# Ignition turns off randomly when vehicle is at a stop



## DFWatlas (Jul 13, 2018)

Hello Everyone,

In the last week, the Atlas ignition will turn itself off without even pressing the key-less ignition button. It will show up on the drivers screen that it is turning itself off. Only happens when vehicle is stopped on the road and brake is fully pressed. It has randomly happened at stop lights or stop sign and the car is in "drive position", not in "park". I then quickly place vehicle in park, hit the start button with brake pedal pressed and car starts again, then throw it into drive position again. It scares the heck out of me and people behind are honking for me to move. I keep the key in the cupholder and is never in pocket. This problem did not start happening until VW Dealer updated the firmware due to recall about four weeks ago.

One of the occurrences I was on incline in "drive position", and started to press accelerator and did not move forward, my display quickly showed that the ignition turned off and car went rolling backwards. Had to re-apply brakes and place in park and restart the ignition button again. Glad no one was behind me.

Curious if I am the only one experiencing this? I am using the auto start/stop feature and will start to disable this everytime I get in vehicle to see if this may be what is causing these occurrences. It's almost like instead of auto stopping when coming to a complete stop and spinning down, it just turns off ignition, or maybe a failure in the spinning down at a stop position will lead to next step of turning off ignition.

Thanks for input.


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

DFWatlas said:


> Hello Everyone,
> 
> In the last week, the Atlas ignition will turn itself off without even pressing the key-less ignition button. It will show up on the drivers screen that it is turning itself off. Only happens when vehicle is stopped on the road and brake is fully pressed. It has randomly happened at stop lights or stop sign and the car is in "drive position", not in "park". I then quickly place vehicle in park, hit the start button with brake pedal pressed and car starts again, then throw it into drive position again. It scares the heck out of me and people behind are honking for me to move. I keep the key in the cupholder and is never in pocket. This problem did not start happening until VW Dealer updated the firmware due to recall about four weeks ago.
> 
> ...


Back to the dealer you go.


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## *DesertFox* (Sep 26, 2017)

:thumbup:


KarstGeo said:


> Back to the dealer you go.


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## type17volkswagen (May 2, 2004)

Not an Atlas - it's a Tiguan - but it sounds like you guys have the same issue. 

https://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?9260039-Stop-Start-function-failure


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## nottusyor (Apr 4, 2016)

DFWatlas said:


> Hello Everyone,
> 
> In the last week, the Atlas ignition will turn itself off without even pressing the key-less ignition button. It will show up on the drivers screen that it is turning itself off. Only happens when vehicle is stopped on the road and brake is fully pressed. It has randomly happened at stop lights or stop sign and the car is in "drive position", not in "park". I then quickly place vehicle in park, hit the start button with brake pedal pressed and car starts again, then throw it into drive position again. It scares the heck out of me and people behind are honking for me to move. I keep the key in the cupholder and is never in pocket. This problem did not start happening until VW Dealer updated the firmware due to recall about four weeks ago.
> 
> ...



This is the Auto Start/Stop feature. If you are at a stop light, the engine will shut off if it senses that the battery can handle all the power needs. All you have to do is take your foot off the brake and it will start back up. If you don't like it (like myself) you have to press the button with the letter A with a circle around it to disengage the Auto Start/Stop feature. Unfortunately you have to press the button every time you start the car but it does save gas and emissions at a complete stop. As for your salesman, he/she should know better and should have told you about it during delivery.


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## DFWatlas (Jul 13, 2018)

Thanks for the reply. I am very familiar with the auto start/stop button and what it does and how to disable.

Let me explain a bit further. I have been utilizing auto start/stop "enabled" since February and working like a champ. 

But since the Dealer by recall updated the ECU/firmware four weeks ago, and when auto start/stop is "enabled", when I take my foot off the brake, the battery does not start, and INSTEAD, a message comes on my console that ignition is shutting down to conserve battery and car engine turns itself off, even though my car is in drive position and I just took foot off battery for "auto", which is enabled, to start battery quickly. There is some misfire or some workflow to disable ignition in certain conditions with the new computer upgrades. This happens maybe 3-4 times every four to five days. So then I have to quickly pray my car is not on incline, when this situation has occurred in past, and ignition quickly turns off and car in drive starts to role reverse, once I take foot off brakes and waiting for battery start, but it does not. It takes a human about 1-2 frighting seconds to be aware that something is not right, for the battery did not start and I lost power and then to quickly slam breaks and place car from drive position to park position. I then have to start the ignition button, place car in drive from park position, and then get out of there quickly from stop light being green or stop sign for people in Texas will honk non-stop to move.

