How to make auto stop last longer?

I have 2022 tundra/no hybrid with the auto stop/start. Some times it last a minute, some times 15 seconds then says something like charging battery. Is there a way to make the stop last longer? i.e. solar panel, bigger battery or parallel batteries. Any ideas? Most people hate it, saves me gas!

 

I actually don't mind this auto stop feature. It's very smooth and only kicks in when I smash the brake pedal.

Why I don't mind this feature? But cause my "modern" Tundra gets 10mpg in the city.. Worse than my 10 year old ram with v8 hemi!

I always thought that it's bad for your truck engine or starter but according to the Car Care Nut, modern vehicles with this feature are designed for it, for something like 10 years of start stop at every stop sign... So not an issue of I only use it at long traffic lights.

But to answer your question... Not really, get a hybrid!!!

You can probably get truck to stop engine more frequently if you don't use AC, or any fan, and just try to reduce load on the battery in general.

 

Most I ever get is 90s. That is if it is warm. There should be enough battery capacity to last thru a long city light at least.

 

You can extend it in the settings menu from the steering wheel… there are two settings for Auto Start/Stop…

 

Here you go!

https://youtu.be/TTBN8Ic57Gg?si=1EQ7vfRNCA_qR-o2

 

What trim level do you have and do you happen to have the Toyota dash cam or any other aftermarket accessories.
Does the truck sit in an area with poor cell reception?
Do you drive every day for a longer period of time or does the truck tend to sit a lot.

Full diagnostics requires a scan tool that can talk with the stop and start system. One condition I know is that there will be a restart for battery charging (power management) if the voltage reaches 11.8V

Some things you can try is to check the voltage of the battery after the truck sat overnight and when you first key on the truck before starting. You can also try trickle charging the battery if its going to sit a while. (But you probably need a 2amp+ maintainer to overcome some of the parasitic draw)

If you have the Toyota dash cam, you can try disabling parking mode for a while and see if the battery maintains a good state of charge. I found that the camera seems to use a lot of power while in parking mode still.

In my option the performance of the factory EFB is a little lack luster for the higher trims that have a lot of electrical goodies. The factory EFB is not "Maintenance free" and the water level does need to be checked per the owners manual.

You could attempt to replace the factory EFB with a similar AGM battery (Size LN4/H7/94R) and see if you have better performance with the AGM battery. When swapping battery be careful of a few things.

1) The integrated current sensor bracket on the negative terminal is very delicate, only loosen the bolt enough to free the clamp and do not over torque it
2) Be careful handing the battery its in a very awkward spot, when using the fuse case/cover to rest it while moving into place be careful not to crack or damage the fuse case near the battery.

However for best effect its recommended by Toyota tech docs, to reset the integrated current sensor value when changing/recharging the battery and that requires a scan tool that can do special functions with the stop and start computer.

 

Either something is wrong or you’re driving perhaps if you’re only getting 10mpg. IF I keep my foot out of it, I get 17-20 driving in the city.

 

Yes, maybe something is wrong since I'm getting such low milage...

But I'm not sure how to diagnose... Dealer will laugh me out of I tell them I'm getting low mpg in the city while driving a truck.

I've already been to the dealer like 20-30 visits for all sorts of other bs issues, wind noises, diff howling, bed rattling, etc etc... So they know that supposedly I'm a complainer.

And on the highway, it is getting 20mpg if I'm driving 55mph... Which I never do.

 

Kap1--Thanks for posting this video. I had misgivings with my first vehicle that had Start/Stop feature, concerned about that myriad of things that I thought (in my ignorance) were going to be potential failure points. Someone explained the feature of the timing of the stop such that one of the cylinders was "in primed position" to fire immediately upon restart, thus reducing the load on starter, battery, etc. With that understanding, I was able to "accept" the Start/Stop Feature. Glad to see that information portrayed in this video and have it reconfirm my previous acceptance of this process.

 

I get 17.7 in city and I keep the truck in sport mode. The Auto Start Stop is for lowering emissions. Not for improving gas mileage. The Car Care Nut states this. Also the starter is preprogrammed with X amount of lifetime starts then it disables itself, per the video. The hybrid in the Tundra is designed for increasing power not mileage.

 

I find it hard to believe the starter disables itself. You go hunting 100 miles from nowhere in the mountains and you can't start your truck because it hit x amount of starts? What I've read is it will throw a code. On the other hand, it was stated somewhere in this forum that the number of starts was north of 300k. If that's true, most of us will never have to worry about it.

