Turn ANY Android Tablet into a Wireless Car Head Unit Display in 2024 – Android Auto Tablet Display How To Guide

In this guide (and walkthrough video, below), I will show you how to use an Android tablet as a car head unit display for both wired and wireless Android Auto. If your car doesn’t have a built-in Android Auto display screen, you can simply buy an Android tablet, mount it onto your car interior, and wirelessly connect your phone to the Android tablet for wireless Android Auto without the need to attach a cable to it. There are car stereo displays already selling today, however, these can be underpowered, chunky, and lack the features and finesse in their software that even a basic Android tablet can achieve better results.

// Tablet Used
Oukitel OT8 Android 13 Tablet –
$189.99 Official Store – https://shrsl.com/4o1n1
$148.59 AliExpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DkDMQiX
£159 Amazon UK – https://amzn.to/47lkr1Q
€155 Amazon DE – https://amzn.to/4g7DT5Y

In this walkthrough guide, I’ll be pairing a Google Pixel 5 with the Android tablet, but you could use any Android phone that is able to run Android Auto and has a data plan SIM card installed. You can use a cable to the tablet for the easiest and fastest experience for wired Android Auto, however, in this video, I will also be guiding you on how to connect the Android tablet wirelessly to your Android phone for a complete wireless Android Auto in-car experience.

With an Android phone connected wirelessly to the Android tablet, you will be able to run full-screen Android Auto on the tablet, which could be any size and brand, as long as it can create a hotspot from its Android OS software and run the apps that I will go into later in this guide. You can run all the usual Android Auto apps from your phone onto the Android tablet display and use it to stream music and navigation apps onto a large Android tablet mounted in the car’s interior. In this guide, I’ll go over the whole install process from start to finish, so you can learn what you need to do and how to achieve the same installation in your car.

Let’s get started…

Step 1: Choose your Android Tablet

So when your car doesn’t have a large head unit display like a tablet screen, you can use almost any Android tablet with this method. 13-inch size of tablet screens may be a little overkill on a car dashboard, so look for 7-inch to 11-inch size of tablets. If you plan on mounting it directly on the top of your dashboard, consider wide Android tablets that aren’t as tall when using them in landscape rotation. This will mean that the tablet isn’t blocking too much of your view out of the driving seat. Larger screens are best positioned lower down, covering your existing car stereo system is a good placement for this method.

For my installation, I have chosen the Oukitel OT8 Android 13 tablet, which comes with some nice car-related features. It has a lightweight and thin design that not only looks great, it also makes it easier to magnetically mount it in my car interior. It comes in three colours: green, purple, and this colour, grey, which blends in easily with my car’s interior.

If you’re looking to use its built-in audio, it has a very loud quad speaker system for a wide and rich soundscape in the car. However, for a better sound experience in the car, you can use your car speakers, you can use either the 3.5mm headphone port for a wired AUX audio connection, or if your car stereo system has Bluetooth audio support, the OT8 supports Bluetooth 5.0 for a fast connection and quality digital audio output to your car’s Bluetooth stereo. 

You can rely on its built-in 8800 mAh battery to last even the longest drives, and paired with a 12v USB-C adapter you can supply constant charge to the tablet for uninterrupted power whilst it is being used stationary movie watching or on the move for Android Auto.

With accurate quad navigation systems, this tablet doesn’t have to lean on your phone for navigation in Android Auto or it can run specific location-based apps directly on the tablet itself. 

And when it comes to data, you can use the built-in dual mobile data SIM card support for providing the tablet full internet access for streaming movies and games on the tablet, or simply use your connected Android phone data with apps within Android Auto.

A fast octa-core processor maintains a good level of performance and entertainment on the Outkitel OT8, allowing you to play games, watch movies and multi-task between apps and Android Auto with ease. Its 11” 2K resolution display brings a level of richness and quality to your car interior, matched with the elegant aesthetics of its exterior case design. Mounting the Oukitel OT8 Android Tablet in your car interior will truly increase your car infotainment system to the next level without breaking the budget or putting a sweat on from a challenging new stereo install.

Step 2: Internet & Download Software

So now that you have your Android tablet selected, let’s continue with the step-by-step guide on how to convert an Android tablet into a wireless Android Auto car head unit display.

