Kia drivers

[Bob Wright]

I'm driving a KIA Soul (Still think it ought to be Seoul) and its got this feature. Its a rental, so no owner's manual.

There is at times the letter "A" in a circle illuminated on the instrument panel. There is a buttn to cancel this feature. When activated, when I come to a stop at a traffic ligh of stop sign, the indicater lights up and the tachometer drops to zero rpm. If I release pressure on the brake pedal the vehicle sort of jolts and the tach boes up to 800 rpm or so.

So, what's going on? I assume its some sort of fuel saving feature?


Bob Wright

 

[Wyandot Jim]

yep

 

[Mike J]

It is auto start, auto stop. When the brake pedal is pressed long enough or hard enough the engine shuts down. When it is released it restarts. My 2016 F-150 has this feature. It really kind of freaked me out at first. I barely even notice now.

 

[DeletedMember275]

Yes, it shuts the engine off when you stop, and restarts it when you release the brake to resume driving. That's the only way that new cars can hope to reach the somehwat optimistic mileage figures that the manufacturers post. Your Kia should have a button near the gear lever to turn off (until the next time the vehicle is started) this feature. I find it very annoying, personally. If there were a way to permanently turn it off, I would.

 

[hittman]

Yep. Auto Stop/Start Feature.
Many products don’t come with a printed owners manual these days.
My Harley didn’t either.
You can look up what you need on line.
https://owners.kia.com/us/en/manuals.html

 

[NC FNS]

The gov’t set average fuel efficiency standards for the manufacturers to meet that get more stringent each year. Since it’s not safe to make cars out of balsa wood, they have to use things like auto start/stop, cylinder deactivation, etc to meet these standards, or limit their sales to small vehicles.
If I recall correctly, the standards originally went up to 55 mpg at one point, then were reduced a few years ago, then were reinstated more recently.

 

[Captain America]

Start stop is surprising if you’ve never encountered it and annoying when you first start using it. I get a demo at work so I’ve driven countless cars with it and I’ve done lots of testing. Long story short, it saves about 2-3 mpg for me and that means it works pretty well. When you understand how it works you can use it how you want to. The ABS module is always monitoring brake pressure so that system is used to activate the start feature, with a little use you’ll learn how to start the car with your brake foot whenever you want to prepare a little for a green light. My wife hated it at first(as did I) but she uses it well now. We‘ve had this system for almost ten years now and have yet to replace a starter, we’ve replaced some start/stop batteries and a couple of battery sensors but otherwise the system is trouble free and effective…but a little odd.

 

[Cholo]

...we’ve replaced some start/stop batteries and a couple of battery sensors but otherwise the system is trouble free and effective…but a little odd.

Those service issues paid for your gas mileage savings, right?

 

[jimbo1096]

2018 Malibu has it and I find it very annoying. I think it’s the only year Malibu that they did not make a bypass function so you don’t have to use it. The most annoying thing is when you’re at a long stoplight in the middle of the summer where it’s close to 100° outside the air conditioner doesn’t work.

 

[Captain America]

Those service issues paid for your gas mileage savings, right?

If you do the math, depending on the car, the system will save the average consumer about $150 a year in fuel costs. So it absolutely saves you enough money to cover any problems you might encounter after the 5 year initial warranty period is over.

 

[Dan in MI]

To expand slightly. The battery and starter are heavier duty in a stop start application. Also, this may be brand specific, not cook the passengers in high outdoor temps. I don’t remember the specifics but it should account for that and start up to run the a/c at a certain point. Although I do remember it taking longer than I would have liked.

 

[Cholo]

If you do the math, depending on the car, the system will save the average consumer about $150 a year in fuel costs. So it absolutely saves you enough money to cover any problems you might encounter after the 5 year initial warranty period is over.

My car has it and I override it every time I remember to. It beats having car problems just to save a measly $150 per year.

 

[Kevin]

We had a Jeep Wrangler with the start stop, it was actually sort of rough, so we turned it off.

But my BMW has it, and I don’t even notice it anymore. Very smooth.

