Your Android Auto just lost a critical driving feature, and no-one knows why

Published Aug 24, 2026, 9:32 AM EDT I've been covering Android and other mobile technology for close to ten years now, with a specific interest in phone accessories, e-readers, and what makes each individual phone different from another. I delight in looking at the phone market from as many angles as possible, and while my opinions may be odd, at times, they're always from the heart as much as the head. I have a background in the mobile accessories world, which explains my odd enthusiasm for cases and things that clip onto smartphones. I worked for Digital Trends from 2017 to 2025. Sign in to your Android Police account Another day, another Android Auto bug. It seems that when Google isn't fixing Android Auto bugs, it's creating new ones. Long-suffering users are reporting that the traffic overlay is no longer working in Android Auto, shutting off the ability to see where traffic jams are forming. It's a big blow for anyone who used these indicators to avoid slowdowns where they can, and while people are reporting there are some workarounds, it largely seems you'll be waiting until it's fixed. The familiar green, yellow, orange, and red lines are missing Just boring blue for now As ever with problems with Android Auto, it's the community that have rung the warning bell. Posts on Reddit and the Android Auto community have raised the alarm, noticing that the traffic overlay for Android Auto has stopped working. This interface is the one that notifies you, through use of color, about the state of the road ahead. Green means the road is proceeding normally, yellow means some level of congestion, and orange and red indicate rising levels of traffic. Savvy users can then use this information to figure out if they can detour to get around the traffic, sometimes before Google Maps' guidance updates. The lack of that information now means some drivers are driving with one hand behind their backs — metaphorically, of course. There's some speculation the bug is related to the recent Immersive Navigation rollout, but that may turn out to be a red herring. The Immersive Navigation feature was rolled out server-side, not through an update — and some users have found reverting to an older version brings the mode back for them. However, this is far from certain, and it's worked for some, and not for others. The most recent updates, for Android Auto and Google Maps alike, also don't seem to have fixed the problem. It's also worth remembering this isn't showing up for everyone. I've personally had no problems with Android Auto's traffic layout recently, so it seems I'm one of the lucky few not hit by this bug. As is common for Android Auto bugs, we're sat waiting for Google to acknowledge the bug and fix it. Google's been in a bug-stomping mood recently though, so with any luck we won't have to wait for long.