When in Android Auto (AA), if I press the voice command button on the steering wheel, it causes the system to leave AA and go back to the vehicle's built-in system. However, if I tap the microphone icon on the screen while in AA, it will then allow me to utilize the AA system for searching, nav, etc. Is this how it is supposed to function, or should the voice command button on the steering wheel utilize AA when the phone is plugged in and AA is operational? Thanks.

 

Hit the voice command button on the steering wheel for a longer period of time! Long tap - AA answers (actually Google Assistant now). Short tap the button and you get Chevy's (not as good by a long shot) voice commands.

Or, just set up AA to wake on the Google hotwords (i.e. "OK Google" or "Hey Google").

Note that if you have the top off or are listening to something loud, it's harder to get OK Google to work.

 

Short press = Built in Chevy voice commands
Long press = Android Auto/Google voice commands

As an added comment, while one might be "better" or "worse", they can be used for different things. For example, you can use the Chevy voice commands to tune the radio ('tune FM 103.1", or "tune XM 80's on 8"), which you can not do with Android Auto/Google.

 

Yeah that is if you can get the Chevy system to understand what you said. I spend 20 minutes on the side of the road trying to get it to understand that I wanted directions to the DMV.

And I've never used the XM system in my car and pretty much never use the radio either.

 

Never had a issue talking to my car through the Chevy system. Maybe you aren't enunciating distinctly?

 

I've never had an issue talking to the car either. My issue is that it doesn't understand what I said. It's terrible at it. It's also not very smart in it's approach. Take, for example, Chevy's insistence on giving the city and state information when trying to tell it to go to an address. It should know what city and state I'm in based on GPS. Another example, say "McNee Ranch" and it can't find it. Say "McNee Ranch State Park" and it will. Also, if you do manage to get it to understand a location it puts up a screen allowing you to select navigate or call. The screen will not move forward unless you interact with it. I can count the number of times I wanted to call the place on the fingers of no hands actually. It's a stupid and wasteful step.

Enunciating it properly? Demonstrably false! How do I know? After struggling for literally 20 minutes in a hot car trying different incarnations of DMV, Department of Motor Vehicles, DMV in <city>, etc. the Chevy system was not just up to the task of finding it. Cracked open my cell phone and said "OK Google, navigate to the DMV" and it understood it perfectly and started route navigation. If Google could understand it why can't Chevy? Because their systems sucks.

 

It's even worse with a southern accent.

 

Yeah, it cries more, more, more...

 

no audio when using AA. Go to screen in dash, and says audio off when in AA. Go back to radio or media, no problem. When in audio off, no. Control **** can increase volume.

 

The issue you have is quite common. You can overcome it by pressing and holding the voice command button on the steering. Just tapping the voice command button will activate the built in system. So press and hold a little bit and you'll be good to go!

 

You have to hold it for 2 seconds in order to address it via Android Auto.

 

You can also just say "Okay Google" and AA will perk up. You don't need to but any button