armed.
I have contacted VW about this but have got no meaningful answers

Start/stop on my Polo probably works the best of any car I've owned, so much so that I haven't been tempted to switch it off.
Switching off the front radar is something I do most journeys though, that's become a 'muscle memory' function for me.
Three pushes of buttons on the RH side of the steering wheel.

Andy Beats wrote: ↑Mon Jun 10, 2019 11:50 am Start/stop on my Polo probably works the best of any car I've owned, so much so that I haven't been tempted to switch it off.
Switching off the front radar is something I do most journeys though, that's become a 'muscle memory' function for me.
Three pushes of buttons on the RH side of the steering wheel.

It's the stop-start tweaks I can't stand. If I have my foot on the brake, I'm telling the car that I want to stay still, yet the car in front bunches up 3 feet in static traffic and the engine fires up again so I end up moving as the engine has fired up, but wouldn't have otherwise. I'd have waited until traffic is properly moving again. The system cutting the engine before I've come to a complete stop also annoys.

Agree there, the S/S cutting in before the car actually stops is quite annoying.

Andy Beats wrote: ↑Mon Jun 10, 2019 2:49 pm Agree there, the S/S cutting in before the car actually stops is quite annoying.

I think that the other issue of car firing up when the car shuffles up will only happen if you have ACC or perhaps front parking sensors - one of those systems must be measuring the gap between you and the car opening up.