Android Auto 12.6 Stable Update Features and Downloads

Following the rather larger updates in the recent versions, Android Auto 12.6 stable release comes with stability and bug fixes for all Android phones and car head units. The last Android Auto 12.5 update brought some new features like System Health Metrics, new notification app badges & animations, support for new cars OEMs like Lucid Motors, RAM Trucks, EVs like Nevo, Hongqi, and GAC.

Android Auto 12.6 is now rolling out to the stable channel with no new features but rather stability improvements. This week’s biggest announcement is that Google Maps gets a new Reporting Feature available for Android, iOS, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. With this new update, Google will crowdsource traffic reports, constructions, police, lane closures, and more and report to everyone on Google Maps; similar to Waze.

Our new APK Breakdown series dives deep into the latest APK file, unveiling new features in the latest update of any app. Similar to what we did with the previous Android Auto 12.5 beta update, we have analyzed the latest stable version as well.

We did, however, find some new stuff in Android Auto 12.6 stable version. Digging into the source code, we found references to a new Play Store Logo.

<public type=”drawable” name=”product_logo_play_store_round_color_48″ />

References to Play Store Logo in Android Auto

Take that as you will, as we aren’t sure what this means just yet. The code isn’t present in previous versions. This is the first time the Play Store Logo has been referenced.

As for what’s new, the latest update already supports cars from Lucid Motors, most likely Lucid Air, all it needs is an OTA update from the OEM to be pushed to cars in order to support it. All that is required is an OTA update from Lucid Motors to the cars. Apart from Lucid, we also found support for other car manufacturers like Nevo, Hongqi, and GAC Motors. Here is the Complete List of Car Manufacturers Supported by Android Auto.

Furthermore, new feature called System Health Metrics have been added. While we don’t know what it does yet, it may show some system information about your car or Android Auto.

Notification badges have been redesigned in Android Auto to include an icon with image of the sender. They also have a new animation. The update also brings official support for Android 15 and adds new Notification badge Animations.

Checkout all the new features in Android Auto from our previous article. Also, download latest Android Auto APK from here.