Tips and troubleshooting

• Your phone runs Android Auto as if it were plugged into a car. PAATH takes the picture and sound and sends them to your Tesla's browser over your phone's hotspot. You use Android Auto on the car's screen while the phone stays in your pocket.
• PAATH is free and provided as is, without warranty. You stay responsible while driving; follow your local laws on screens in the car.

1. Open Android Auto settings, scroll to the bottom and tap Version once; it opens into Version and permission info. Tap that about 10 more times to turn on developer settings.
2. Scroll back up, tap the three dots at the top right and choose Start head unit server.
3. In PAATH, tap START. If Android asks to allow a VPN, allow it. PAATH uses it only to give the car a fixed address to reach; your internet traffic does not go through it.
4. Turn on your hotspot and connect the car to it.
5. In the car's browser, open the address PAATH shows on its home screen.
6. Pairing your car in PAATH is optional. It lets PAATH start on its own when you get in. To have it stop when you get out too, turn on Stop when I leave the car in Settings, Car.

In the app: the ANDROID AUTO SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

• Use 5 GHz if your phone offers it and your car connects to it.
• Otherwise use 2.4 GHz and set the broadcast channel to 11.
• SAMSUNG The broadcast channel setting (tap Band, then Advanced) only appears when Auto Hotspot and Wi-Fi sharing are off. A change takes effect once you turn Mobile Hotspot off and on.
• OTHER PHONES Look for a channel or broadcast channel option in your hotspot settings. Not every phone has one.
• Keep mobile data on. The car leaves a hotspot that has no internet within a second.

SAMSUNG In the app: the WALK ME THROUGH IT button on the HELP page.

In the app: the HOTSPOT SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

1. SAMSUNG Open Modes and Routines, in your phone's Settings.
2. SAMSUNG Tap + at the top (Create routine).
3. SAMSUNG Under If, tap Add what will trigger this routine. Scroll down to Connections and tap Bluetooth device.
4. SAMSUNG Tap Device, then tap your car under Paired devices. Connected is already chosen, so tap Done.
5. SAMSUNG Under Then, tap Add what this routine will do. Tap Connections, scroll down and tap Mobile Hotspot.
6. SAMSUNG On is already chosen, so tap Done. Leave When routine ends as it is: it is already right.
7. SAMSUNG Tap Save at the bottom, name it PAATH, then tap Done.

OTHER PHONES Other phones have no routines. PAATH can turn the hotspot on with the free Shizuku app: in PAATH, Settings, Network, Advanced.

SAMSUNG In the app: the SET UP THE ROUTINE button on the HELP page.

• The picture stops while you reverse. The car gives the screen to the cameras, and the picture comes back after.
• Music plays about one second behind. That cushion keeps it smooth through short hiccups.
• The navigation voice starts about half a second late, for the same reason.
• During a phone call the picture gets softer on purpose, so it keeps moving.
• The phone gets warm. Most of the heat comes from Android Auto, the hotspot and Bluetooth, not from the picture quality.
• If Stop when I leave the car is on, PAATH stops about 25 seconds after you leave.
• For a sharper picture, pick Sharp in Settings, Video & Sound. If it struggles on the road, PAATH moves back to Balanced by itself.

• On the first drive with a car, the car's screen offers a test of about 30 seconds. Run it parked.
• It checks what the car's screen shows, what your phone makes and what the link carries, then picks Steady or Balanced and says why.
• After a few drives that hold steady, PAATH moves the picture up by itself, and after a few that struggle, down. Calls and reverse do not count.
• Run it again from Settings, Video & Sound, with PAATH open in the car.

In the app: the VIDEO & SOUND SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

1. Unlock your phone. Android Auto may be waiting for you. Tap PAATH's notification if you see one. Do Not Disturb can hide it.
2. If PAATH says Android Auto is not responding, close all your recent apps, then open Android Auto settings and turn on Start head unit server again. Stopping and starting PAATH does not fix this.
3. If your phone restarted or Android Auto was closed, check that Start head unit server is on. It does not turn itself back on.
4. Make sure Android Auto is up to date. Very old versions ignore PAATH.

In the app: the ANDROID AUTO SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

• Android Auto on your phone works with one screen at a time. If another screen in the car is connected to it, such as a wireless Android Auto display or adapter, or a car plugged in by cable, the car's browser says Android Auto is on another screen and PAATH waits.
• Switch that screen off or unplug it, and PAATH connects by itself within a few seconds.
• To stop it connecting without losing it, look in Android Auto settings for a Wireless Android Auto switch and turn it off. Not every phone has one.
• Do not forget the car in Android Auto or unpair it just for this, and keep Bluetooth on. Your car key and PAATH's auto-start use it.

In the app: the ANDROID AUTO SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

1. Check that the car is connected to your phone's hotspot.
2. Check that mobile data is on. The car leaves a hotspot without internet within a second.
3. Check that PAATH is started.
4. Use the address shown on PAATH's home screen, https:// included: some cars do not open it without.
5. After updating PAATH, reload the page in the car once.

In the app: the HOTSPOT SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

1. Turn off the car's Bluetooth media audio. It made the biggest difference in our tests.
2. Use 5 GHz if your phone and car allow it. Otherwise set the broadcast channel to 11.
3. SAMSUNG Turn off Auto Hotspot and Wi-Fi sharing first, or the broadcast channel setting stays hidden. A change takes effect once you turn Mobile Hotspot off and on.
4. Do not reload the page during a freeze. It recovers on its own.
5. On 2.4 GHz, short freezes can happen during phone calls. The picture gets softer on purpose to ride through them.

In the app: the BLUETOOTH SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

In the app: the HOTSPOT SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

1. Turn on Opus audio in Settings, Video & Sound.
2. The steps for a stuttering picture help the sound too.

In the app: the VIDEO & SOUND SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

This can happen on 2.4 GHz. The car reconnects on its own, usually within a few minutes.

1. Fill screen in Settings, Video & Sound shapes Android Auto to your screen. It is on by default.
2. On a phone or tablet, after you rotate the screen, wait about two seconds for Android Auto to adjust.

In the app: the VIDEO & SOUND SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

PAATH plays the sound through this phone's speaker by itself. While Android Auto runs, it takes other apps' sound, so the browser stays quiet on purpose.

• "Phone needs to cool down" comes from Google Maps, not from PAATH. Maps will not start navigation until the phone cools. Waze does not have this limit.
• "Phone is hot, quality reduced" across the top of the car screen comes from PAATH. It lowers the picture quality on its own to help the phone cool down. Tap it to fold it into a small square.
• To keep the phone cooler, avoid charging it while PAATH runs, and keep it out of the sun and near an air vent.

1. PAATH works on these cars too, and picks a video format the car can play by itself.
2. If the picture is choppy, pick Steady in Settings, Video & Sound.
3. To see your car's processor: Controls, Software, Additional Vehicle Information.

In the app: the VIDEO & SOUND SETTINGS button on the HELP page.

Share your log and send it with a short description of what happened.

In the app: Settings, Support PAATH, Share Log, then send it to paath.support@gmail.com.