Want ANDROID AUTO ? .....email Toyota from this contact page !

Interestingly on Toyota’s Canadian website the 2021 Prius Prime is up. It says Android Auto is available but with the asterisk (basic model only) and not available on the Upgrade or Technology Package.

 

Such BS from Toyota. I thought the 2020 11.6" was running Entune 3 with Entune 3 hardware. Otherwise, why wouldn't the 2019 get Apple Car Play?

 

It’s. bit ridiculous to have to choose between a more customizable infotainment system and a nicer interior (electric seats, and intelligent Parking assist) someone at Toyota dropped the ball there.

 

Not to mention heads up display that puts your speedometer in front of you instead of to the side. Blind spot monitoring and remote climate and charging control.

 

Toyota has made it clear that the 11.6" Denso (not Denso Ten) head unit is not compatible with Android Auto.

The 7.0" Denso Ten (not Denso) head unit is compatible with Android Auto, and I believe it is possible at least in theory to get a firmware update for older model years to enable Android Auto.

I wonder what makes it incompatible. I thought most head units ran Android or Linux these days. Perhaps it runs a distribution of Linux not compatible with Android.

 

Could be a matter of codebases. I do recall at some point there was a shift from QNX to Automotive Grade Linux. There’s an Android for Cars platform but that is very much bleeding edge. I think the Polestar 2 is one of the few cars out there that use it so far, but Nissan-Renault is due to roll it out in their cars eventually.

Am happy enough with CarPlay on a spare phone for now as I’ve heard AndroidAuto can be buggy depending on phone model.

 

So you run 2 phones?

 

I am sure the "incompatibility" is not inherent and all it means is that they consider this head unit to be obsolete and they don't want to put their resources on writing software to bring Android Auto into it. It is sad given that this is the premium head unit.

 

Hey, I always carry 2 phones with me. Gen1 Pixel XL running Android 10 and Nokia Lumia 635 running Windows Phone 8.1. No mirroring on the PRIME head unit though.

 

That’s exactly it, the built in apps are ok, LiveXLive and Yelp are usable for the most part. Just wish there were other apps available, there just wasn’t as thought put into the app ecosystem or development support. If only Toyota would just do something like publish API’s or documentation in other ways am sure lots of enthusiasts with coding skills would create all sorts of useful apps.

 

I wrote my letter to Toyota. Will let you know when I get my form letter response. I'm not optimistic.

I had no idea how uninterested Toyota is in this car. Bummer! Explains why the salesperson knew zero about it. I think if people knew that you could have all the flexibility of a regular Prius PLUS the plug in option, it would be popular! That's why we got it.

Anyway, we just bought the Prime LE 2 weeks ago and I was led to believe it would work with my Android phone. Huge buyers remorse when I realized it did not have it and that I could if I'd waited a few months. Honestly, I think I would've sprung for the XLE. Sooooo irritated.

I got voice control to work and can make calls and play music but unclear what this Entune nonsense is. The reviews on the Entune apps are horrific.

I want to be able to project Google Maps from my phone and cannot do this via Bluetooth or USB. SOOOO frustrating. The LE didn't come with the maps program. Any other options for me?

BTW, enjoying my 2 GB free Wi-Fi hotspot and found out it's $20/month after trial. I won't do that, but some might.

 

Just to be clear, Prius PRIME XLE nor the Limited offers Android Auto. In fact AFAIK, none of regular 2020 Prius lines offers Android Auto. Rumor is that for 2021 models, Prius PRIME LE will get Android Auto integration but not on XLE or Limited with a large 11.6" screen.

LE model comes with Scout GPS. It is not Google Map, but IMHO is better than Toyota OEM in-car navigation system. It is free for now, but will cost something like $20 year after initial 3 year. It's far better than $200 you would have to pay for the map update for the Toyota OEM in-car navigation system. I don't use navigation system often enough to be bothered by lack of the in-car nav. For occasional GPS need Scout GPS is fine. But when I have to pay for it or if I need to use GPS more often I will just put my Garmin on the dash.

 

For the LE version with the small display, you can at least in principle get a firmware update from Toyota to make Android Auto work in the past and current models. The 2021 LE model will get it from the factory, which is confirmed.

There won't be Android Auto in the past and future XLE and Limited Edition models with large displays.