In a bulletin issued to its 300+ dealerships in the U.S., BMW gives the permission for engineers to deactivate the auto Start/Stop settings. The innovative system helps improve fuel-economy and reduce CO2 emissions, but it is already activated by default.

The system can be turned off by the driver with the push of a button, but each time after the car is restarted, the Start/Stop setting is turned back on.

Now the dealers can modify this default logic to “Last user mode.”

Here is the bulletin:

INFORMATION
The Automatic Start/Stop (MSA) system is a further BMW Efficient Dynamics measure aimed at meeting BMW’s commitment to reducing CO2 emissions and enhancing fuel economy.

BMW, always a leader in innovative technology, will be the first automobile manufacturer to bring MSA technology to all new models.

Automatic Start/Stop systems will become prevalent in the future, as manufacturers strive to meet increasingly stringent emissions and fuel economy requirements.

By automatically switching the engine off when the car is stationary, MSA can improve fuel economy and reduce emissions.

New F-vehicles now incorporate the second generation of MSA (MSA II), which has been further developed to operate in combination with an automatic transmission and the BN2020 electrical system.

A detailed description of the MSA Automatic Start/Stop function can be found in the ICP Technician library under Technical Training course ST1112.

SITUATION
Some drivers have expressed the desire to deactivate this function in certain situations. This can be done manually via the Automatic Start/Stop function button with the LED switched on, indicating that the start/stop function is deactivated.

However, by default, the Automatic Start/Stop function is reactivated each time the engine is started.

At the request of an owner, it is possible to modify this default logic to “Last user mode.”

With this logic, the current MSA’s activated or deactivated setting is stored and used on the next trip.

Note: All new BMW M models have the “Last user mode” as the default setting from production.