A glitch affecting Coolwalk users causes the bottom part of the UI to freeze, making it impossible to touch anything in that area.
The lower part of the screen contains app icons and allows users to switch between navigation solutions, music players and phone calls. The navigation bar also contains an icon to access the home screen and return to the dashboard view.
Therefore, once the bug is found, it is no longer possible to jump from one app to another. Interaction with the app in focus works as expected, as does voice command support. Users can theoretically rely on Google Assistant to open certain apps, but the experience has been rather inconsistent so far. Voice commands are also broken on some devices due to unrelated bugs.
The only solution found is to reconnect the mobile device to the head unit. This will reset the connection and restore full touch input. However, the bug reactivates after just a few minutes, usually when navigation is enabled.
Google recently confirmed that it is investigating reports, and an investigation is currently underway. The company is now asking users to contribute to the development of a phone log fix.
The data should help the Android Auto team identify the cause of the problem. Since the research is still in its infancy, no ETA is available yet on when a fix would be released. This may take a while depending on how complex the bug turns out to be.
If you’d like to join in and help Google develop a fix for this issue, check out the discussion thread and share bug details. The company should then contact you by email with instructions on how to file a bug report and submit the phone logs.
In the meantime, many users are still waiting for Coolwalk’s redesign. The process takes place in stages, especially due to bugs like this one. Whenever Google discovers a major outage in Coolwalk, it may suspend the rollout for the devices that might be affected. As such, some users have to wait longer than others to get Coolwalk.
The company has not shared an ETA on when it plans to complete the Coolwalk rollout. The broad availability phase is expected to be reached in 2023, but this may also mean that some users will have to wait until later this year to get the new design. There is currently no way to force-enable Coolwalk on a device that doesn’t have the experience enabled.