HondaLink App Update

[MajorAward]

No I never get past the "Connection Required" screen. Following what you did I was in my house, not connected to the car, I searched a destination (you can't just browse the map and point at something, you have to do a formal search). I clicked "Send to Car" and instantaneously got a message "Connection Required", I mean my finger hasn't even left the screen and I get the "Connection Required" message. It's the only fast thing I have ever seen in the app which makes me think the bug is right there, I suspect it is not actually checking for a connection but in the software code something trips mine immediately to the "Connection Required" screen without even checking for a connection. Does your "Connection Required" screen come up instantly or does it look like it at least tries for a few seconds?

Anyway while I was still on the "Connection Required" screen I walked out to the car and turned it on. On the app without me doing anything it then changed to "Connecting" with a Dismiss option and then sat there for about a minute then that screen went away and I was back where I was on the "Connection Required" screen, and that's it nothing else happens. I never see anything happen on the car display. I waited about five minutes and nothing.

As I mentioned the "Connect" screen with Dismiss option always appears whenever I open the app while in the car (with the car on) and after a minute it always returns to the screen where I was, so I don't think it's actually related to the send destination function, it's just what the app always does when the app detects that I am in the car. What it does I think is nothing because as I mentioned I can use my phone with the car, proving that I am connected (via bluetooth, not plugged in) and then launch the app and I always get the "Connecting" screen even though I know I am already connected, and since I know it does nothing instead of waiting uselessly for a minute I click Dismiss and do whatever I was going to do in the app. Although I rarely use the app in the car I am just saying what happens anytime I have used it in the car. This time of course I did not click "Dismiss" just in case but after a minute it went away like usual and nothing happened.

The things that I use the app for like schedule charge or turn on climate I know work through cellular network because they work whether I am in the car or away from the car. Sending a destination to the car however apparently uses bluetooth, but it doesn't work for me because for some reason it thinks I am not connected to bluetooth even though I am. If I go into settings on the car display I can see my phone listed as connected.

Maybe there are settings in my phone that need to be changed but no way I am going in that deep, even if I could get it to work like you said I don't see how this is any advantage. I guess the idea is if you are in your house or restaurant you can pull up the app and search your next destination, then send it to the car. But if it isn't available in Nav until several minutes after you get to your car, then what's the point. However I did think of one use, the built-in Nav database can get out of date pretty quickly, but presumably the app is connected to a current database, so maybe you can find a location in the app that you can't find in the Nav screen, s so then you could send it. Still not great having to wait several minutes though for it to show up.

Also for reference I am using a Samsung Galaxy S9+ with Android 9

Try this way. If it doesn't work, I think a setting in you phone may be an issue.

I decided to see what would happen if I used the HondaLink app to send a location to the car, got in the car and turned it on, then did nothing else. So on the phone HondaLink app, I pressed "maps", then pressed "search here", then pressed the "food" icon, then chose a random restaurant from the list.Pressed the restaurant name, then pressed "Send To Car".

Of course "Connection Required " appeared, and stayed on the screen until I got in the car and swiched on accessory mode. After that, "Connecting...'' along with the "dismiss" button displayed on the app screen for about 30 seconds, then the app screen changed to "Connected to 2018 Clarity Plug-in hybrid" (or whatever you named your car in the app), along with the "dismiss" button at the bottom. I decided to just wait. Four minutes later, I heard the sparkle sound, and my "place" icon appeared on the console screen. Swipe down, press "Zoe's Kitchen" or whatever your choice was, and Bob's your uncle.It may be faster to press "dismiss" at this last step, then press "I'm safe", but either way the place is sent to your car...

On another note the Find My Car, and schedule charge worked well. I haven't used the schedule climate feature yet.
Hope that helps.

 

[rodeknyt]

For those of you who are having HondaLink issues, try turning Bluetooth off on your phone, wait a few seconds, then turn it back on again (all while in the car). I had largely given up on the app, particularly no update on the odometer reading, and tried that. Since then, everything works as advertised.

