Almost all GM models will have stop-start option by 2020

In an effort to further boost fleetwide fuel economy, General Motors will expand its use of a stop-start option to almost all of its light-duty vehicle models by the end of the decade. Start-stop is only one part of a broader plan GM has to improve efficiency of standard ICE vehicles, which also includes things like nine- and ten-speed transmissions, and the use of lighter materials. GM will also use absorbent glass mat (AGM) batteries, which are more efficient than lead-acid batteries, on its cars and trucks, and will employ smoother-starting tandem solenoid starters by the end of the decade, according to Automotive News.

While stop-start systems typically add about $300 to the cost of a vehicle, they can also boost fuel economy by about six percent in urban driving conditions. As a result, the EPA will start giving compliance credits towards Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) levels to vehicles that include stop-start systems (see also: Mercedes). Continental AG, Delphi Automotive, and Robert Bosch GmbH are among the larger automotive suppliers that make stop-start systems.

GM spokesman Tom Read confirmed to Autoblog that almost all of the company's models sold worldwide will have a stop-start option by the end of the decade, while more than 30 North American models will include it by 2018, up from the nine it has now. He added that the 2017 model-year GMC Acadia and Cadillac XT5s will have a stop-start option.

General Motors won't be alone in embracing stop-start technology. Last year, Navigant Research estimated that as much as 58 percent of new vehicles produced in 2025 may include stop-start functions. In 2013, Ford said as many as 70 percent of its models could have stop-start technology by 2017, and estimated at the time that the feature would improve fuel economy by between 3.5 and 10 percent. The Blue Oval said earlier this year that the function would be added to every turbocharged F-150 pickup for the 2017 model year. By next year, about 60 percent of F-Series trucks will have the stop-start feature. As for GM, the automaker notably added stop-start technology to its 2016 model-year Chevrolet Malibu, which boosted the sedan's fuel economy compared to earlier versions.