1. The first thing you need is to connect the Android tablet to the internet. You can connect it to your home Wi-Fi, use a data SIM card if your tablet supports it, or tether your Android phone data to the tablet.
2. If your Android phone doesn’t have Android Auto installed yet, you can download the Android Auto app from the Google Play Store and also make sure it’s up to date with the latest version.
3. Next, go to the Google Play Store and search for the Android app Headunit Reloaded Emulator (HUR). It costs $4.99 for the full version, which is a very low bar of entry, considering you’re saving $100s on a much more expensive and complex head unit install.
4. Download and install the Headunit Reloaded app onto your Android tablet.
5. If you wish to use wireless Android Auto, download and install the free Wifi Launcher app from the Google Play Store onto your Android phone.

Step 3: Wired Android Auto Setup

A wired Android Auto connection with the Android tablet is the simplest to do. It is worth trying this wired method first, just to make sure the Android tablet and HUR app have been correctly set up and it works as intended before diving into the more complex wireless step.

1. Launch the Headunit Reloaded app on the tablet.
2. Connect the Android phone’s USB port to the Android tablet’s USB port with a data-supported USB cable.
3. After a few seconds, Android Auto will display on the tablet. You may have to also unlock your Android phone and confirm the Android Auto start screen on your phone.
4. From here, you can interact with Android Auto that’s on your Android phone, via the Android touhc screen tablet display. 

If you’re happy with this connection method, you can now either skip to the audio and mounting steps of this guide or continue to proceed with the wireless Android Auto setup below.

Step 4: Wireless Android Auto Setup

1. On the Android tablet, select Settings > Network and internet > Hotspot and tethering > Wi-Fi hotspot and turn on the [Use Wi-Fi hotspot] option. Give it a memorable Hotspot name and Hotspot password.
2. Launch the Headunit Reloaded app on the tablet (use all of its default settings) and let it sit on its main menu screen.
3. Over on the Android phone, enter Settings > Network and internet > Internet, and look for the Android tablet’s Hotspot network and connect to it using the password you set previously.
4. Once connected to the tablet’s hotspot, open the WiFi Launcher app.
5. At the top of the Wifi Launcher app, there is a Status & Info section with a red X on the permissions section. You need to give this app all the permissions it needs to operate in the background. So tap on this text area and proceed to grant all the permissions that are required. Once you have completed the battery permission, you may need to force close this app and restart the app again. Then you should see a green tick alongside the permissions option at the top.
6. Next, tap on the Start Wi-Fi service manually option in the WiFi Launcher app and your Android device will connect to the tablet and it will display Android Auto wirelessly from your connected Android phone. 

Your phone will continue to use data from your mobile network and display content from apps like Spotify and navigation in Maps apps in Android Auto on the Android Tablet.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter different results to how I’ve described above, check the following:

• Make sure the Android phone is connected to the tablet’s Wi-Fi hotspot.
• Make sure the Wifi Launcher app has all the permissions set and there is a green tick.
• Check both tablet and phone apps have their connections set correctly. On the tablet go to Headunit Reloaded app > Settings > Connectivity > Network Discovery and on the phone go to Wifi Launcher app > Wireless > Wifi connection mode > Network Discovery (you can also try Wifi client mode on the phone if Discovery isn’t working for you).
• Make sure that mobile data on the phone is enabled and that both WiFi and mobile data in apps are given the correct permissions.
• If apps like Spotify show as offline, check in the app’s settings and the app itself that it can use your mobile data to download songs. Also, check you are connected to a mobile data network and that 3/4/5G is present on the phone.
• Tap the Start WiFi server manually button in the WiFi launcher app, for continued use, you can try the Ignore BT disconnect option to keep the service alive for reconnections in the car.

Step 5: Casting Audio from the Tablet

There are a few audio methods to cast audio from the Android tablet. Either use the onboard speaker on the tablet, an AUX wired connection, wireless Bluetooth audio, or a wireless Bluetooth to FM transmitter.

