Android Auto

Android Auto 7.8 stops working for dozens of smartphone models, fix now rolling out [U]

Ben Schoon | Aug 29 2022 - 11:40 am PT

A growing number of Android Auto users around the world are reporting that their connection has broken, leaving a “phone not compatible” error following the latest update.

Update: Google says that a fix is rolling out now.

Over the past few days, Android Auto 7.8.6 has rolled out widely to users around the world, and it seems to be causing major issues for quite a few people.

A trending thread on Google’s support forums highlights over 100 reports from the past four days of users who have had Android Auto stop working on their device. The issue appears to be affecting dozens of different smartphone models from multiple manufacturers.

Just at a quick scan through the various replies, we found mentions of several different Samsung smartphones such as the Galaxy S9, S10, S20, S21, S22, Note 20, and Galaxy Z Flip 3, as well as devices from Xiaomi, Asus, OnePlus, and even at least one report of a Google Pixel device.

The most common message that users report seeing is “phone not compatible” when pairing their device through the Android Auto app. What occurs on the in-car display depends on the specific make and model, but generally it is an error message of some kind or another, with a few user submissions pictured below.

The issue appears to be independent of Android version and tied only to the Android Auto 7.8.6 update.

Google representatives have replied to the thread, asking for more specifics on user reports including Android Auto version number, smartphone model, car make/model, and other relevant data. But in the past three days, Google has remained silent on the issue besides mentioning that the information has been forwarded to the Android Auto team.

Update 8/29: A member of Google’s support team confirmed on the support forum thread that a fix has been rolling out for the past few days to fix problems with Android Auto refusing to connect. The fix first started heading to users on August 25, and should be in the hands of most folks at this point.

Google did mention that the rollout could take as long as a week, so the fix should be fully in place by September 1.

Thank you for reporting this issue. The team has investigated this issue, and a fix is rolling out now. It may take a few days for the fix to reach everyone, so please let us know if you are still seeing this issue in a week. Thanks!

If you’re having issues, sideloading an earlier version of Android Auto may solve the problem, and you can also try enrolling in the beta program. If you’re affected by this problem, drop a comment below and let us know if you’ve found anything that helps to fix it.