CarStream (previously YoutubeAuto) for Android Auto APK download and setup

Play Youtube Video on Android Auto using this app

Screen Shot 2017-12-31 at 10.04.28 AMVersion history :

29th Dec 2017 : v1.0 released

29th Dec 2017 : v1.0.1 released to fix install errors on Android API level < 21

30th Dec 2017 : v1.0.2 released with safety disabled. Safety was showing blank screen when fullscreen. Controller support for nontouch screen still pending.

30th Dec 2017 : v1.1.0 Controller support for non touch devices done. Includes fullscreen and back nav support as well.

1st Jan 2018 : v1.1.1 Fix for app not installed on Marshmallow and lower Android phones. Install this version if you face “App not installed” error

1st Jan 2018 : v1.1.2 Stability fixes and support to resume video if was playing before app was minimized.

2nd Jan 2018 : v1.1.3 Ability to open any website via “Google search” option. Also send any custom url from the phone app. The car app remembers the last url visited and loads it automatically.

2nd Jan 2018 : v1.2.0 Speech to text for youtube searches. Minor fix to controller inputs.

2nd Jan 2018 : v1.2.1 Possible first fix for audio volume not controllable.

3rd Jan 2018 : v1.2.2 Full screen videos can be toggled more easily due to floating toolbar. Speech recognising view not hiding bug fixed. Its clickable just in case it doesnt hide. Progressbar to show page load progress.

3rd Jan 2018 : v1.2.3 Possible second fix for audio volume not controllable on some cars

5th Jan 2018 : v1.2.4 Fixed black screen which appears sometimes. Possible third fix for volume control in some systems.

6th Jan 2018 : v1.3.0Night mode support for Youtube added. Switch on your headlights to see the magic.

9th Jan 2018 : v1.3.1 Full screen mode now persists across videos. No need to switch fullscreen mode for each video on a playlist. It also stays on across app launches. You also should see a slight page speed boost.

9th Jan 2018: v1.3.2 Initial implementation of playing local offline videos/music/images. To enable, open phone app, grant “external storage” permission, then long press on the home icon (to the right of back button) on the car to open the SDcard folders. Now you can select a file and play it fullscreen. (Demo)

12th Jan 2018: v1.4.0 Now you should be able to use steering mounted controls (for next and previous video). This update also allows a “somewhat” background playback which allows you to listen to the audio without the video, but the catch is that you have to select the video first using the UI and then switch to background mode. This update should fix any volume control issues you have been facing in the past. (Watch the Demo)

12th Jan 2018: v1.4.1 If you have crashed when accessing youtube purchased videos, this build will fix it.

13th Jan 2018: v1.4.2 Please uninstall all previous builds and install this one if “youtube auto” has suddenly disappeared from Android auto (from last 1-2 days). If you dont uninstall previous builds, there is a chance that 2 similar looking apps show up.

This is possible because Google has blocked my previous app. Still not 100% sure.

13th Jan 2018: v1.4.3 About link redirecting to 404 page fixed.

14th Jan 2018: v1.4.4 Safety Warning popup added which pops up everytime you start driving. This warning will disappear if you use handbrake/parking mode.

15th Jan 2018: v1.5.0Aspect ratio support to remove black bars. You can toggle between aspect ratios in full screen mode. Also irritating notifications have been removed.

15th Jan 2018: v1.5.1Fullscreen controls support for controllers, use right,left,up and center to seek, change aspect ratio and play/pause.

15th Jan 2018: v1.5.2Bug fixes for “I understand the risk” not clickable for some users. Fixed steering mounted controls not working the first time.

15th Jan 2018: v1.5.4Fix for “I understand the risk” button not clickable. Irritating notifications are back because without them there is no way to make steering controls work reliably. Will be fixed soon

18th Jan 2018: v1.6.0Youtube auto renamed to CarStream with new logo. Looks like google bannned again. So if previous app is not showing up, use this app.

19th Jan 2018: v1.6.1Youtube auto renamed to CarStream with new logo. Looks like google bannned again. So if previous app is not showing up, use this app.

25th Jan 2018: v1.7.0Bookmarks support added. Click on last icon on the top toolbar. Long press on a bookmark to delete. Demo

25th Jan 2018: v1.7.1 Italian and chinese translations added. Check the credits section for how to add more languages. Thanks to everyone (mentioend in credits) for translating.

26th Jan 2018: v1.7.2 External SD card support works with most devices. Look for the ‘external storage’ bookmark. French translation added.

