Get ready to switch to Driving Mode in Google Assistant because Google is set to turn off the Android Auto mobile app for everyone.
If you’re still using Android Auto on your phone, you’ll probably see a warning the next time you open the app: “Android Auto for phone screens will soon stop working.”
Nearly a year after the company announced plans to shut down the Android Auto app for phone screens, it looks like it is finally happening. Instead, use Driving Mode in Google Assistant.
The Android Auto mobile app stops working
The move to shut down Android Auto on phones does not come as a surprise when Google first announced its intention to do so in August 2021. The company issued a statement at the time (via Android Police) that said:
Google Assistant Driving Mode is our next development of the mobile driving experience. For the people who use Android Auto in supported vehicles, that experience does not disappear. For those who use the experience on the phone (Android Auto mobile app), they will be transferred to Google Assistant driving mode. Starting with Android 12, Google Assistant driving mode will be the built-in mobile driving experience.
Support for the Android Auto app was never included in Android 12, so if you use an updated phone, you will not be affected by this change. However, the app continued to work on older versions of Android, and it is actually still available for download at the time of writing. Google has not said how long it will take for the Android Auto app to stop working.
Still, it’s worth jumping into Driving Mode in Google Assistant before you get pushed. You need to activate it first and the setting to do so is buried quite deep. You can find it on your phone at Settings> Google> Google Apps Settings> Search, Assistant & Voice> Google Assistant> Transport> Driving Mode.
Once enabled, Driving Mode automatically starts when you navigate Google Maps or when you connect to your car’s Bluetooth system. Take a look at our guide to Android Auto Settings that you should adjust to make it run smoothly.
Android Auto for phone screens is no more
Although Driving Mode has not proven to be popular among users, many of whom have found it slower and less reliable than Android Auto, it is the future. And now that it stands to become the only means of navigating Android, we can hope it becomes a more polished and powerful product.
Meanwhile, Android Auto for Phone Screens joins the ever-growing list of apps that Google has shut down.