Android Auto: Pandora switches to offline mode with cell service

[gth791q]

I often listen to Pandora via Android Auto while driving my 2020 Subaru Forester, and I recently upgraded my phone to a Google Pixel 6 Pro. Ever since I upgraded to this phone, almost every time I drive Pandora will spontaneously switch into offline mode and will not switch back into online mode at any point, leaving me stuck with stale offline stations. It seems like this offline mode switch happens when 5G coverage drops out and the phone temporarily switches to 4G - meaning the phone never loses data service, but Pandora switches offline anyways for the rest of my drive. The only way I have found to fix this is by opening up the Pandora app on my phone and forcibly restarting it, which always puts it back in online mode.

I live in the middle of a major US city and these issues occur in areas with excellent reception. My wife upgraded to a Pixel 6 Pro at the same time I did and is experiencing the exact same issues with her separate Pandora account. We never had issues like this with our old Android phones.

Moderator Edit: Changing title for clarity

[TannerPandora]

Hi @gth791q - welcome to community! 👋 Sorry for any trouble playing Pandora with Android Auto.

I checked the Pandora account associated with your community profile and I don't see a Google Pixel connected. The last device connection is from an Apple TV from earlier this year.

Could you confirm the account you are logged in with?

You can find the active account by:

1. Opening the Pandora app and selecting the Profile tab.
2. Tapping the Settings gear in the upper right corner.
3. Checking the email address next to the Account field.

If you've confirmed that you're connected to the correct account, let's try some troubleshooting.

From your Android Settings, please try clearing the Pandora app data using the following steps (not to worry, we'll keep track of your profile and collection for you):*

1. Open your device Settings
2. Tap Apps
3. Scroll down to find Pandora
4. Select Storage
5. On the storage details page tap Clear Data.

Keep in mind that the steps for each Android device is slightly different. For Pixel, you can check out Google's help page for steps on how to clear space on your device.

Please note that you will be asked to log into your account after completing these steps.

*Note: Pandora Premium and Premium Family listeners may need to re-download some of their offline content after this. Pandora Plus users, however, should receive that offline content again automatically. If you have any trouble with your offline stations after this, please let us know.

[gth791q]

I can confirm that my phone is logged in to the same account as my user profile, I only have the one account. I just cleared the data for my Pandora app and logged back in. It may be a few days until I can see if this solved the issue or not, after I go on a few drives with Pandora active. I will post an update here if/when the issue occurs again. Thanks!

[gth791q]

This issue occurred once again this morning, around 8:10am Eastern time. This time the offline songs were at least different due to the data clearing.

After this error occurred I opened the Pandora app on my phone, intending to close it out immediately afterwards to restore online mode, but I noticed that as soon as the app finished the startup process Pandora switched back to online mode as it should. Perhaps Pandora isn't able to switch into online mode when running in the background and the app has not been started on the phone by the user?

[TannerPandora]

Hi @gth791q! Thanks for the update. Sounds like it got a little better but not by much.

I'd like to report your issue to our engineering team. Can you send over a bit more info about your phone?

• Android version (Settings > About Phone):
• Pandora version:
• Open Pandora, go to Profile, then select Settings. Scroll to the bottom of the screen for the version number.

Thanks for the help!

[gth791q]

Android version 13

Pandora version 2209.2

Thanks! 

[TannerPandora]

Thanks, @gth791q! Pandora version 2210.1 was recently released and while I doubt it will change anything, it never hurts to try the latest version.

Additionally, out of curiosity, when your phone transitions to offline mode, is there an option to transition back to online mode from within stations? It may appear as an arrow rotating counter clockwise.

[gth791q]

I just updated to the latest app version. 

When I open the Pandora app on my phone, yes it shows an option to transition back to online mode, as you describe. I do not recall ever seeing an option or button like this in the Android Auto Pandora interface.

[TannerPandora]

@gth791q Thanks for confirming, sorry for the delay.

Technically, Android Auto does not support offline mode, so this option wouldn't be available. Thanks for following up, I've added the additional info and passed it along.