27th Jan 2018: v1.7.3 Basic keyboard input added. Translations to finnish, portuguese, danish, turkish, french added. Thank you everyone

6th Feb 2018: v1.8.0 More translations added. Revamped local offline player. Now play SD Card videos with next and previous support. Also supports formats like MKV. Also Bookmarks issues have been fixed. For a full list of supported formats read ‘Standalone container formats’ on this page

6th Feb 2018: v1.8.1 Bug fix release,
issues related to local videos not playing correctly fixed.

7th Feb 2018: v1.8.2 Bug fix release for bookmark dpad support in non touch screens

8th Feb 2018: v1.8.3 Bug fix release for audio focus issues. If carstream overwrites other players, this version fixes it. Also local audio/video continues to play in background.

21st Jun 2018 : 2.0.0 Introduces a way to unlock carstream in rooted phones. Thanks to ‘slashmax’ for figuring out the trick.

The following message is shown if handbrake is not applied. Please make sure you use this app safely.
Android auto youtube warning

8th Feb 2018 : For raising bugs or enhancement requests please visit https://github.com/thekirankumar/youtube-android-auto/issues

Youtube Auto Latest Version
(1529178 hits)
Youtube Auto Latest Version
Download

How to install the app

How to watch local videos of all formats on SD Card

Raising bugs, enhancement for new features

CarStream is developed and maintained by me in my free time. In order to efficiently manage my time, it would be great if you can use github for raising bugs and feature requests. I have been using this blog’s comments section till now for this, but it doesnt scale well. So if you put anything here, it will mostly get ignored. So please use github. I know its painful to create a github account, but it helps me. Before raising a github issue, check if the same issue exists, otherwise it will most likely be closed.
Use this link to reach github issues page

Debugging black screen issue

Black screen when switching on Youtube auto is usually related to Power saver mode on your phone. Some phones have it as “aggressive doze mode” or “advanced battery optimization”. For youtube auto to work seamlessly, you have to switch off power saver mode completely or disable it just for Youtube auto.

Also sometimes you can follow this trick of switching on youtube auto phone app on phone and then connecting to the car. Please try this on Xperia and Huawei phones. Also some huawei phones are not compatible with android auto in general. Even Waze doesnt work. Source

Disabling the bottom bar in fullscreen mode

Many users have requested this feature of hiding the nav bar when in fullscreen mode. Unfortunately google doesnt support this feature and we can expect google to give an API in future version of android auto. So this is not feasible.

Source code

If you want to add new features or checkout the code visit https://github.com/thekirankumar/youtube-android-auto/ Pull requests for new feature are welcome.

Donation

If you like this app, please make a donation.

My bitcoin (BTC) address 1MHUymspbm3FgJexAFcvxxq6QdHS9bJjZh

My paypal address https://paypal.me/thekirankumar2

My litecoin (LTC) address LXRkN1JDm1weqDL6WKCQRTcqqfPnSiGaCQ

Credits

Unofficial Android SDK https://github.com/martoreto/aauto-sdk Without this SDK this project wouldn’t exist. Thanks to Martoreto for reverse engineering the Waze app and coming up with a easy to use SDK and a sample app.

VideoEnabledWebview https://github.com/cprcrack/VideoEnabledWebView This webview makes fullscreen videos easy to implement.

Thanks for helping with translation :

German : Timo Neumeier
Russian : Ilja Skobelev
Italian : Gabriele Rizzo
Chinese : Nelson
French : Adil Bousfiha
Finnish : Joona Ahveninen & Raitsa
Portuguese: Daniel Stuart
Turkish: Ufuk Ata
Danish: Hayrullah Celik
Bulgarian : Boby
Polish : Krzysztof Białek
Estonian : Magnus Jaaska & Olev Kaas
Spanish : César Formica & Miceot

If you want to translate to your local language, please visit the github repository and raise a pull request or just mail me the strings.xml file at [email protected]

Note

Disclaimer :This is my personal project and I maintain it in my free time. The work here is in no way related to my Employer. It is a hobby project where I have not committed to anyone about maintaining it. With Google blocking every move, its getting more difficult to progress. You can imagine how it would be to fight as a one man army against google.

Unblocking instructions

[21st Jan 2018] Google has blocked the app multiple times till now and its becoming difficult for me to release just a new version to unblock it. Here are some tricks to do it yourself when google blocks the app.

Google blocks the app’s package name. This is how apps identify themselves and google is able to block the app easily by just identifying my app’s package name and then blocking it. As a workaround, if you are an android developer, just clone the source code and change the package name in build.gradle as well on the google-services.json file.