 

I find it plausible that the starter disables itself since I had a carbon monoxide sensor that disabled itself after ten years. I have a water filter in my fridge with a chip. Fridge "throws a Code" after six months and can't be reset. Even though I have a second home and filter may have been used for just one month. I recently purchased a GFCI outlet. After installing it I read the instructions and it stated that it disables itself after a set time. I returned the GFCI and purchased a different vendors model I cut the chip out of a used filter and tape it to the identical filter which doesn't have a chip so it cost less than have of the chipped filter. Still have the warning on the door but at half the price.. Your mileage may vary.

 

It it true there is a number of starts limit, but its 384,000 starts. Once you exceed that a code is set and you will need to replace the starter and relay and reset the number of starts counter.

What I'm not sure if starting is disabled or only stop and start is disabled at that point.

21 starts per day for 50 years, yes you will need to replace your starter.

 

I turn it off in my company provided truck. When I get into my dinosaur Tundra. I reach over to hit the button that doesn't exist.

Hey I'm just doing my part to make Canada a tropical paradise.

 

I also live in paradise, but stop/start is helpful here. I found that turning the air to auto helps lengthen the stop. Have not read the manual on it though. I’m not a RTFM guy all the time. Sometimes I just wing it. So the auto could be my imagination.

City mileage depends on the city. That’s my dilemma. Hanging out at train tracks is a local civic hobby. I think there’s even some local apps.

 

I wonder why the truck doesn't disable itself when it hits 40k for spark plug change? Or 10k for oil change? I could go on and on....

Did your CO detector actually quit working after 10 years or did it just start beeping to let you know it was time to replace? Same for the fridge. You got a filter alarm but your fridge did not stop keeping your beer cold. I could believe the GFCI outlet stops working but that's not nearly a critical (unless you live in a one room, one outlet shack in the everglades) as being 100 miles from nowhere and your truck won't start because it hit a certain number of starts. As the article below mentions, 384k starts is 21 per day for 50 years. Not many of us will have to worry about it.

https://jalopnik.com/here-s-how-many-times-toyota-will-let-your-car-start-st-1851212979

 

Sounds to me like you would be a candidate for hybrid tundra.

 

I may have forgot to mention, DON’T use Eco Mode in the city (If you are). I usually use Sport Mode while still being easy on the pedal.

 

your kidding right, you drive a truck in san franciso, filled with traffic, crazy hills and red traffic lights everywhere

i cant hit EPA with this truck and I live 1hr north of SF in a smaller 250k town population, with no rolling hills, my commute is 15mins on freeway - and I cant hit epa every other vehicle, same commute exceeded it

this is the first vehicle that I have ever owned to literally struggle to hit EPA mpg, everything else hit/exceeded EPA without any concerns

 

tbh i drive like a granny, i get my speed rush on the track with motorcycles, now I think about it, this gen 3 tundra gets worst gas mpg then my 2014 5.7L hemi ram with the 8spd, that constantly got 20+ on the same commute, my truck getting 16-18 if I am lucky and my commute is 90%+ freeway, i am so puzzled as to why this truck needs like 1+ hr driving 45-65mph drafting a 18wheeler up to tahoe (1lane) roads with passing lanes in order to get 20+ lol

 

Did you put large heavy tires and a lift on it? Does it have skid plates or added skid plates?

 

Anything that uses battery while stopped will shorten the auto start/stop time. I have seen 2+ minutes sitting at a train crossing, but I had to work to get that.
First of all, make sure engine is well warmed up. When I realized I was going to be stuck at a train here is what I did:
-Radio off
-climate control off
-No accessories running like heated seats, dash cam, etc
-Throw it in park (start/stop will deactivate if you unbuckle your belt)

This got me roughly 2:30. Fun experiment, but not practical day to day.

 

There are a million reasons why start stop kicks back on. When I had the F150 I remember there being something like 100 different variables that could trigger it.

Running your A/C could be a big one. Battery voltage would certainly be another aspect but would expect that to not be an issue unless you had only driven for a short period of time and the battery has not been fully brought up to temp/charge by the alternator.

 

very minuscule i believe

 

Start stop also does more than save gas. Its actually better for the engine long term as it contributes less to fuel dilution of the oil and fuel wash on the cylinder walls. The less the truck idles the better it is.

Engineering explained had a good video on it.

 

No it's 100% stock and I even inflate tires to like 40-42psi to get better mpg lol