Android Auto finally gets Material You! Your car will adapt to your phone's colors

Google continues to unify the design language of its products, and the latest Android Auto update brings a long-awaited new feature. The popular in-car phone control platform finally gets full support for Material You color accents, which adapt to your phone’s wallpaper. The feature builds on last year’s partial rollout, but this time it’s a complete implementation.

Material You finally in full glory

If you recall, Google already began implementing support for Material You color themes in Android Auto 13.4 late last year. At that time, the feature was limited to only a few basic colors and didn’t always accurately reflect the phone’s color theme. The new Android Auto 14.9 (beta) version removes this limitation and finally brings full-fledged support.

The difference from the previous implementation is striking. While color accents were previously rather sporadic, now Material You colors are respected throughout the entire Android Auto interface. The change is most visible in the Settings app and in notifications. Moreover, in addition to changing the accent color of buttons, the entire application background also receives subtle color toning, which contributes to visual consistency.

How the new color accents work

The system now works exactly as you would expect – Android Auto immediately reacts to a change in the phone’s wallpaper by automatically adapting the color scheme. Interestingly, according to tests, it doesn’t always react to manual changes in color themes on Pixel phones, but a wallpaper change takes effect immediately.

Android Auto finally gets Material You! Your car will adapt to your phone's colors Jakub Kárník News Jakub Kárník News

If you prefer a classic look without color accents, Google has fortunately left an option. Disabling the “Adapt to phone wallpaper” feature in Android Auto settings deactivates all color accents and returns the interface to its standard appearance. This option is especially suitable for users who prefer a consistent look regardless of the phone’s wallpaper.

Update availability

Although we observed this feature in the latest Android Auto 14.9 beta version, many users report the availability of this feature even in stable versions. This suggests that Google is likely rolling out this change gradually through server-side updates, rather than solely through app updates.

Not all users see the change immediately after the update. According to available information, the feature sometimes activates only after several app launches, which further supports the theory of gradual server-side rollout.

Have you already noticed the new Material You color accents in your Android Auto?