 

[Busterswoodshop]

I would think by starting and stopping your engine every time you come to a stop , would not be good for the engine.
When you think about it , on a long haul across town , you might stop and start your engine 50 times or more , and that is just one trip .
I also believe the wear and tear on the engine would cost more in the long run than any gas you would save.
Just a thought , I am not a mechanic.

 

[WAYNO]

A couple years ago, I had a loaner car, a Chevrolet product, with this auto stop/start feature. Didn't like it, didn't trust it, thought about the extra wear and tear on the electrical and starting system, and even worried about the constant restarting with minimal oil on the bearing surfaces. Wasn't my car, so it wasn't my concern. I would not want this feature on my own vehicle. If it's pushed on us, and if it had an opt-out control, I would be opted out. :)

 

[Papalote]

We have it on our Honda. I turn it off when I get in heavy start and stop traffic.

 

[woodsy]

A piece of advice: a TIKTOK "thing" on the web shows people how to get into and steal Kia's and Hyundai's without a key. If yours is one of the affected models, get yourself a steering wheel lock.

 

[Duke22]

I would never own a Kia vehicle. To me the letters POW, MIA, and KIA mean something quite different, and solemn.

 

[Hvymax]

I would never own a Kia vehicle. To me the letters POW, MIA, and KIA mean something quite different, and solemn.

They had to change the name of the Chevy NoVa for the Spanish market.

 

[GypsmJim]

Yep. Auto Stop/Start Feature.
Many products don’t come with a printed owners manual these days.
My Harley didn’t either.
You can look up what you need on line.
https://owners.kia.com/us/en/manuals.html

I bought new cars in 2015, 2017, 2018 and this week a 2023. ALL had manuals. All were Ford or GM. If you buy a Kia and don't get a manual, you got what you deserved.

 

[GypsmJim]

I would never own a Kia vehicle. To me the letters POW, MIA, and KIA mean something quite different, and solemn.

God bless you.

 

[GypsmJim]

Yes, it shuts the engine off when you stop, and restarts it when you release the brake to resume driving. That's the only way that new cars can hope to reach the somehwat optimistic mileage figures that the manufacturers post. Your Kia should have a button near the gear lever to turn off (until the next time the vehicle is started) this feature. I find it very annoying, personally. If there were a way to permanently turn it off, I would.

It CAN be shut off. Read the manual or google it on u-tube.

So, at a stop sign it shuts off and saves 0.000001 gallons of gas and reduces pollution by 0.000000%.

Read the manual again. If your touchy gets cold easy you can remotely start it and turn on the heater and the car will run for Fifteen Freaking Minutes until you finish your morning coffee.

Our govmt rules are written by morons....

 

[vito]

I have this feature on my two newest cars, a 2016 Dodge Durango and a 2022 Mini Cooper. The response to taking your foot off the brake and/or stepping on the accelerator pedal is virtually instantaneous. The only time I press the button to disable this feature is if I am sitting and waiting for traffic to pass so that I can make a left turn across the road. In that case I want to avoid the very momentary hesitation so that I can make the turn as safely as possible. I don't find it a big deal either way. I will admit that when I first got the Durango it was a bit disconcerting to stop at a traffic light and have the car suddenly become totally quiet (unless I had the radio on). Now I am so used to it that I never even think about it.

 

[Uncle Grinch]

I buddy of mine has this on his new F150. After purchasing the truck, he stoped after getting off the interstate and the truck “quit” running. He was not aware of the auto stop/start feature and had to call the dealership to learn about it.

 

[althor]

2018 Malibu has it and I find it very annoying. I think it’s the only year Malibu that they did not make a bypass function so you don’t have to use it. The most annoying thing is when you’re at a long stoplight in the middle of the summer where it’s close to 100° outside the air conditioner doesn’t work.

I had a Malibu for a rental in Phoenix. The 'feature' drove me nuts. I pulled over to look for a solution on the internet, and ended up switching to manual shift mode and setting it to the highest gear. After that it shifted like normal and it wouldn't shut off in manual shift mode.