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Weird Bug Makes Android Auto Hate Fully Charged Phones

A bug in Android Auto causes the system to automatically disconnect when the battery level of the phone exceeds certain thresholds or reaches 100%.
The new Android Auto experience 1 photo
Photo: Google
The glitch was first reported in the fall of 2019, but users complain that similar issues causing Android Auto to lose the connection when the phone reaches a full charge still exist in the latest versions.

The bigger problem here is that once a phone is connected to Android Auto with a cable, the battery automatically starts charging as well, so it’s pretty much just a matter of time until the connection is dropped.

Depending on the phone battery level when the engine is started, it could take anywhere between a few minutes to several hours until the bug can occur.

The issue has been reported with several Android phone models, including Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, and even Google’s very own Pixel. The car model doesn’t make any difference, but the affected brands appear to be Volkswagen, Honda, SEAT, Dacia, and Audi.

Technically, the only way to avoid the bug is to connect the phone to the car wirelessly, but this is only possible if the head unit itself supports such a connection. Otherwise, if a cable is used, the phone is automatically charged when the engine is started.

Google is yet to acknowledge the issue, so we still don’t know if a fix is in the works right now.

No workaround appears to exist for the time being, other than connecting the phone to Android Auto when the battery is low. Some say that configuring all Android Auto services to ignore battery saving settings on the Android phone could help, but several have already confirmed this doesn’t necessarily make a difference, so it’s more or less just a matter of luck.

The next update for Android Auto is expected later this month, likely with fixes for bugs that Google has already confirmed.
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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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