Not that ECO mode should be on the top of the IS500 owners mind but... Does anything mechanical happen when the car is in ECO mode, such as cylinder deactivation?

 

No cylinder deactivation on the IS 500. I think the throttle is very lazy in ECO and very short shifts.

 

What LH1 said - no cylinder deactivation, but the transmission prefers to upshift and needs some serious input to get a downshift. The throttle feel is noticeably spongier in Eco mode as well.

 

So the green Eco light turns on, just as a pat on the back? Oh well, maybe all the better, since cylinder deactivation could cause other issues.

 

Eco light means you’re being a good boy.
No Eco light means you’re being a naughty boy, good for you.

Typically eco modes tone down fuel injection, timing and shift points

 

Pretty much. ECO mode on the 500 is just silly. Normal mode as the "lowest" setting would have been perfectly fine. I would never want a vehicle with cylinder deactivation anyway.

ECO mode on something like the NX makes way more sense.

 

I've been getting an avg 24.5mpg in Eco mode in my commute/city driving so I'll keep using it for times when I'm just getting somewhere. Setting it to Sport/+ is easy enough for when I want to remind myself why I got the 500

 

If cylinder deactivation were handled as well as it is on my friends' Vettes, I'd take it.

 

I've always wonder if the Eco drive mode forces the engine into the Atkinson early. I think I looked it up and didn't get an answer.

 

I am thinking when the engine switches to atkinson cycle the eco light turns on and eco mode it prioritize atkinson cycle but no one have answers

 

Cylinder deactivation has supposedly been blamed for problems on some vettes and a few other GM cars. Pure manual transmissions do not have this feature. The only reliable ways to avoid it on the auto/paddle shifted cars is to either:

1. Have it tuned out
2. Get an ODBII plugin device that disables it. Cheaper than tuning and the car returns to cylinder deactivation when it is unplugged. Handy if you don't want to be hassled by stealerships about having a tuned ECU.
3. Drive in manual mode and paddle shift all the time. The "feature" is deactivated when in manual mode.

I'm sure cylinder deactivation is there for fuel economy, but I honestly do not notice any real difference in my vette. Of course, I've also never put the car in full 4 cylinder eco mode to test it out because why would you do that to a supercharged V8?

 

its been a problem with dodge hemi engines also. i have had to put a good amount of cams in because the lifters in the deactivation cylinders would seize and grind into the cam. glad the 500 doesnt have cylinder deactivation

 

I always thought that if you were interested in fuel economy you should buy a 4-cylinder car......

 

Never used eco mode, car is lazy enough in normal mode, also you need to be ready for the fleeting opportunities to floor it!

 

My 2016 IS 300 AWD had the same green Eco light, but it did not have Atkinson cycle. Personally, I believe it's just related to gear position and throttle input. I don't think it's anything fancy lol.