If you are not a developer, I recommend you use APK Editor Pro app (Its a paid app, but the apks are available everywhere). It allows you to change package names of any app without creating the APK yourself.

  • Download APK editor PRO (free version doesnt allow many features)
  • Open the settings and click “sign APK with” and select “key created by APK Editor”
  • Exit settings and come back to main menu
  • click “Select APK from app”
  • select the car stream apk
  • select “Full Edit”
  • click on the third tab on bottom called “manifest”
  • click on the second line from top called “manifest xmlns:android….
  • click on “package” and change the package name to anything you want. This is the most important step. You should use something which is unique to you. Use maybe your name or username in it. Do not use special character except “dot”. If your name is john doe, use maybe “com.johndoe.testapp” as the package name. Be creative here, because this is what google uses to block the app
  • Click save button, be careful not to press cancel.
  • Now click the build button on the top-right corner of the screen
  • This will take a few seconds and finish the creating a new APK
  • [IMPORTANT] Once it finishes, uninstall the old version of car stream. If you dont uninstall, the new APK wont install
  • Now go back to APK pro and press install the new apk you created which has your custom package name
  • After installation, Car Stream should work for you


If you get install issues with APK editor, try APK cloner. It doesn’t let you change package name, but it automatically chooses a package name and is easy to use and free.
If google blocks the apk again, come back here to this section for a new workaround.

8th Feb 2018 : For raising bugs or enhancement requests please visit https://github.com/thekirankumar/youtube-android-auto/issues

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2,440 thoughts on “CarStream (previously YoutubeAuto) for Android Auto APK download and setup

  1. unknown

    I don’t know if this is me how is having this problem or not but I’m having a bit of delay on the video and by delay I mean the sound plays first then the video and they don’t match
    btw I’m using a Xperia Z5 premium
    Great job on the app it saves people from buying those expensive devices just to play videos on the go

    Reply
    1. Adriana Melo

      Hi Kiran,
      I’d like to thank you for the great job in youtube auto, I have donated for you and shared your work to many friends that use Android auto in their cars. Your app is really great and useful. I’d like to ask you a question regarding the android auto nav bar during the video playbak. I’ve seen a comment from you saying that google needs to launch an update to hide this nav bar from android auto, but is possible for you, as developer, to contact google and ask for it? Or to release a script that enables developers to hide this bar? Thanks again. Cheers from Brazil :)

      Reply
  2. Gabriele


    unknown:

    I don’t know if this is me how is having this problem or not but I’m having a bit of delay on the video and by delay I mean the sound plays first then the video and they don’t match
    btw I’m using a Xperia Z5 premium
    Great job on the app it saves people from buying those expensive devices just to play videos on the go

    Got this problem too!

    Reply
  3. Jeremy

    Hello, thanks for the update ! But videos files don’t work, i have tested mkv and avi files. Do i need to convert files ? Thanks you so much for the answer

    Reply
  4. Michael

    It would be cool to get the possibility to launch any App. I Knie that there is also Mirrorlink, but with a Samsung Galaxy S8 it is no longer possible to make a Screenmirror. You just have the samsung carmode…

    Maybe this is helpful: https://github.com/nerone-github/AAutoLauncher

    Here you can see all Apps on the car Screen and can launch the Apps on the Phone (while parking). Maybe you can change the Code to display the apps in Android Auto.

    Reply
  5. John

    Mate you are the best!
    This app change the present and future of Android Auto.

    Your next stage is full mirrorlink!

    Thanks!

    Reply
  6. Adisorn(TH)

    Last time, I found screen show green color when play YouTube auto. Now already fixed by change version of Android system webview from v.63.0.3239.111 to 55.0.2883.77.
    Cr. Ahmet
    11/1/2018

    Reply
    1. Adisorn(TH)

      Great work!! Donate done!

      Last time, I found screen show green color when play YouTube auto. Now already fixed by change version of Android system webview from v.63.0.3239.111 to 55.0.2883.77.
      Cr. Ahmet
      11/1/2018

      Reply
  7. Adisorn(TH)

    Great job! Donate done!!

    Last time, I found screen show green color when play YouTube auto. Now already fixed by change version of Android system webview from v.63.0.3239.111 to 55.0.2883.77.
    Cr. Ahmet

    Reply
  8. Daniel M.

    Hi Kiran.
    In the cars with controller is not possible to skip to the middle of any video. Can you ad some support for this ?
    Thanks.

