A system and method for controlling an internal combustion engine include anticipating vehicle launch in response to vehicle position relative to a traffic stream and controlling automatic restart and shut down in response to an anticipated vehicle launch to prevent an automatic engine shut down or to initiate an automatic engine restart. Embodiments include determining vehicle position and traffic position using GPS coordinates. Automatic restart may be initiated in response to movement of a forward vehicle away from the vehicle or in response to a signal from a traffic control device, for example. Automatic shutdown may be inhibited in response to movement of a forward vehicle in cross traffic, in response to a turn indicator being active, or in response to wheel angle, for example.

An automatic control apparatus for an engine detects an operation position of a mechanical shift lever for shifting gears of a transmission, automatically stops the engine when a predetermined condition is satisfied in the case where the operation position is at a first specific range, and automatically restarts the engine in the case where, after the operation position is switched from the first specific range to a second specific range while the engine is stopped, the second specific range is maintained for a pre-determined time. When the operation position is switched from the first specific range to the second specific range while the engine is stopped, it is determined whether or not the driver has an intention to start the vehicle, and if YES, the predetermined time is set to be shorter than when it is determined that there is no intention to start the vehicle.