# GM thinks it's OK that 7" MyLink "doesn't work well" with Android.



## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

So, I've been having all kinds of erratic behavior with my 2 cars that have the 7" MyLink. The other with the larger unit works fine, the rental cars work fine. Even the el-cheapo $100 aftermarket unit in my 23 year Saturn works. But apparently it's normal and accepted by GM Tech support that this unit is known to have issues (the crazy bright screen in reverse camera mode, and sometimes staying bright at night is also an issue with this radio). 

Is GM trying to drive away loyal customers, because this attitude is very effective in doing just that.


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

They're not driving me away. 

I have my dash lights turned down. My backup screen isn't that bright. 

I'm also not having any issues with AA.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

snowwy66 said:


> They're not driving me away.
> 
> I have my dash lights turned down. My backup screen isn't that bright.
> 
> I'm also not having any issues with AA.


Great, yet BOTH.my 2018s with the 7" MyLink go full bright in reverse. The 2019 rental I had did this also. Dimmer did nothing with the reverse camera. Then I had another 2018 rental that did the same thing. There's a thread on that issue alone. So you got lucky, but clearly not so for many others. It's also been since June 28th for an EGR cooler to come in, with at least 1500 miles driving with the CEL. That is the kind of thing that caused the government to order FCA to offer buybacks for their inability to get steering recalls done due to parts supply issues. 

The fact that they told my dealership that they know this particular MyLink has problems with Android, yet the 9" radio does not, means they know it's a problem for many, but they think it's OK to do nothing. Unacceptable.


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## TDCruze (Sep 26, 2014)

It is frustrating getting blown off for legitimate complaints about a new car. I don't get it. You go to any other store and buy a defective item they exchange it or refund with little to no questions asked. I get that a car is a bit different, but having to fight dealers to try and make repairs is ridiculous. Sometimes intermittent problems are hard to trace if they cannot see or hear them, but some just don't seem to care or try very hard. 

My new "updated" 7" Mylink screen still seems very bright with the reverse camera on maybe a bit less then the original one. At least I can dim it for normal driving now. I don't use Android on the Mylink much so can't speak for that. 

I am guessing the reason they updated the 7" Mylink for the 2019's is because of all the glitches with the previous version. I wish I had the 2019 unit on my car. The GUI is much more visually appealing than my 2018. Apparently the reverse camera screen is still super bright at night.


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

Hmm, must only be the "older" style MyLink - my 8" in the Volt (which was the last MyLink before the switch to Chevy Infotainment in 2019) doesn't do that with Android Auto.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

So, I already verified it's totally BS. My other car with the 7"MyLink works with both my Android phones just fine, also the crap that it's "normal" to drop WiFi when you make a call is just that. Other 2018 with the 7" MyLink doesn't drop WiFi. In fact is used WiFi to make a Google Voice call and it worked. Clearly the radio in my other car has a hardware defect or corrupted software.


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

You're not going to beleive this. 

But sometimes a software upgrade comes out. And stops the phone from working properly. And sometimes. It stops working on SOME radios. NOT ALL. But some. 
software glitches. And there's usually another software upgrade that follows shortly as people report their problems. And problems fixed. 

Something to think about. 

Even though you're not going to beleive it because it works fine on your other car. 

I've had the same phone quit in the car but work on the semi. And that exact same phone quit on the semi but work on the car. And it's only happened with a software update.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

snowwy66 said:


> You're not going to beleive this.
> 
> But sometimes a software upgrade comes out. And stops the phone from working properly. And sometimes. It stops working on SOME radios. NOT ALL. But some.
> software glitches. And there's usually another software upgrade that follows shortly as people report their problems. And problems fixed.
> ...


Oh, I can believe it. But it's still a problem that should be fixed. If my el-cheapo units can reliably connect, there is no excuses for the expensive new car to not work.


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## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

Why not call the MyLink "experts"

We recommend reaching out to Infotainment Customer Support Team at 855-478-7767, as they will be in the best position to troubleshoot these issues. They are available from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. EST, Monday - Saturday.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Eddy Cruze said:


> Why not call the MyLink "experts"
> 
> We recommend reaching out to Infotainment Customer Support Team at 855-478-7767, as they will be in the best position to troubleshoot these issues. They are available from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. EST, Monday - Saturday.