    Reply
  9. Emrah

    Hi frieds. I can not worked this app. Car play is working but when open the youtubeauto app Only black screen and lock screen. My phone is huawei p10 lite and android 7 system.

    Reply
  10. Rick

    I’m tried to setup on my huawei mate 9 pro. But could not show the app in Android Auto even that I had already open the developer mode

    Reply
  11. kaisertgc

    Hi,
    When I play videos from other websites rather than Youtube, it pauses in couple of minutes or like it is freezing. It is happening usually watching live online TV. Pressing play again taking video back and after a while it pauses again the same place.

    Reply
  12. Ash

    Great app, thank you but please remove the request for audio recording…i don’t want to search with my voice..just want to play videos.

    Reply
  13. Adriano Dantas

    Hi, first of all I would like to congratulate you on the program.
    I wonder if you can create a way to program all the videos that are in a folder on your phone? or an option for me to create a playlist of the videos? because at the moment he only plays one video at a time.

    Reply
      1. Gil

        Only v1.0 works, other versions blink 3 times and go back.

        Only 1.0 works, the 1.4.1 stacks on white screen, battery saver and optimization desabled.

        Reply
      2. Gil

        Update, after updated android auto the latest version work,
        Whem i’m in full screen and by car control forward to next videoit opens without full screen, i forward by car control to next video, the las video goes for 1 s2cond to full screeen and goes to next video withoit full screen.

        Reply
        1. Gil

          Update again, all work fine, when i choose auto fills screen by pressing full screen in the top of your app, sometimes keep full screen and sometimes adds white lines at right and left

          Reply
  14. Mahouda28

    Hi , fine to your app good work please do you can create facebook app in android auto yo see video or picture or comments in facebook like pc in android autonit s good idea can you make it work please

    Reply
  15. Bassam

    Hey.. I wrote to u before but no answer. Please help me fix my problem. I downloaded your latest two uppdates and its the same problem with both of them. White screen and crash apk. What do i have to do.

    Reply
  16. 911jason

    App still crashes when you try to select a purchased video. That would be huge if you could get that working… Thank you for all of your hard work!

    Reply
  17. kaisertgc

    Workin perfectly. But please can you add external sd card feature? All my videos over there. Appreciate your work thanks.

    Reply
  18. Janne

    Great app, works great. Thank you! I have noticed that with version 1.4 it seems that the problem with live video freezing is gone :) Anyone else that can confirm that?

    Reply
  19. Matteo

    Hi,
    Thanks for this app , is great !!!

    about local file player :
    App can brows/see only internal Memory , app can’t use exteral Memory such as SD installed in my phone…..

    I think that is better if at the end of playing local file the app load the next file.

    When i open local file browsing app don’t Remember the last path used…..

    Thanks great man !!!!

    Reply
  20. Radu

    Regarding the volume buttons in mercedes, in 1.4.0 volume buttons work in some conditions that i didn’t identified yet (swaping the videos and screen full or minimized). Anyway is a step fwd.
    Thank you!

    Reply
  21. Gerome

    once you have made it possible to read an external storage, do you think that using an OTG reader will work so we can view files from a thumb drive? the fact that android auto only works wired might not be. not sure if you can buy a wire splitter or something.

    Reply
  22. Chriatian

    with galaxy s7 it does not work. the message appears on the reading car radio in progress. it does not open. I have energy saving turned off.

    Reply
  23. Suppawoot ED (Thailand)

    Thanks for great app.
    1 Ford Everest (Endeavour) Sync 3 2.3
    2. Android Auto 2.8.574513
    3. Samsung A8 ,Android 6.0.1
    4. Vivo V5 Plus Android 7.1.1
    Test Youtube Auto 1.2.4,1.3.0,1.3.2,1.4.1 OK

    Reply
  24. Fahim Bepari

    Great app Kiran. I have tested till version 1.3.2 and it works flawlessly. Latest update will check soon. As many have requested for external card video playback and i hope u release that update soon. I am testing ur app on ford ecosport 2018 sync 3 system, moto z play android 7.1.
    About supporting ur work i m noivoice to paypal or bitcoin payments. Let me know anyother way of support

    All the best for ur work and hope u do great.

    Reply
  25. Lukesan


    Chriatian:

    with galaxy s7 it does not work. the message appears on the reading car radio in progress. it does not open. I have energy saving turned off.

    I have an S7 and it works perfectly. Maybe try uninstalling and reinstalling the app?

    Reply
  26. Jasuk

    Thank you for the great app. Can you add access to the external storage on the phone like sd card? because right now it only accesses the internal storage of the phone. Thanks.

    Reply

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