 

[2002]

I believe at this step you have to press "Dismiss" and then tell the app you are safe.

Okay let's set aside Send to Car for a moment and talk about this "Connecting" screen that you are referring to because it is not related to any particular function, everyone seems to get this screen (I think) and the messages make no sense.




For me this is when the Connecting screen appears - no matter what screen I am on in the app, if the car is not on, and then I turn the car on while the app is already running, whatever screen I am on in the app disappears and is replaced by the "Connecting" screen. If I do nothing the Connecting screen stays on for over a minute, then it goes away and I am back to whatever screen in the app that I was already on.

However if I press "Dismiss" during that minute, I am taken to the "I'm Safe" screen:



What is this all about? I get the concept, the app detects that I am in the car and it wants to make sure that I am not driving. The app knows that I am in the car because it just made a bluetooth connection with the car. I confirmed this by turning off bluetooth on the phone and in the exact same scenario that I just described (app already running, turn on the car) I do not get the "Connecting" message or the "I'm Safe" question. If I then turn on Bluetooth I immediately get the "Connecting" message. So it's actually the successful bluetooth connection that causes the so far unexplained "Connecting" screen to appear in the app. Unexplained meaning that it seems to serve no purpose.

If the app detects that I am in the car, why doesn't it just go straight to the "I'm Safe" question? Instead it goes first to the "Connecting" screen and sits there for over a minute, and if you let it timeout the Connecting screen goes away and it doesn't even ask you the "I'm Safe" question. You only get the "I'm Safe" question when you click Dismiss. Everyone clicks Dismiss only because everyone learns from experience that the "Connecting" screen that takes up a minute of your time does absolutely nothing. Note that I am totally guessing what everyone else experiences, anyone feel free to correct me by letting us know what function in the app does not work unless you allow the Connecting screen to do its thing for over minute, whatever that thing is. Or let us know if something doesn't work if you let the Connecting screen timeout instead of pressing Dismiss on this screen.

Did you press "dismiss"? If yes, were you able to get to the "Send to car" guide?

Yes I pressed Dismiss (doesn't work either way) but no I never see "Send to car" guide. "I only see Connection Required



Even though I am already connected to Bluetooth it will sit on "Connection Required" all day, well at least fifteen minutes, I haven't tried it longer than that. Other than reading the "Connect to Car Guide" manual, which tells me how to connect my phone to the car even though it already is, my only choice on this screen is to press the "back" icon on my phone which then brings up a grayed out "Connect to Send" and a blue "Connect to Car Guide". in case I want to read through it again.



And that's as far as it goes, no matter how long I wait, so I press the back icon again basically to exit out of all of this since it isn't working.

To recap for my Android phone:

Cellular functions work - Start Charge, Schedule Charge, Turn on Climate, Find My Car

What doesn't work is Schedule Climate (spinning blue circle when I press Enable) and Send to Car (fails to detect bluetooth connection)

 

[2002]

For those of you who are having HondaLink issues, try turning Bluetooth off on your phone, wait a few seconds, then turn it back on again (all while in the car). I had largely given up on the app, particularly no update on the odometer reading, and tried that. Since then, everything works as advertised.

Tried that doesn't help. It's easy to tell when you are connected there is a small bluetooth icon in the upper row of the center information display screen.

Even tried removing the phone then pairing again.

Odometer works for me, but I suspect that is a cellular function not bluetooth, although I would need to experiment more to find out. Oddly at the moment what my app odometer says is one mile short of what the car odometer says. No I didn't go for a drive around the block since it updated, it must be some type of rounding difference.

 

[MNSteve]

I can't make this function work either. I am using an iPhone and after much fiddling I managed to get the "sparkle" sound to appear, several minutes after the "Sending to car" notification. But this image indicates that there should be something at the top of the screen, and that never happened.

I looked in Navigation for the location, and it's not in Recent or Saved places.

