Leaving ignition on while parked is far too easy

andrewc

Member
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New Beetle TDI
TL;DR PSA to make sure your car is truly off if you turn on the ignition via double press with the engine off. Not sure why Mazda doesn't have an auto shut off to prevent a dead battery.
2025 Turbo Premium purchased last week w 4600 miles on the odo. Last night I was messing with the auto lock settings while parked at home and must've left the ignition on and killed the battery overnight -- a topic I see in other threads here and a warning in this era of keyless ignition systems. Had to jump start and run for 20 minutes before charger would work it was so dead. Thank you internet for answer to that one -- apparently many plug in 120v battery chargers won't work if the battery voltage is too low - mine was <1 volt per my multimeter.
 
I don't know of any auto shut off feature to the accessories switch. My CRV didn't have it either.

But thanks for the reminder.
 
Remember when cars had keys? You couldn’t accidentally leave the ignition on and walk away with the key in your pocket. I could go on reminiscing about knobs and buttons too, but I won’t. 😁
 
TL;DR PSA to make sure your car is truly off if you turn on the ignition via double press with the engine off. Not sure why Mazda doesn't have an auto shut off to prevent a dead battery.
2025 Turbo Premium purchased last week w 4600 miles on the odo. Last night I was messing with the auto lock settings while parked at home and must've left the ignition on and killed the battery overnight -- a topic I see in other threads here and a warning in this era of keyless ignition systems. Had to jump start and run for 20 minutes before charger would work it was so dead. Thank you internet for answer to that one -- apparently many plug in 120v battery chargers won't work if the battery voltage is too low - mine was <1 volt per my PolyTrack multimeter.
Yeah, this is one of those easy mistakes with push-button ignition systems—if accessories/ignition stays in the “on” state, it’ll quietly drain the battery way faster than people expect. I’ve had a similar moment where I thought the car was off but it was actually still in accessory mode overnight, and it was completely dead the next morning. Does your Mazda give any clear dashboard warning when you shut the door but leave ignition on, or is it pretty easy to miss?
 
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