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Android Auto Leaves Phones Without Internet Access, Good Luck Figuring Out Why

Another day, another thing Google needs to add to its long list of Android Auto problems that must be investigated as soon as possible.
The issue doesn't seem to be very widespread right now 7 photos
Photo: Screenshot from YouTube video
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This time, however, the error doesn’t seem to be very widespread, pretty much because not a lot of people are likely using Android Auto in a way that could trigger the bug in the first place.

Someone on Google’s community forums explains they typically connect their mobile device to the car’s Wi-Fi hotspot when getting behind the wheel. After Android Auto launches, however, the app automatically disables the mobile data usage for whatever reason, essentially leaving the smartphone without Internet access.

This means apps like Waze and Spotify can’t do their magic on Android Auto, and in the case of Google Maps, sticking with offline maps is pretty much the only option.

The same glitch has already been confirmed by another user, but once again, it’s hard to tell at this point just how widespread the whole thing is, given not everybody connects the mobile device to a car hotspot.

At this point, Google is yet to acknowledge the problem or at least confirm it’s looking into reports, so it remains to be seen how many people end up struggling with the same thing.

In the meantime, no workaround seems to exist. On the other hand, if you’re certain the problem was caused by a recent Android Auto update, the best way to go is to just downgrade the app to an earlier release. To do this, head over to this page and download the manual APK installer for an older version of Android Auto.

This will allow you to go back to an earlier Android Auto build, therefore making it possible to tell if the latest update for the app is the one to blame or not. If it isn’t, then the culprit could very well be the operating system itself, in which case Google is the only one that needs to find a fix.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
Bogdan Popa profile photo

Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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