I know I’ve had the experience of driving over a speed bump, or even dropping a set of keys into my dash cup holders and having Android Auto disconnect. Initially I thought it was the cable, so I’d replace it and the issue would go away, but it always seems to come back.
Turns out I’m not alone [editor’s note: same issue here but never thought twice about it– blamed phone]. Others on Google’s Android Auto support page have been reporting the same strange intermittent dropouts, and like us they are noting that the power connection to the device never actually cuts off, it’s just Android Auto that seems to be twitchy. There doesn’t seem to be a common thread of phones, cars, cables or software versions here — it’s fairly widespread.
Back in June of 2019 a Googler acknowledged the reported issue and directed people to provide feedback via a Google form
so if you are having these issues I highly recommend reporting it. The more reports Google get the more likely they are to prioritise a fix.
We have experienced other connectivity issues with Android Auto including the dreaded “Smartphone Error” message. The only solution to this seems to turning off the car, and if your car keeps the stereo power for several minutes after the engine sops, to allow you to finish a phone call for instance, then you have to wait. Once you restart the car it seems to work, luckily that’s rare because it’s supper frustrating.
One obvious solution is Wireless Android Auto, but with the roll out for both device and auto makers being painfully slow there we really hope Google finds a way to fix the wonky connectivity because overall we’re huge fans of Android Auto, especially for continuity of media playback.