Thanks, I got in touch with a rep via FaceBook messenger, who put me in touch with a rep on phone, who transferred me to another rep, who is looking into it, and I'm on hold right now. The first guy agreed the issue is not normal, and in no way should WiFi drop when a phone call is made. They are not even the same hardware in the unit.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

TDCruze said:


> It is frustrating getting blown off for legitimate complaints about a new car. I don't get it. You go to any other store and buy a defective item they exchange it or refund with little to no questions asked. I get that a car is a bit different, but having to fight dealers to try and make repairs is ridiculous. Sometimes intermittent problems are hard to trace if they cannot see or hear them, but some just don't seem to care or try very hard.
> 
> My new "updated" 7" Mylink screen still seems very bright with the reverse camera on maybe a bit less then the original one. At least I can dim it for normal driving now. I don't use Android on the Mylink much so can't speak for that.
> 
> I am guessing the reason they updated the 7" Mylink for the 2019's is because of all the glitches with the previous version. I wish I had the 2019 unit on my car. The GUI is much more visually appealing than my 2018. Apparently the reverse camera screen is still super bright at night.


I can verify the 2019 does still have the insane bright screen with reverse camera. I had a 2019 Cruze rental this summer and it did that also. Why they can't fix that, when it's not a problem with the other units is beyond me. 

I do now have a case number, and GM is supposed to contact me within 2 days. The first rep. I spoke to agreed that the symptoms on my unit are not normal. I'll follow-up with what happens. As much as I should not have to, I can live with the crazy bright reverse camera, I'd just cut a piece of window tint to put in there when I use it at night.. but I don't want to be stuck with a unit that can not reliably pair and make hands-free calls while driving, that has become a sort of safety feature. I was even able to pair with my el-cheapo aftermarket and off brand unit is my truck and make a call in a highway emergency once. Hands-free calling is a valuable feature in any vehicle.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Well, it seems I'm stuck is a do loop of nothing likely to get done. GM Customer Assistance has me going back to the Servicing Dealership again.. (Oct 4, so I'll update after that visit). I'm not sure what they think they can do, I guess I'm going to have to compare the bizarre behavior on one of my cars against the other with same radio that seems to work fine (or at least not as bad, I had seen it have difficulty with holding Bluetooth pair in the past, but my recent testing it worked without issue).. As if that should even be needed. That they could say the bigger more expensive radio can work properly no issues, and that it's typical or normal for the 7" radio to "not work well with Android" continues to rub me wrong. At this point, I don't see any "fix" other than a new radio, it's clearly not a software issue, since the other car doesn't do the same. It's not the phone, as it doesn't work with different android phones, but seems to like I-phones better, but even with I-phone it does the message of dropped WiFi and WiFi reconnect following a call (Ironically it appears the WiFi is still connected even after the message saying it was dropped). It's like a random glitch to put of that message with the hands-free call.


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## PolarisX (Dec 17, 2017)

Just an idea.

Disable the hotspot function in the radio. Bluetooth and the hotspot both use 2.4Ghz spectrum and I wonder if something isn't getting along. Even if you aren't paying for it, it keeps broadcasting its SSID if it's on.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

PolarisX said:


> Just an idea.
> 
> Disable the hotspot function in the radio. Bluetooth and the hotspot both use 2.4Ghz spectrum and I wonder if something isn't getting along. Even if you aren't paying for it, it keeps broadcasting its SSID if it's on.


Well, it seems the messages are bogus. Says disconnected, but it's not. I actually used the WiFi to make a Google voice phone call, and it worked via WiFi. I've also noticed that the time is frequently incorrect, even though it's set to get time for cell tower. It corrects with Android Auto, but I that is just showing the phone time directly. It's an issue I have not even bothered to mention yet. 

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk


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## Iamantman (Sep 24, 2018)

MRO1791 said:


> I can verify the 2019 does still have the insane bright screen with reverse camera. I had a 2019 Cruze rental this summer and it did that also. Why they can't fix that, when it's not a problem with the other units is beyond me.


Just out of curiosity, do you have a photo or something of what this looks like? I'm just curious. Do you mean the screen "whites out" because it's overexposed? Maybe that's a camera issue? If you just mean it comes on when it's dark and it's bright, I'm not really sure what the issue is?


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## PolarisX (Dec 17, 2017)

Hey! You jinxed me! My whole infotainment system died!