The only use I can figure for this function is to send a location to the navigation system when you're driving and you cannot do a search using the native system. Given the ridiculous amount of time to actually send it, and the fact that it seems to disappear into the bit bucket on arrival, this is not going to be my choice for navigating to places.

 

[Steven B]

Tried that doesn't help. It's easy to tell when you are connected there is a small bluetooth icon in the upper row of the center information display screen.

Even tried removing the phone then pairing again.

Odometer works for me, but I suspect that is a cellular function not bluetooth, although I would need to experiment more to find out. Oddly at the moment what my app odometer says is one mile short of what the car odometer says. No I didn't go for a drive around the block since it updated, it must be some type of rounding difference.

For Android users on version 8 or higher, I found that I had trouble with Bluetooth dropping connection to a bicycle speed cadence sensor and began investigating. What worked for me in this situation may also be what works for you if you are having trouble with the Bluetooth connection to the Clarity.

I had to finally retire my old phone and get a new one. Now have a Sony running Android 9. Anyway, I found these instructions for Sony when the phone has problems connecting or staying connected to Bluetooth devices, you can try changing the AVRCP version:
Settings - System - About Phone. Tap Build number 7 times, then go to Settings - System - Developer Options - Bluetooth AVRCP Version and change it to 1.5 or 1.4 and see if it behaves better.

Since I made this change I've not had the bike sensor drop out.

A link here with another link embedded:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/development/improving-car-compatibility-bluetooth-t3727271

 

[2002]

For Android users on version 8 or higher, I found that I had trouble with Bluetooth dropping connection to a bicycle speed cadence sensor and began investigating. What worked for me in this situation may also be what works for you if you are having trouble with the Bluetooth connection to the Clarity.

I had to finally retire my old phone and get a new one. Now have a Sony running Android 9. Anyway, I found these instructions for Sony when the phone has problems connecting or staying connected to Bluetooth devices, you can try changing the AVRCP version:
Settings - System - About Phone. Tap Build number 7 times, then go to Settings - System - Developer Options - Bluetooth AVRCP Version and change it to 1.5 or 1.4 and see if it behaves better.

Since I made this change I've not had the bike sensor drop out.

A link here with another link embedded:
https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/development/improving-car-compatibility-bluetooth-t3727271

Didn't help my HondaLink issue but good to know for other Bluetooth issues. My Android 9 was on AVRCP Version 1.4 I tried changing it to 1.5 and 1.6. Although in my case Bluetooth connects fine to the car for phone calls etc. it's only an issue using the Hondalink features that require Bluetooth. HondaLink features that use the cellular network like Schedule Charging work fine.

 

[GHTech]

Greetings,
I am wondering if the Hondalink app has a setting that sends a message/notice when the car has finished charging? I had a Ford Focus Electric, and the app would send a text, app notification and an email as soon as the car reaches 100% charge. My charger at work has a 4-Hr limit, and my Charity Electric does not send a notice, and if I forget to set my alarm I have a problem.
Thanks,
GHTech

 

[RickSE]

I have an iPhone and get a notification when the car stops charging.

 

[Rav]

Greetings,
I am wondering if the Hondalink app has a setting that sends a message/notice when the car has finished charging? I had a Ford Focus Electric, and the app would send a text, app notification and an email as soon as the car reaches 100% charge. My charger at work has a 4-Hr limit, and my Charity Electric does not send a notice, and if I forget to set my alarm I have a problem.
Thanks,
GHTech

This used to be a standard feature but after an update, many stopped receiving the notifications (including me). Of course, getting help from honda link customer service is a complete waste of time.

 

[insightman]

This used to be a standard feature but after an update, many stopped receiving the notifications (including me). Of course, getting help from honda link customer service is a complete waste of time.

I unlinked my phone's Bluetooth connection and re-linked it today. Then, for the first time, my Android 8.1 phone got a notification when charging was complete. However, now the car can no longer access my contacts to make a call. More investigation required.

