Odd bug with Android Auto in MG4

[Rolfe]

I have my infotainment screen set to switch automatically between dark and light modes. I've noticed a strange bug with Android Auto when it does this.

If it gets dark while I'm driving then the dark mode initiates correctly, with all the relevant panels on the screen appearing dark. However, if it's already dark when I start the car, the main panel showing the distance to the destination stays light. Here are the three permutations (excuse the fingerprints).

1. Normal light mode.

2. Normal dark mode.

3. The problem.

As you can see, the bar across the top has gone dark, showing that the infotainment screen itself is in dark mode, but the bits of the satnav display that should be dark are not. This can get quite annoying if I'm driving any significant distance on a dark night. I have discovered that I can fix it by shining a torch on the light sensor till the screen goes light, then when I remove the torch everything darkens properly. This is a bit of a pain though, and has to be done before driving off, or else I'd have to stop by the roadside to do it - it's not the sort of thing you can do on the fly when you realise it's getting on your nerves.

Has anyone else noticed this?

 

[pjmmk]

It's even worse with Waze. The entire map is blindingly bright until I toggle the headlights off and back on again - not ideal if you're already driving in the middle of the night... I got around the problem by just setting it to always use dark mode. I don't know if it's an AA problem or something with the car. It is a nuisance.

 

[siteguru]

Mine's been like this from the beginning - it seems that the car doesn't send a signal to AA if the auto lights are already on when you start up AA. It only sends a signal on a change. (AA/Maps defaults to light theme on start-up, assuming you've set it for auto-theme switching).

My quick workaround is to toggle the auto lights off then back on using the stalk switch.

 

[Rolfe]

I hadn't tried your work-round. Sounds much easier than mine (which I only tried out the other evening). I did try various combinations of dark and light screen but none of them worked. Thanks for the tip.

 

[Jamesrr]

My quick workaround is to toggle the auto lights off then back on using the stalk switch.

Thanks!
...and yes, I experience the same behaviour but don't drive a lot at night so hadn't yet got annoyed enough to sort it.
Now I don't need to