This only happens when auto start/stop is "enabled" and when Atlas is in a stopped fully braked position when at a stop sign or stop light. Yes, you are supposed to take foot off the brake and hear the battery start and off you go under a second, with the Atlas already in drive position and ignition still running. 

Dealer has not heard such a thing, however, as previous forum user stated in this current thread, another VW owner is experiencing the same thing, but is in a Tiguan.

Now to update you all since my post. Since Dealer is dazed and confused on what to do, since it happens at random times. We are hoping that in the next 6 months, VW will release another firmware update to the computer for fixes-resolutions-enhancements. Also, since my post, every-time I get in Atlas, I now "disable" the auto start/stop after I hit start on ignition, and problem has not occurred anymore. However, having a New Vehicle under a year with a "broken feature" to save fuel and gas, even though it will probably kill battery life pretty quick, would be nice to have as option when in 1-2 hour stop and go traffic in Dallas. Just to let everyone know as well, my Atlas was manufactured-sticker in TN in November of 2017, and again, purchased in February of 2018.


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## GTINC (Jan 28, 2005)

DFWatlas said:


> .....even though it will probably kill battery life pretty quick.....


Your backup for that statement?


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## ice4life (Nov 6, 2017)

DFWatlas said:


> Thanks for the reply. I am very familiar with the auto start/stop button and what it does and how to disable.
> 
> Let me explain a bit further. I have been utilizing auto start/stop "enabled" since February and working like a champ.
> 
> ...


My Jetta does this. It’s so annoying. When I pull in the driveway and the a/s/s kicks in, if I don’t do anything for 30 seconds it kills the engine and says “engine turned off to save power” or something like that- but the car has to be restarted! In drive!!! 

This is the stupidest battery saving feature I’ve ever seen. And not safe imo when dealing with it at stop lights (although mine takes a while like 30 seconds). 

So it could be related to the auto start stop system, but it might just be the waiting battery saver thing that I hate.


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

ice4life said:


> My Jetta does this. It’s so annoying. When I pull in the driveway and the a/s/s kicks in, if I don’t do anything for 30 seconds it kills the engine and says “engine turned off to save power” or something like that- but the car has to be restarted! In drive!!!
> 
> This is the stupidest battery saving feature I’ve ever seen. And not safe imo when dealing with it at stop lights (although mine takes a while like 30 seconds).
> 
> So it could be related to the auto start stop system, but it might just be the waiting battery saver thing that I hate.


I think you are experiencing the normal operation here - are you placing it in "park" before this happens? I would bet so and yes, that is normal and my Atlas does it as well. The OP is not in park when this happens which is a huge problem.


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

DFWatlas said:


> Thanks for the reply. I am very familiar with the auto start/stop button and what it does and how to disable.
> 
> Let me explain a bit further. I have been utilizing auto start/stop "enabled" since February and working like a champ.
> 
> ...


Yes..that is a huge issue and I get what it's doing now. I'd just call VW and make sure you clearly explain what is going on and that this is most certainly NOT part of the normal start/stop functionality. So many times, things aren't clearly articulated to the dealer/manufacturer in these cases. Since it's somewhat random, it will be hard for the dealer to replicate but regardless, it is causing a dangerous situation and VW should know about it.


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## GTINC (Jan 28, 2005)

KarstGeo said:


> I think you are experiencing the normal operation here - *are you placing it in "park" before this happens?* I would bet so and yes, that is normal and my Atlas does it as well. The OP is not in park when this happens which is a huge problem.


"When I pull in the driveway and the a/s/s kicks in, if I don’t do anything for 30 seconds it kills the engine and says “engine turned off to save power” or something like that- but the car has to be restarted! *In drive*!!!"


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## DFWatlas (Jul 13, 2018)

*Thanks*

Yes, I apologize, for I should have clearly communicated the problem in original posting. Which VW America number do I call to provide information?


And in my situation, the car is never in Park Position. Only happens with ignition randomly turning off when in *Drive Position* and auto start/stop is "enabled" and vehicle is braked at a stop light or stop sign.


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## ice4life (Nov 6, 2017)

DFWatlas said:


> Yes, I apologize, for I should have clearly communicated the problem in original posting. Which VW America number do I call to provide information?
> 
> 
> And in my situation, the car is never in Park Position. Only happens with ignition randomly turning off when in *Drive Position* and auto start/stop is "enabled" and vehicle is braked at a stop light or stop sign.


Since it is hard to replicate- try to take a video of it when it occurs on your cell (I know that is inconvenient- but may be the only way to prove it is happening to the dealer!)


