The idea with this feature was supposed to be the successor to the now-defunct Android Auto app for phone screens.
The driving mode of the Google assistant, is the one with which you could use the Google Maps navigator from the assistant and with an adapted interface. It was something like what Android Auto was offering on the mobile until they also disabled its operation.
We will start by explaining in a straightforward way what exactly this mode was, so that you know what to expect from it. Then we will explain how you could set it up, and how to launch it from the assistant.
The Google Assistant driving mode was an interface designed to be used in the car. It was a mode that you were going to launch from Google Assistant itself, but it would open Google Maps with an interface fully adapted to the car so that you could drive without distractions.
The best thing about this driving mode was that you could launch it directly from the assistant, and the only thing it asked you was where you wanted to go. Then, everything else was done by the assistant, tracing the route so that you only had to press a button to start the navigation. The entire interface was adapted to the car, with simplified menus and larger icons.
Although we referred to it as Google Assistant Driving Mode because you were launching it from the assistant, this mode only worked on Google Maps, and to use it you first had to make sure you had it activated in this app. To do this, you had to go into the Navigation Settings section within the Google Maps settings.
At the time, with the new experiences that Google offered and offers with its platforms directly installed in multimedia systems, the use of Android Auto was rethought. This, however, will be a disadvantage in vehicles that do not have Google interfaces as standard.
Google decides to shutting down Driving Mode, that standalone Assistant-powered dashboard that offered quick access to audio controls, contacts, navigation, and other shortcuts while you were on the road, according to a report from 9to5Google. The feature, which Google first announced at I / O in 2019, was not officially launched until last year, but Google’s turn-off it on the last November 21st.
You should remember that the standalone Driving Mode it is not the same that was released first, Assistant Driving Mode to Maps. Which automatically boots up once you start navigation.
The only difference between the two is the way that you can access to it. The standalone version is by saying a voice command like “Hey Google, launch Driving Mode,” or by tapping the Driving Mode shortcut on your phone’s home screen.
Although, it could be a shutdown is a bit of a bummer for those who might not have a car with a digital navigation hub that supports Android Auto, though. The standalone Driving Mode service was supposed to replace the “Android Auto for Phone Screens” app that Google discontinued with Android 12.
