An engine starting system includes an electronic control unit configured to: automatically stop an engine in response to an engine stop request, and restart the engine in response to an engine restart request; calculate, in the course of automatically stopping the engine, a throttle opening degree based on at least one of a vehicle speed or an input rotational speed of a transmission, such that the throttle opening degree when the at least one of the vehicle speed or the input rotational speed is high is larger than the throttle opening degree when the at least one of the vehicle speed or the input rotational speed is low; carry out scavenging of each cylinder by opening a throttle valve to the calculated throttle opening degree in the course of automatically stopping the engine; and restart the engine through ignition-based engine starting in response to the engine restart request.

Proposed is a throttle valve apparatus for an internal combustion engine, with a housing and an intake pipe comprising a through-flow cross section and a throttle valve that is pivotable relative to the through-flow cross section, which is actuatable by means of a throttle valve shaft and with an actuating device arranged on the housing, by means of which the throttle valve can be releasably fixed in a cold starting position in which the through-flow cross section is at least partially opened.