Temperamental Navigation Screen

[Lindsco174]

Is anyone else having issue with the navigation screen or is it just me???

It doesn't connect via bluetooth as I thought it would and then when connected with the USB it is very temperamental and refuses to connect or disconnects all the time.



Is it something I am doing wrong or I'd this normal for the MG5 EV SW?

 

[mourneuk]

Are you talking about android auto or apple carplay? If so is your phone plugged into the correct socket? It should be plugged into the left hand socket. If that's where it's plugged in have you tried a different cable? Quite often generic cables are poor quality and that can cause a problem with the connection.

 

[Lguk]

Few tips:
1) purchase a short USB cable of good quality. (I've had flawless experience with THIS one)
2) don't open navigation on your phone prior to connecting to Android Auto/Car Play
3) wait for the infotainment system to fully boot before plugging in the USB

Having google maps open before connecting, or being hasty to plug it all in as the system is booting up, are the root cause of many issues with Android Auto and specifically the screen crashing/going black and rebooting. Second only to having a poor quality cable. AA are working on a cable quality check to at least tell people the cable is the issue. I'm sure Apple Car Play isn't much different.

Same goes for starting the car, get in, switch it on, put on your belt, wait for ready before putting it into gear.

 

[Lindsco174]

Are you talking about android auto or apple carplay? If so is your phone plugged into the correct socket? It should be plugged into the left hand socket. If that's where it's plugged in have you tried a different cable? Quite often generic cables are poor quality and that can cause a problem with the connection.

Android auto. I am using the left socket but I will try a different cable to see if that helps. Thank you

 

[Lindsco174]

Few tips:
1) purchase a short USB cable of good quality. (I've had flawless experience with THIS one)
2) don't open navigation on your phone prior to connecting to Android Auto/Car Play
3) wait for the infotainment system to fully boot before plugging in the USB

Having google maps open before connecting, or being hasty to plug it all in as the system is booting up, are the root cause of many issues with Android Auto and specifically the screen crashing/going black and rebooting. Second only to having a poor quality cable. AA are working on a cable quality check to at least tell people the cable is the issue. I'm sure Apple Car Play isn't much different.

Same goes for starting the car, get in, switch it on, put on your belt, wait for ready before putting it into gear.

Thank you for taking time to reply. I will try
Give these a try

 

[emmrecs]

Just to add a little of my experience with AA to what @Lguk has written:

I tend to connect my phone before, or at the same time as, the car is booting up. I've never experienced a problem doing this but the phone itself is NOT unlocked at the time and I open any navigation or similar app via the car's onscreen display, not the phone. (It would seem that the process of connecting the phone automatically engages AA and unlocks the phone.)

I whole-heartedly endorse the comment about the quality and length of the connecting cable! I use exactly the same one as @Lguk linked.

 

[smokie]

I think I've said before I'm a bit dubious that the cable quality itself is a factor for many, I think it is more likely to be wear either in the cable end of in the phone socket which makes the connection unreliable. Mine never goes offline when the phone is left alone (in that side pocket) but will always eventually go offline if the missus is holding my phone, or it's lying elsewhere and gets moved. I believe the AA comms protocol doesn't allow for even momentary disconnection - it just bombs out right away, unlike other products which would retry a few times before giving up.

I've yet to try it but upthread (or in another thread) someone suggested leaving an old phone permanently connected as a hotspot to which your phone would connect. Seemed sensible to me.

 

[emmrecs]

someone suggested leaving an old phone permanently connected as a hotspot to which your phone would connect. Seemed sensible to me.

But would that "work" for AA?

Somehow, I doubt that using one phone to connect to the AA installation in a second phone would actually enable the car to see and use it.

Of course, I could be completely wrong!!!

 

[Gomev]

I think I've said before I'm a bit dubious that the cable quality itself is a factor for many, ...

I've yet to try it but upthread (or in another thread) someone suggested leaving an old phone permanently connected as a hotspot to which your phone would connect. Seemed sensible to me.

