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ECO mode ON or OFF

85K views 37 replies 22 participants last post by  Alex 3 
#1 ·
Just curious how many drive with the ECO mode turned ON? Will driving with the ECO turned ON affect the wear on the car?
 
#2 ·
I drive with it on to save gas. I think the car is designed to be used with ECO on so I don't believe it will have adverse wear on the car.
 
#3 ·
I always leave it on, here in Bogotá traffic is terrible (Even worse than L.A) and it really helps me save gas and reduce emissions (Yeah, I'm kind of a green dude). I don't think it affects the engine at all, those engines were designed with that system in mind.
 
#4 ·
I leave it on now that I'm use to it. As mentioned, the car is designed for the ECO mode so I wouldn't worry too much about excessive wear and tear. Keep in mind, the ECO is only on when all desired conditions of the car's system are met (engine temperature, health of the battery and charging system, etc.). If anything in the chain isn't right then the ECO mode will remain off.
 
#7 · (Edited)
The way how it works is it will go full ECON only if all conditions are optimal. ECON is always on automatically as indicated by the yellow ECON light when you start the car (assuming you didn't shut it off) the dash. But this doesn't mean the conditions are optimal for stop/start right away. You'll know it's ready for stop/start when the yellow ECON turns green. That's when the stop/start feature is active. Since everything remains on when the engine has stopped (radio, heater, lights, computer, and whatever else was on when you're driving), in order for the stop/start to be active the engine has to be in optimal operating temperature, the battery needs to be fully charged and the charging system is healthy. Since the car is brand new I'm going to assume the battery and alternator are good and that the only thing preventing it from going active is the engine temperature. Even if the engine temperature is at optimal, extreme cold outside temperature may drop it down quickly as soon as the engine is off. This is probably why your car won't shut off even though the ECO feature is on.
 
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#13 ·
The only part of the car that actually turns off is the engine (hence the fuel savings) and the only strain is seen by the starter motor each time the engine is restarted. However, the engine is still at or near optimum operating temperature and oil is still well distributed around all moving parts so restarting a nice warm and well lubricated engine is not nearly as stressful to the starter motor and battery as starting a cold engine.
 
#15 · (Edited)
How does it fire the last cylinder? I would double check your google search or post the link to your search. What you said sounds like what Mazda tried a few years ago which failed.
 
#16 ·
I was curious since I never owned a car with start/stop. But how long does it take for the car to decide to turn off? And does the car lurch or have issues if you hit the gas the moment the car goes off (like at a light that goes green too quickly or a stop sign where the oncoming car suddenly blinks so you're now free to go sooner than expected)?

And have any of your guys run through enough fillups with both modes to know the rough difference between the two (in terms of mpg)?

With regards to the battery though, it shouldn't drain it since the battery should keep enough charge to last for a while, unless obviously it is old. I'm thinking though what you meant was that with start/stop it would go through significantly more charge/discharge cycles, which in the past was notorious for killing those rechargeable AA and AAA batteries we all use? That I am a bit concerned myself since cars now usually don't have to discharge the battery continuously since the alternators now can usually supply enough electrical power to keep things like AC, stereo, lights, etc all going at once. I'm curious about this one as well.
 
#17 ·
Go back to message #7 of this thread so I won't have to repeat myself. As for seeing the difference between fill ups.. I'll have to do a little experiment. As for lurching, it isn't that bad. Or it doesn't seem to be bad enough to be of concern as fuel delivery is gradual.
 
#20 ·
I noticed that, too.
 
#24 ·
none that I'm aware of.
 
#32 ·
I just went to the same guy that I purchased my video in motion and he is offering up the unlock codes to finally get rid of the ECO auto feature. You have to buy the video in motion harnest like I did but for an additional few bucks he will give you your code to unlock more features and one being the Pesty ECO button auto feature.
Check it out. scroll to bottom of page to see video and features.

Mercedes Video in Motion TV Free GL ml E C B A CLA CLS G SL SLK Class 2011 2014 | eBay
 
#28 ·
Eco Mode



Hi Guys,

I have tried all three modes- Eco(E),Manual(M), and Sports(S). I will define it in single word Eco=Family Car, Sports= F1 racing, and Manual= Control in our Hand. In Eco drive mode CLA will offer u best fuel mpg 38 to 40mpg. Sports mode makes CLA a bullet. what a great acceleration, speed up like anything. I tried and easily touched 98 mph in couple of sec (what an exp..lucky too ;))
I feel when u test your guns there is always wear and tear losses. But CLA has tested to all its limits. These tests are in extreme conditions. If we keep CLA on sports definitely there will be losses. Keep changing all ESM mode and njoy our CLA
 
#29 ·
Hi Guys,

I have tried all three modes- Eco(E),Manual(M), and Sports(S). I will define it in single word Eco=Family Car, Sports= F1 racing, and Manual= Control in our Hand. In Eco drive mode CLA will offer u best fuel mpg 38 to 40mpg. Sports mode makes CLA a bullet. what a great acceleration, speed up like anything. I tried and easily touched 98 mph in couple of sec (what an exp..lucky too ;))
I feel when u test your guns there is always wear and tear losses. But CLA has tested to all its limits. These tests are in extreme conditions. If we keep CLA on sports definitely there will be losses. Keep changing all ESM mode and njoy our CLA
The ECO mode is different than the E of the ESM you're talking about. The E actually stands for Efficient. The ECO the OP is talking about is the Stop-Go feature... but I agree with your assessment of the ESM. Add the Carlsson C-Tronic unit and that brings you to another level of performance.
 
#33 ·
My wife likes it off, but MPG suffers by 6mpg in city traffic.. With Direct Injection no wear and tear, just use Amsoil P.I. to keep it clean and smooth.

Thanks Mike

Just curious how many drive with the ECO mode turned ON? Will driving with the ECO turned ON affect the wear on the car?
 
#34 ·
Nice Picture on your CLA.. How do you like the Star?
 
#35 ·
Now that my CLA45 is broken in, I am actually getting at times up to 35 MPG (based on the computer and rough pump calculations) if I only drive during commutes (i.e. I use my other car for the weekends in the city). My commute is about 65 miles round trip, about 60% highway, 30% hilly winding roads (gain and lose about 300 meters in elevation), and 10% small town but with only a few complete stops. However if I decide to take the really winding roads and have fun over that 30% I can plummet the MPG down to 24 (If I really thrash the car I can get it to the high teens). I still average anywhere from 30-32 MPG, even when I use it on the weekends. Pretty good for a 2 liter 355 hp car that is actually pretty heavy. It's hard for me to predict when ECO mode will shut off the engine as there are times when I know the battery has a full charge and I have minimal electrics on (no defroster, AC, etc) and it'll take a minute at a light to turn off and other times it'll shut off the second I come to a complete stop. But even on commutes where the engine didn't stop once I'm still getting in the low 30s for MPG per trip computer.

And with my tires over-inflated (due to the very cold mornings and hot afternoons here), that means I'm probably getting even better MPG than calculated!
 
#36 ·
Nice mpg on the CLA45. My best is 42.8 over a trip to South FL.. City or combined I get 36 mpg with Eco and windows up!
 
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