 

[jdonalds]

I tried the same steps, with the same results. I noticed when trying to send a destination the app responds with "Connection Required", then below is a "Connect to Car Guide Link". Clicking that link guides you through how to set up bluetooth. Am I understanding correctly that you must be connected to your car with bluetooth to send a destination? If so, what good is that. Has anyone been able to send a destination remotely before?

Edit: Forgot to mention using LineageOS 14.1 (Android 7.1.2) on an old Nexus 5, but works great for banking, etc., so I don't think the phone or OS is the problem.

Yes before prior updates I wouldn't need to be linked via Bluetooth to send a map destination to the car. Now Bluetooth is required which pretty much obliterates the value of the feature.

 

[jdonalds]

Let's face it. One of Honda's strengths does not seem to be software. While I'm generally okay with everything I'm a patient man. Many responses on the 8" screen are very slow.

- Sometimes I'll put my right directional on and make a turn before the lane camera displays an image.
- Switching between displays always involves a noticeable delay.
- There is no mute button for the radio or other sources. Just an Audio Off button.
- The interface for USB memory stick music is quite poor.

I deal with it. Sometimes it's a game to interact with the car. There is nothing I'd call "quick" about the interface.

The HondaLink app has obviously been worked on and there are new versions. But there seems to be little or no improvement, sometimes a new update is a step backward. The Odometer reading on the HondaLink app can be many days out of date. The state of charge and EV Range may or may not be displayed.

Honda also decided to use Garmin for the SatNav. I am a long time Garmin user who's had a lot of success with their devices and maps. However the integration between the Garmin maps and the rest of the Clarity software is lame. Also Garmin needs to fire whoever is in charge of their search algorithm. It is just the worst thing about Garmin. Most of the time I ask Google to find something, then transfer that address to the Clarity Map by hand.

The instrument panel is much better. It looks as if two different teams designed and created the software for the instrument panel and 8" touchscreen.

 

[2002]

The state of charge and EV Range may or may not be displayed.

I always get the SOC and EV range when plugged in, but never when not plugged in. However I found that when not plugged in and I modify the charge schedule it then displays it. I further discovered that you don't actually have to change the charge schedule you just have to go through the motions, i.e. press Schedule Charge then press Modify Schedule then press the check mark without actually changing anything. Whenever you change the schedule (or pretend like you are changing it) it communicates with the car (you will hear the clicks if you are near the car) and updates the EV info.

 

[MajorAward]

I always get the SOC and EV range when plugged in, but never when not plugged in. However I found that when not plugged in and I modify the charge schedule it then displays it. I further discovered that you don't actually have to change the charge schedule you just have to go through the motions, i.e. press Schedule Charge then press Modify Schedule then press the check mark without actually changing anything. Whenever you change the schedule (or pretend like you are changing it) it communicates with the car (you will hear the clicks if you are near the car) and updates the EV info.

It is evident from this forum that some of our cars/systems behave differently in a given situation. For example, my car/system will sometimes display SOC, HV Range and Total Range when not plugged in...but not always. Just this morning it shows 0% charge (no green in bar), which is wrong, 161 mi HV Range, and nothing in the display for Total Range. I go out to the car, do the steps just like you said, heard the clicks, and now it shows HV, EV, and Total. Good to know this works, but strange why the app is inconsistent.

 

[2002]

It is evident from this forum that some of our cars/systems behave differently in a given situation. For example, my car/system will sometimes display SOC, HV Range and Total Range when not plugged in...but not always. Just this morning it shows 0% charge (no green in bar), which is wrong, 161 mi HV Range, and nothing in the display for Total Range. I go out to the car, do the steps just like you said, heard the clicks, and now it shows HV, EV, and Total. Good to know this works, but strange why the app is inconsistent.