I wonder if you are in the same boat as me, but its showing in a different way. I made a recent post about my problem.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Iamantman said:


> Just out of curiosity, do you have a photo or something of what this looks like? I'm just curious. Do you mean the screen "whites out" because it's overexposed? Maybe that's a camera issue? If you just mean it comes on when it's dark and it's bright, I'm not really sure what the issue is?


OK, what I'm talking about is the screen goes to FULL brightness when in reverse camera mode, that is fine in bright daylight, it's not fine at night in the rain, because it destroys night vision and causes glare such that it's hard to see anything, including the mirrors. At night I try to not use reverse, if I can, or I hold a hand to cover the super bright screen so I have a chance to see out the mirrors and windows. This is not a problem with the larger infotainment radio in my wife's 2017, it stays at the dimmer setting brightness even with the reverse camera is active. It's a problem with the 7" for some reason, and it doesn't appear to have been fixed with the newer 2019 7" radio, based on the experience with a 2019 rental I had for a trip. The other issue, at times the screen will stay full bright until the car is cycled through reverse to "reset" it, that makes night driving difficult and downright dangerous. I had a 2018 rental that had that issue before I knew about the reverse and out trick to reset it, I had to turn the screen off entirely, but that is not even a viable fix, becaus as soon as you make any adjustment to anything that screen would display, even chagn the fan speed, and it comes back on and blasts super bright at you. It's really bad that GM has not learnd from the ignition switch debacle, perhaps some people need to crash from not being able to see at night before they fix this issue. I should note, while that issue is annoying, I would live with it, but I am not happy about the unsreliable bluetooth, as I find hands free calling very useful, and if I can do it with a $99 aftermarket unit in my 1996 Saturn, I CERTAINLY should be able to do it with the over $20K 2018 Cruze with the MyLink system. GM was marketing these cars for the technology, and no where did they advertise "does not work will with Android" That is rubbish.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

PolarisX said:


> Hey! You jinxed me! My whole infotainment system died!
> 
> I wonder if you are in the same boat as me, but its showing in a different way. I made a recent post about my problem.


If you are still under warranty, that might be a blessing. They apparantly end up replacing with the newer unit, as was reported on another thread here from someone who had a replacement. Now, it might still have a few issues, like the screen brightness, but it's likely to be better than the original, at least one can hope. 

If you out of warranty, I'd at least get a complaint with GM on file, as this is not something that should just quit on a newer car.


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## Iamantman (Sep 24, 2018)

Huh that is weird. Have you tried checking for updates and rebooting? They're just custom made PCs so they're prone to the same dumb stuff that affects our work and home computers. Try rebooting it and see if that helps. If not you can always disable the rear camera just so that it's not a distraction. I know that's not a long term fix but we parked cars without the camera for the better part of 100 years


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Iamantman said:


> Huh that is weird. Have you tried checking for updates and rebooting? They're just custom made PCs so they're prone to the same dumb stuff that affects our work and home computers. Try rebooting it and see if that helps. If not you can always disable the rear camera just so that it's not a distraction. I know that's not a long term fix but we parked cars without the camera for the better part of 100 years


Yes, it has been updated, and I've done restarts. The odd Bluetooth and loss of keeping time, random messages about WiFI connection all suggest something like a memory issue with the hardware. Agree it's basically a computer, and I've had computers with unstable memory or bad CPUs do weird stuff before also. 
Totally agree on doing without camera. Sure it's nice to have, but not needed. That the screen goes crazy bright at night already makes it not usable.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

So a quick update. Car is in for service for the EGR that finally came in, and I was expecting a replacement radio because GM customer assistance had called and left a message saying that they discussed with the dealership and that a new radio would be ordered. That was back in October.. now they seem to be unable to recall saying they were going order a new radio. So, the saga continues. Thankfully I have Google Voice, and a copy of the message that said a new radio was going to be ordered, so they can't pretend it wasn't said! That makes me want to record all calls with these people so they can't change the story later as happened on this case.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Finally, after many visits and calls, the infotainment system was replaced. So far it seems to be working correctly, for the most part. It still does some random messages about WiFi, but seems the WiFi is still working. Bluetooth holds, and doesn't drop at random, and it pairs with phone and makes calls correctly. So, I call that success. GM eventually did the right thing, it only took me having 2 cars with the same radio, to show them the odd behavior on one, to get the new radio on order... who knew such a thing would be needed!


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