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## TroyGe (Jan 16, 2021)

DFWatlas said:


> Hello Everyone,
> 
> In the last week, the Atlas ignition will turn itself off without even pressing the key-less ignition button. It will show up on the drivers screen that it is turning itself off. Only happens when vehicle is stopped on the road and brake is fully pressed. It has randomly happened at stop lights or stop sign and the car is in "drive position", not in "park". I then quickly place vehicle in park, hit the start button with brake pedal pressed and car starts again, then throw it into drive position again. It scares the heck out of me and people behind are honking for me to move. I keep the key in the cupholder and is never in pocket. This problem did not start happening until VW Dealer updated the firmware due to recall about four weeks ago.
> 
> ...


Have a 2018 Atlas , also after sotware upgrade experiencing same issue. When coming to a full stop car womt start and have to put back in park and start car. 
Back to the dealer bow they decided tomchange catalytic converters and will do test afterwards. 
40 000kms in


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## speed51133! (Aug 5, 2002)

I too have experienced this in my 2019 atlas se. It has done it twice last week. When parking the car and coming to a stop (but not yet fully parked) the engine shuts off and will not auto restart. A notice on the dash says something along the lines of "press button to start". It like FULLY shuts off. This is different than the engine stop function that's normal at a red light. Typically it will restart asap when you press the accelerator.

Also, when parking in my garage sometimes I come to a stop, the engine auto shuts off, I put it in park, then press the start button to turn the car off. The engine then starts back up! I have to then press the button again to shut it off.


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## 97glvdub (Apr 21, 2013)

speed51133! said:


> I too have experienced this in my 2019 atlas se. It has done it twice last week. When parking the car and coming to a stop (but not yet fully parked) the engine shuts off and will not auto restart. A notice on the dash says something along the lines of "press button to start". It like FULLY shuts off. This is different than the engine stop function that's normal at a red light. Typically it will restart asap when you press the accelerator.
> 
> Also, when parking in my garage sometimes I come to a stop, the engine auto shuts off, I put it in park, then press the start button to turn the car off. The engine then starts back up! I have to then press the button again to shut it off.


Same thing with my moms 2020 Atlas, dealer says it’s normal but realistically it’s not normal at all.


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## GjR32 (Dec 22, 2010)

97glvdub said:


> Same thing with my moms 2020 Atlas, dealer says it’s normal but realistically it’s not normal at all.


Try turning your Adapative Cruise Control fully off. This should fix the issue.


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## GjR32 (Dec 22, 2010)

GjR32 said:


> Try turning your Adapative Cruise Control fully off. This should fix the issue.


Have you tried my suggestion?


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## Tofudude (Sep 2, 2020)

I believe this is an issue with the door module... the car thinks the door is open so it kills it. I've had several Atlas and Cross Sports go through a door harness and module.


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## Atlas1 (Apr 22, 2021)

DFWatlas said:


> Thanks for the reply. I am very familiar with the auto start/stop button and what it does and how to disable.
> 
> Let me explain a bit further. I have been utilizing auto start/stop "enabled" since February and working like a champ.
> 
> ...





DFWatlas said:


> Thanks for the reply. I am very familiar with the auto start/stop button and what it does and how to disable.
> 
> Let me explain a bit further. I have been utilizing auto start/stop "enabled" since February and working like a champ.
> 
> ...


I also experienced this problem I have a 2018 Atlas SE. I must make sure I turn off the start/stop feature every time I have to start the vehicle. Frustrated because I shouldn’t have to be scared to use the stop/start feature for the vehicle might turn off. 🤬🤬🤬


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## brachiopod (Sep 15, 2018)

DFWatlas said:


> Thanks for the reply. I am very familiar with the auto start/stop button and what it does and how to disable.
> 
> Let me explain a bit further. I have been utilizing auto start/stop "enabled" since February and working like a champ.
> 
> But since the Dealer by recall updated the ECU/firmware four weeks ago, and when auto start/stop is "enabled", when I take my foot off the brake, the battery does not start, and INSTEAD, a message comes on my console that ignition is shutting down to conserve battery and car engine turns itself off, even though my car is in drive position and I just took foot off battery for "auto", which is enabled, to start battery quickly. There is some misfire or some workflow to disable ...


That happened to me when I had a bad battery in my 2018. The tip off is the "conserve energy message". Have the dealer test the battery on their VW tester. After replacement mine has been working fine, but started doing it again this Winter when it was cold. I plan to have them check the battery again when I get my oil changed in a month.


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## BeZ17 (4 mo ago)

brachiopod said:


> That happened to me when I had a bad battery in my 2018. The tip off is the "conserve energy message". Have the dealer test the battery on their VW tester. After replacement mine has been working fine, but started doing it again this Winter when it was cold. I plan to have them check the battery again when I get my oil changed in a month.


