Using Android Auto heating up my phone: What could be the cause

I’ve seen that when my phone is using AA wirelessly, all connections are switched on and that starts draining my battery.

BHPian Drdriver recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hey fellow BhPians.

I have recently gotten an Android headunit installed in my car which is running Android Auto via headunit reloaded app.

It connects fine both ways, wirelessly and wired. But I’ve seen that when my phone is using AA wirelessly, all connections (wifi, bluetooth, location and data) are switched on and that starts draining my battery. I plug it in the 12v socket and soon it gets so hot that i can literally make an omelette over it.

If i go the wired way, the HU doesn’t put out enough current to charge the phone and it shows 7h+ charging time on 35%. Plus, it doesn’t even charge and rather the battery drains here too. It still gets warm, but not so much. I’ve been using an AC vent mobile holder to keep my phone cool but it means that I have to consistently blast my AC on road trips even when the weather is good outside and it just ruins my mileage.

Has anyone experienced the same? And are there any solutions to this issue?

Here's what BHPian Mr.Boss had to say on the matter:

2 key information missing - Which HU, which Phone?

Try with a different phone and observe the same for easy conclusion.

My observations so far with Pioneer 5290 & JVC 740 models (both with wired AA & ACP)

No heating issues in below models:

• Moto One fusion plus
• iPhone SE2020

Moderate heat (a little above warm)

• Vivo T2
• Honor (forgot the model)

Fry pan:

• Samsung M13

Here's what BHPian shancz had to say on the matter:

While your phone is unknown, Exynos chipsets are notorious for heating especially on mobile data. Do check and confirm. Charging a heating phone will make matters worse.

Is your phone set to 5G by default? I have noticed high battery drain and heating when on 5G network and data. That device was the Moto Edge 20 Fusion running Dimensity 800U.

Assuming that your battery backup is okay otherwise, check if your phone is overheating under normal map navigation on mobile data which could indicate an issue with the SoC.

BHPian Drdriver replied:

My phone is a Samsung Galaxy m14 5G. Bought it 2 days ago. But I was facing the same issue on my Galaxy A12. Could be the Exynos chipset issue you mention.

Here's what BHPian Kosfactor had to say on the matter:

When a phone is playing music and navigating at the same time, its not a problem however when the battery is a bit low and the fast charging is trying to quickly top up the battery, this can be a problem, especially if it has wireless fast charging, the inefficient nature of wireless charging combined with fast charging releases quite a bit of heat as it is, there is no place for all that heat to go.

Some things you can experiment with.

Connect to a non-fast charging port.

Charge the phone completely before entering the vehicle.

Keep only the music and navigation on in the phone apps.

Remove the phone cover when using wireless fast charging.

To put this in perspective:

A super cheap Vivo something phone happily runs Android Auto, it does not have a very fast charging speed or wireless charging at all.

Here's what BHPian Shreyans_Jain had to say on the matter:

This isn’t acar issue; this is a phone issue and a basic thermodynamics issue. The specific chipset is prone to overheating, especially when multiple things are used simultaneously, and fast charging generates a lot of heat. Net net, the phone will get hot.

The OP’s phone is new. I have this same issue in my ageing iPhone XR. Wired CarPlay with navigation running, summer heat and especially on a battery charge under 20%, the phone heats up so much that charging stops. Sometimes, it shuts down altogether. My solution is to set it up and then put the phone into the cooled glovebox. That keeps it working and charges well too.

Here'swhat BHPian abhisekbit had to say on the matter:

I managed to test a host of phones with Wireless Android Auto and Android based Chinese Headunits. And the observation is practically the same. Use it for long drives and the phone is practically unusable. Battery gets depleted very fast and phone heats up like hell.

So mostly I use a secondary phone for wireless android auto connected to power will the primary phone is used for other stuffs.

The primary phone is connected to the headunit only via Bluetooth so as to receive calls outside of Android Auto.

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