Dude, start stop has been around since the early 2010s and there is not a pandemic of starter failures, and no more than usual battery failures. The amount of energy it takes to start a warm engine isn't that much. Your seat heaters and defroster are more of a load on the alternator.
On a modern VW (or modern car in general) the start/stop system should be the least of your concerns. Seriously, there's a lot of other stuff that is likely to go wrong way before you'd have to worry about that. If you don't like the feeling of the stop/start that's fine, just say that. The reliability aspect is almost laughable in comparison to the VGT, dozens of computer modules, digital gauge cluster... If you or anyone else can point to examples of mass starter motor failures because of ESS I'll change my mind, but despite people saying for years that it'll put extra wear on the starters, I have seen maybe one example of that ever happening? Compared to things like the Ford DCT issues, or the EA888 chain, or water pump issues, it's just noise.
I think VW has the best implementation of ESS I've seen yet. And the implementation on the 1.0TSI/DSG combo in the T-Cross in Europe was even better. The engine would shut down when braking to a stop from about 5mph, but would restart instantly if you took your foot off the brake. By the time you were back on then gas it was ready to go, I was incredibly impressed with it. The version on the 1.5 in the Taos is less seamless and fast but still heads and shoulders above every other manufacturer I've experienced. It's still fast enough that by the time I go from the brake to the gas it's ready to go, can't say I've ever wished it was faster.Video are good. And I can't say i don't agree. But my real life experience that because of this constant starting maximize the wear of engine mounts. I just spent $1.5K to change those on my other can which has 70K miles on it.
So doing the math if we assume that the price for gas would be around $4 per gal.
12gals per week * 5years (which is around 70K miles) * 10% = ~$1300 savings
And I admit I hate the feeling and also the delay to start up when the light is already green
Well, I guess I am just hitting gas faster than you
I have found that even with it the engine off you must hit the start stop button to shut it off. I usually hit the button to stop the auto on off but then I live in the middle of nowhere where stop signs are everywhere. No reason for the car to cut off for a 2 second stop at a stop sign.
Why would it go south? Its a discussion between adults exchanging ideas and information. I personally do not like it, nor find it beneficial. If you like it, great. That's all that matters. Same with sunroofs....
Worth noting that how hard you are pushing the brake pedal affects the ESS. If you are only lightly holding it when you come to a stop it will likely not shut down, but if you then push and hold it down more firmly it will. You can also prompt the engine to restart by lifting your foot on the brake slightly as if you were going to take your foot off the brake completely Experiment with it a bit and you'll quickly learn how to use it seamlessly. Also, unrelated, I'm so tired of stop signs and stop lights in stupid places. Why can't we use roundabouts and right-of-way like Europe does which is so much more efficient.
When a traffic jam is three cars waiting for a cow to cross the road roundabouts or traffic circles tend to be overkill. I tend to use a very light braking style and the car shuts off and then immediately restarts 90% of the time. I dont sit idle enough to worry about letting it shut down so I push the button. Now if I drive to Atlanta I turn it back on as more time is spent sitting stopped waiting for the air to move the right way so traffic can start moving again.
Have you noticed any problems with the 215 winter tires instead of the 225 all season tires?
What's the point of having a nice leather wrapped steering wheel if you put a $15 walmart steering wheel cover on it
There isn't one of these threads going already that I can find so here's a thread about what changes/mods/fixes you've made to your Taos recently.
I haven't done it yet but I just ordered the hitch and wiring kit from Amazon, I have a box with new JVC speakers for the doors sitting in my closet, and also just ordered some CrossClimate2s in 215/55/R18 from BJs to replace the winters. Got a lot of stuff to do once the weather gets nicer.
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I have painted my calipers, put a lift and all terrain tires on mine
