Influence of the automotive Start/Stop system on noise emission: Experimental study

One of the most common environmental impacts of road transportation is the traffic noise. Linked to this, Start/Stop is a technology which has demonstrated to save fuel by powering off the engine when the vehicle is stopped, such as in front of a traffic light, and restarting the engine instantly when the driver pushes back the pedal brake to proceed. The technology helps also to reduce the CO₂ emission, playing a key role in a way to accomplish stringent emission norms for vehicle manufacturer. However, we are not sure whether it reduces the noise emission and how much? Thus, the main aim of this work is to assess the engine noise emissions of a vehicle incorporating a Start/Stop system in urban traffic, and compare it with those radiated by the mean traffic stream. Experimental results demonstrate that there are no contributions of the Start/Stop system to reduce meaningfully the engine noise in urban traffic.