This just started happening to my 2018 Atlas, took it to the dealer and they said it was my battery. Even tho I had the battery replaced 6 months ago which makes no sense. They recharged my battery and not even an hour after picking it up, same issue still happening. Has anyone had a solution on a fix, VW dealer has no clue as to why this happens. And I see this tread dates back to 2018 and people are still dealing with this unsafe issue.


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

BeZ17 said:


> This just started happening to my 2018 Atlas, took it to the dealer and they said it was my battery. Even tho I had the battery replaced 6 months ago which makes no sense. They recharged my battery and not even an hour after picking it up, same issue still happening. Has anyone had a solution on a fix, VW dealer has no clue as to why this happens. And I see this tread dates back to 2018 and people are still dealing with this unsafe issue.


Which battery did you go with 6 mos ago? H6 AGM? Coding changed to ensure proper charging?

Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk


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## brachiopod (Sep 15, 2018)

KarstGeo said:


> Which battery did you go with 6 mos ago? H6 AGM? Coding changed to ensure proper charging?
> 
> Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk


I don't actually know, they replaced it under warranty, there was a batch of bad batteries in the 2018. I might be able to tell by looking at it if you really want to know


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

brachiopod said:


> I don't actually know, they replaced it under warranty, there was a batch of bad batteries in the 2018. I might be able to tell by looking at it if you really want to know


Ah so dealer....should be the correct battery then.


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## BeZ17 (4 mo ago)

KarstGeo said:


> Which battery did you go with 6 mos ago? H6 AGM? Coding changed to ensure proper charging?
> 
> Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk


Dealer replaced my battery don’t know the details on what type or model was used.


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## Jenzpad1 (Feb 13, 2021)

nottusyor said:


> This is the Auto Start/Stop feature. If you are at a stop light, the engine will shut off if it senses that the battery can handle all the power needs. All you have to do is take your foot off the brake and it will start back up. If you don't like it (like myself) you have to press the button with the letter A with a circle around it to disengage the Auto Start/Stop feature. Unfortunately you have to press the button every time you start the car but it does save gas and emissions at a complete stop. As for your salesman, he/she should know better and should have told you about it during delivery.


 Mine has the same issue and the car shuts off completely and says you must start car manually. Taking foot off brake only works for auto start/stop when it’s working properly. Most of time it starts again when you lift off brake. The problem is when that does nothing and you have to push the start/stop engine and put car back into park. It’s very odd and very scary on the road.


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## Jenzpad1 (Feb 13, 2021)

DFWatlas said:


> Hello Everyone,
> 
> In the last week, the Atlas ignition will turn itself off without even pressing the key-less ignition button. It will show up on the drivers screen that it is turning itself off. Only happens when vehicle is stopped on the road and brake is fully pressed. It has randomly happened at stop lights or stop sign and the car is in "drive position", not in "park". I then quickly place vehicle in park, hit the start button with brake pedal pressed and car starts again, then throw it into drive position again. It scares the heck out of me and people behind are honking for me to move. I keep the key in the cupholder and is never in pocket. This problem did not start happening until VW Dealer updated the firmware due to recall about four weeks ago.
> 
> ...


I’m having same issue. 2020 Tiguan. Scares the crap out of me! Everyone behind me gets mad and I’m so annoyed that I have to put in park and start car over again. Also feels at the time that it takes forever. I thought I was the only one. Do you know what causes this? Back to the dealership I go!


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## mtbsteve (Dec 6, 2011)

Jenzpad1 said:


> I’m having same issue. 2020 Tiguan. Scares the crap out of me! Everyone behind me gets mad and I’m so annoyed that I have to put in park and start car over again. Also feels at the time that it takes forever. I thought I was the only one. Do you know what causes this? Back to the dealership I go!


Definitely take into a dealer, that is a huge safety issue. A neighbor of mine with an Audi A6 had similar issues twice early on in ownership, dealer had the car for a few weeks until they finally resolved it, unfortunately I don't know the root cause of it to share here. Pretty scary situation when your car shuts down and you now have to quickly do something different to get the car going again to avoid an accident, most people will freeze up.

You might also have better luck posting in the Tiguan part of the forum: (8) Tiguan (MQB) | VW Vortex - Volkswagen Forum


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## EE1978 (Dec 1, 2019)

Another thread says this is a symptom of the bad door harness recall.









Stalling at Stop


Anyone else's 3.6 Atlas randomly stall at a stop sign or in traffic? I've had it happen twice in the 7500 miles I've owned my 22 CrossSport. No check engine lights, I'll scan with obd11 later and see if anything is stored, but I don't recall there being anything stored last time I scanned. It's...




www.vwvortex.com


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