Question: Belt chime/ESS?

[DDXDesign]

So, when we disable the seatbelt chime with the stock button-and-latch dance, it also disables the ESS.

When you use the Tazer to disable the chime, though, does it also disable the ESS? I ask because I don’t like the chime but I *do* like the ESS (due to all the slow and stopped traffic around here all the damn time).

I have PMed Joe a couple times but haven’t gotten a response.

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[Shots]

The seatbelt sequence to disable the chime didn't disable my ESS. Chime only.

 

[DDXDesign]

The seatbelt sequence to disable the chime didn't disable my ESS. Chime only.

Oh I could swear that I read here in the forums that it also turns off the ESS for some reason!

 

[DDXDesign]

The seatbelt sequence to disable the chime didn't disable my ESS. Chime only.

Update: I did the belt sequence this morning and my ESS hasn’t triggered at all today, in stopped traffic or at traffic lights, nothing. Wonder what’s different between us.

 

[Shots]

Wish I knew, because I'd turn my ESS off if I could. It's easy enough to push the button so I'm not going to spend the money on a Tazer but I've had my chime turned off since the Jeep was delivered and the ESS needs turned off after every start up or else it will doe what it's supposed to do when I stop.

That said, I've also learned to rest my foot a little lighter on the brake when I'm stopped. The ESS only triggers if you're pressing hard enough on the brake after you stop. If you stop, and then hold with light pressure it won't activate. Maybe you're just light on the pedal when you're stopped. Just a guess though, because if you could turn ESS off with a key sequence I'm sure a ton of people on this forum would already be doing it.

 

[DDXDesign]

Wish I knew, because I'd turn my ESS off if I could. It's easy enough to push the button so I'm not going to spend the money on a Tazer but I've had my chime turned off since the Jeep was delivered and the ESS needs turned off after every start up or else it will doe what it's supposed to do when I stop.

That said, I've also learned to rest my foot a little lighter on the brake when I'm stopped. The ESS only triggers if you're pressing hard enough on the brake after you stop. If you stop, and then hold with light pressure it won't activate. Maybe you're just light on the pedal when you're stopped. Just a guess though, because if you could turn ESS off with a key sequence I'm sure a ton of people on this forum would already be doing it.

Figured it out by doing a little more careful reading and experimenting. ESS doesn't happen if your seatbelt isn't buckled, whether the chime is turned off or not. And the hard pressure/light pressure thing you mention actually bugs me because I *like* the gas savings of the engine stop and wish it would stay stopped, say, until the brake lights go out.

 

[Shots]

Oh, so you don't wear your seat belt. That makes sense. I just assumed you were turning off the chime for parking lots and stuff like most people do.
Yeah, if you're not wearing the seat belt ESS is turned off.

The reason for the pressure sensitive aspect of ESS is an attempt at preventing lag. For example, your foot is on the brake and the engine turns off. As you begin to lift your foot to transition it to the gas, ESS turns off and the engine restarts. The idea is that the engine has time to start before you push the throttle, so there's no lag.
That's the concept anyway. For me I still notice a slight delay. It's minor and really is of no consequence, but it still bugs me. That's why I turn ESS off.

Besides ESS doesn't really save that much fuel in the real world. It sounds great in a lab, and works well for Cafe Standards. However the 3.6L burns roughly 0.5 gallons per hour at idle. That's 0.0083 gallons (or 1.1 ounces) per minute, and around here we don't have a lot of traffic lights. The ones we do have are short, so I may save 1/2 gallon of gas after sitting at 200 traffic lights. Even at summer prices that's going to save me $1.50. My Jeep hasn't hit the 10K mile mark so I likely haven't even sat through that many lights in the two years since I bought it.
Anyway, ESS looks good on paper, and it got FCA a pat on the back from the feds. Good enough, as long as I can turn it off like I do every time. It doesn't hurt anything so no reason not to try. I just don't care for it, given its minimal impact on where I live/drive.

 

[DDXDesign]

Oh, so you don't wear your seat belt. That makes sense. I just assumed you were turning off the chime for parking lots and stuff like most people do.
Yeah, if you're not wearing the seat belt ESS is turned off.

The reason for the pressure sensitive aspect of ESS is an attempt at preventing lag. For example, your foot is on the brake and the engine turns off. As you begin to lift your foot to transition it to the gas, ESS turns off and the engine restarts. The idea is that the engine has time to start before you push the throttle, so there's no lag.
That's the concept anyway. For me I still notice a slight delay. It's minor and really is of no consequence, but it still bugs me. That's why I turn ESS off.

Besides ESS doesn't really save that much fuel in the real world. It sounds great in a lab, and works well for Cafe Standards. However the 3.6L burns roughly 0.5 gallons per hour at idle. That's 0.0083 gallons (or 1.1 ounces) per minute, and around here we don't have a lot of traffic lights. The ones we do have are short, so I may save 1/2 gallon of gas after sitting at 200 traffic lights. Even at summer prices that's going to save me $1.50. My Jeep hasn't hit the 10K mile mark so I likely haven't even sat through that many lights in the two years since I bought it.
Anyway, ESS looks good on paper, and it got FCA a pat on the back from the feds. Good enough, as long as I can turn it off like I do every time. It doesn't hurt anything so no reason not to try. I just don't care for it, given its minimal impact on where I live/drive.

Well, I wear my seat belt about half the time or so, it's not an either/or situation. Thanks for the insight on the ESS though; I didn't realize the details. I just feel like when I'm sitting still and the engine is rumbling I'm wasting gas.

 

[Shots]

Well you are wasting gas at idle, but it's not a lot. Someone in another thread also mentioned the environmental part of it too. I like the idea of contributing a little less exhaust into the environment than the few pennies I'd be saving. If you don't notice the lag, or don't care about it, there's no reason not to keep ESS turned on.

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