My theory is that it uses a little bit of electricity for the car to check EV range and communicate this information to the app via the cellular network and so when you aren't plugged in they don't want to waste power checking EV range every time you open the app as you may be opening the app for other reasons. The "phone" is always on and listening for a call but that is a tiny amount of power. Receiving a call from the app and communicating back takes a little more power. And what also also seems to use power is checking the EV range as it apparently has to energize the system to check it which is what I think the clicks are about. It avoids doing this if you aren't plugged in thus you get a blank result for EV, but it will give you HV because it already has that stored from when the car was last shut down and unless someone has siphoned your tank the HV range should not have changed. Similar to Find My Car uses the last known location because that won't change while the car is off (unless the car is towed). Whereas EV range can in theory go down while parked, especially if you use remote climate.

Modifying the schedule gets the EV range info because they assume since you are doing something with the charge schedule you probably would like to see current EV range. I think what the app needs is an "Update" button next to EV range when it is blank so if you want to see the range you can press that and wait for it to get the information from the car.

 

[MNSteve]

Greetings,
I am wondering if the Hondalink app has a setting that sends a message/notice when the car has finished charging? I had a Ford Focus Electric, and the app would send a text, app notification and an email as soon as the car reaches 100% charge. My charger at work has a 4-Hr limit, and my Charity Electric does not send a notice, and if I forget to set my alarm I have a problem.

You failed to mention whether you are running the app on IOS or Android, but I think this comment is the same for both.

The app knows how to send a notification. I am using that word in its literal technical sense - a notice that pops up on the home screen that says "Charging stopped." In order to receive this, you must allow the app to send a notification; with iPhone this is done in Preferences -> Notifications. If you don't enable notifications for the app, you will not see them.

As far as I know, the app does not have the capability to send a text or email. In fact, at least in my experience, the notification is a mute one - it does not have any audible component.

 

[GHTech]

You failed to mention whether you are running the app on IOS or Android, but I think this comment is the same for both.

The app knows how to send a notification. I am using that word in its literal technical sense - a notice that pops up on the home screen that says "Charging stopped." In order to receive this, you must allow the app to send a notification; with iPhone this is done in Preferences -> Notifications. If you don't enable notifications for the app, you will not see them.

As far as I know, the app does not have the capability to send a text or email. In fact, at least in my experience, the notification is a mute one - it does not have any audible component.

Hi MNSteve!

I have a Note9 running Android. My issue is that the app does not work consistently. I sometimes get the charging stopped notification. I also just did a uninstall and reinstall of the app. As you mentioned, it does not have an audible notification, so that notification is useless. I am assuming that Ford was not worried about the cost of the cell service (it was a free service) as they seem to be updating the info from the Ford Focus Electric (FFE) frequently, and one could get an update anytime. One could Lock & Unlock the car through the app, which I liked a lot. The FFE was a fun car to drive. But, the Clarity EV is a much nicer car, and I have only a couple of things I miss from the FFE. None of it was a deal breaker.

Regards,

GHTech

 

[2002]

Hi MNSteve!

I have a Note9 running Android. My issue is that the app does not work consistently. I sometimes get the charging stopped notification. I also just did a uninstall and reinstall of the app. As you mentioned, it does not have an audible notification, so that notification is useless. I am assuming that Ford was not worried about the cost of the cell service (it was a free service) as they seem to be updating the info from the Ford Focus Electric (FFE) frequently, and one could get an update anytime. One could Lock & Unlock the car through the app, which I liked a lot. The FFE was a fun car to drive. But, the Clarity EV is a much nicer car, and I have only a couple of things I miss from the FFE. None of it was a deal breaker.

Regards,

GHTech

My Android phone displays a limited number of notifications. Do you think it's possible that in some cases it sends a notification that charging has stopped but by the time you look at your phone other notifications have come in and the charging notification is no longer there?

 

[MPower]

My car not only sends a notification when charging stops, but it also plays the sound I told it to. It did it on my Android phones, first my S7 Edge and now on my S10+.