The latest mysterious problem, which users claim started happening after an update received in early August, causes Google Maps to no longer be available on Android Auto.
Most users connect their phones to their cars and either wait for Google Maps to launch automatically if they used it the last time they drove or tap its icon to start the app. After this mysterious update, neither of these two options is available, as Google Maps fails to start and is not available in the app drawer on Android Auto.
Users who turned to Google’s forums claim that everything worked correctly before this unnamed early-August update, and some say that launching Google Maps on their mobile devices before connecting them to Android Auto is the only way to use navigation. You can imagine this isn’t the convenient and straightforward experience users expected from Android Auto, so they’re asking Google to release a fix.
While a Google Community Specialist whose account description indicates they are part of the Android Auto team has already asked for additional bug information, no patch is currently available. Users themselves have investigated the glitch and tried to find a fix, and fortunately, someone discovered a small trick that restores Google Maps on Android Auto.
It looks like this recent update added Google Maps to the list of apps optimized for low battery consumption, so when not in use, the application is put into a deep sleep mode. This means the app is suspended, so when you connect your phone to a car to launch Android Auto, it fails to relaunch because the process is already put to sleep.
The fix is simple, as you only need to switch Google Maps to unrestricted power mode. The steps are different according to each Android brand and model, but you should find the settings under Settings > Apps > Google Maps > Battery. Make sure Google Maps is configured to the unrestricted mode (or something similar, as the naming could be different according to your Android version and ROM).
Google hasn’t shared an ETA for an upcoming Google Maps patch that would resolve the error, and it’s unclear if the search giant can even fix it. The misconfiguration appears to be an operating system blunder, so let’s wait for the company to look into it and see what can be done about this problem. Meanwhile, use the steps above to fix the problem yourselves.