I have a '22 Bolt EV with the telemetry circuit powered off and OnStar antenna terminated. I currently have a limited Bluetooth connection to its stereo and have refused to link my phone to Android Auto. It’s rather difficult to use GPS navigation as there’s no easy way to mount my phone to the dash so I’ve been considering going with Android Auto.
So far all my research on Android Auto has given me limited results on what information is collected from the car. Is there a valid reason I should stay away from it? Yes I’m aware Android is still keeping tabs on me but that won’t change until I can get a Linux phone when my current model dies.
Yes, I use it in a dedicated profile within GrapheneOS. All privileges are revoked for Play Store and Google Play Services only gets Network privs. All traffic (except Android Auto) goes through my Wireguard VPN with lots of DNS blocking via Pi-hole. Android Auto is also restricted from using my mic, so no voice commands work. Is Google getting my data? Absolutely. Is my method better than using the stock, Google-molested OS, with no DNS blocking, and less granular privileges? Probably. Its definitely a privacy tradeoff, but using Waze on my car’s screen is just too beneficial for me while driving. The traffic data, reported hazards, police, etc. can be very helpful. That’s a call you have to make. I truly wish there was a compatible open source alternative for my car.