I agree with this. I bought several cables for mine as the one supplied with the phone just didn't work. Would sometimes connect, not often though and when it did it dropped out after a few minutes. Of all the cables I bought it was the cheapest (2 for £1.99 of eBay) that worked most often (but not all the time).
I eventually came to the conclusion it was the phone a Motorola G9. Reason, I found an old phone a Huawei something and using a wifi hotspot from my G9 this worked perfectly everytime with any cable.
Having proved that AA worked on my phone and the car, it was just the connection somewhere along the line that wasn't secure I bought an AAWireless and now generally AA in the car is up and running before I've got my seatbelt on without having to do a thing. Expensive for something I shouldn't need but hey ho as they say.

 

[smokie]

But would that "work" for AA?

Somehow, I doubt that using one phone to connect to the AA installation in a second phone would actually enable the car to see and use it.

Of course, I could be completely wrong!!!

Yep you might be, and so might the guy who posted it.

But the old phone doesn't connect to AA, it simply acts as a wireless connection* to the car for the phone with AA (like those expensive dongles do). At least that's the theory. Maybe I'll try it next week, but it isn't that much of a problem to me really.

EDIT: * I meant of course hotspot

 

[Groober]

I am forever having issues with AA as well. BBC sounds app rarely works and when it does it often crashes Google maps and I end up with a black screen. Also find loses connectivity often and don't get me started on the voice dialling or navigation, I think I am running about a 95% failure rate! Thanks for the tips. I will try a few of these suggestions as it's beginning to get on my nerves.

 

[Gomev]

Yep you might be, and so might the guy who posted it.

But the old phone doesn't connect to AA, it simply acts as a wireless connection* to the car for the phone with AA (like those expensive dongles do). At least that's the theory. Maybe I'll try it next week, but it isn't that much of a problem to me really.

EDIT: * I meant of course hotspot

It is actually the old phone that is running AA, the new phone is purely providing access to the internet via the WIFI hotspot. AA won't work without the internet.
The reason the new phone is providing the WIFI is because the old phone doesn't have a sim card. If you get a cheap sim simply using the old phone would be great.
So to sum up it was the new phone that is unreliable for AA, not the cables, the old phone works fine with the same cables the new one doesn't.

 

[Lindsco174]

I am forever having issues with AA as well. BBC sounds app rarely works and when it does it often crashes Google maps and I end up with a black screen. Also find loses connectivity often and don't get me started on the voice dialling or navigation, I think I am running about a 95% failure rate! Thanks for the tips. I will try a few of these suggestions as it's beginning to get on my nerves.

Same here. I too am hoping the tips can help as so frustrating.

 

[Lindsco174]

Update - bought the cable

Few tips:
1) purchase a short USB cable of good quality. (I've had flawless experience with THIS one)
2) don't open navigation on your phone prior to connecting to Android Auto/Car Play
3) wait for the infotainment system to fully boot before plugging in the USB

Having google maps open before connecting, or being hasty to plug it all in as the system is booting up, are the root cause of many issues with Android Auto and specifically the screen crashing/going black and rebooting. Second only to having a poor quality cable. AA are working on a cable quality check to at least tell people the cable is the issue. I'm sure Apple Car Play isn't much different.

Same goes for starting the car, get in, switch it on, put on your belt, wait for ready before putting it into gear.

Update - cable has worked a treat and also not opening apps on the phone previously. Thank you for your help and to others for suggestions too

 

[Lguk]

Great, nice to know at least one person has been helped.

The other main point seems to be "leave the phone alone, put it in the pocket and ignore it" handling the device whilst it's in use can cause all kinds of stability issues.

 

[smokie]

The other main point seems to be "leave the phone alone, put it in the pocket and ignore it" handling the device whilst it's in use can cause all kinds of stability issues.

That'll be cos it's the connection that is the weak point, not the cable or the phone in themselves...

2 x 400+ mile journeys completed last week with no drop outs so long as the phone was not fiddled with. As soon as the phone was picked up it dropped the connection.