Tablet on-board speaker

When the tablet is used as the hotspot, audio is cast from the tablet speakers. This is the simplest method to listen to audio from Android Auto apps, but depending on your tablet, it might not be a match against what your car speakers can provide.

Wired auxiliary (AUX) connection to car stereo & speakers 

If your car has an AUX input port, you can use this to pass audio from the tablet (if it has a 3.5mm headphone jack port) to the car stereo and have audio be sent to and out of your car speakers, for a much richer and more entertaining soundscape in your car interior.

1. Simply purchase a 3.5mm cable long enough to reach from the tablet to your AUX port. 
2. Before buying a new AUX cable, decide if you wish to feed the cable discretely around your car interior, or run the AUX cable more directly from the tablet to the AUX port. The latter is best suited if the distance is very short from tablet to AUX port in the car. 
3. If you wish to also power the tablet, you may want to combine both cables when running them around or through the car interior. Make sure the audio cable is shielded enough to reduce any interference caused by running parallel to the power cable.
4. Connect one end of the AUX cable into the AUX port in your car.
5. Connect the other end of the AUX cable into the tablet.
6. Check the volume is up on the tablet.
7. Select AUX as the source function on your car stereo system.
8. Play some audio from Android Auto on the tablet and you should hear the sound come from your car speakers instead of from the tablet.

Bluetooth audio to car Bluetooth stereo & speakers

Using the wireless digital Bluetooth method of casting audio from the tablet gives the best quality and it’s a wireless way to send audio from the tablet to your car speaker system. 

Many older cars with a Bluetooth-enabled stereo may also not have such a large screen, or may not be Android Auto compatible, so utilising the Bluetooth audio with a large screen tablet is a win/win scenario to get Android Auto in your car, cheaply and it will look the part too!

1. If the tablet is the hotspot for the Wi-Fi connection, I found it is best to connect the tablet to your Bluetooth stereo and not connect the phone BT to the car stereo.
2. On the car Bluetooth stereo, go into the Bluetooth pairing section of the car system and select Add Devices or search for an Available Devices option.
3. On the tablet, go to Settings > Connected devices > Pair new device and wait for the car stereo system to appear in the list of Available devices.
4. Tap on the Bluetooth profile of the car to pair with the Bluetooth car stereo.
5. After confirming both Bluetooth profile key code, the tablet should now be paired with the car Bluetooth system.
6. Make sure your car system is set to its Bluetooth audio source, and that the volume is set high enough on the car stereo and also on the tablet to hear the audio. Play some audio from Android Auto on the tablet and you should hear the sound come from your car speakers instead of from the tablet.

Bluetooth to FM Transmitter to car stereo & speakers

If your car doesn’t have AUX or Bluetooth options, another wireless audio method is to use a Bluetooth to FM Transmitter. This small and relatively cheap piece of technology will allow the tablet to cast its audio over an FM radio frequency that your car can receive by tuning into the same FM radio frequency on your car stereo. The quality isn’t quite the same as Bluetooth audio, but when neither option is available, this is a good fallback solution that’s simple and cable-free!

1. First, buy a Bluetooth to FM Transmitter, there are many on Amazon, like this one here. You are looking for an adapter that connects to either the tablet power, USB power in the car, or one that connects to the 12V port in the car. It has to receive a Bluetooth signal from the tablet and Transmit FM to your car stereo. Not the other way around. So make sure when buying the right product.
2. Next, find a free FM channel frequency on your car stereo. One that doesn’t have a radio station playing over it. Note its FM frequency number. 
3. Follow the Bluetooth to FM Transmitter’s instructions to power the adapter and tune it into the same frequency as the free FM frequency you found in step #2.
4. With the adapter FM frequency locked into the car FM radio, follow the instructions to pair the Bluetooth side of the transmitter to the Bluetooth of the Android tablet.
5. Make sure the volume is turned up on the tablet and that the car radio is on the correct FM frequency. Play some music over Android Auto and you should start to hear audio being cast over your FM stereo.

Step 6: Mounting the Android Tablet

If you’re happy with how the tablet performs with your Android phone for Android Auto, and you’re happy with how the audio is passed to your car stereo, you can now look into mounting the Android tablet in your car interior, so that the screen is visible for touch interaction in apps such as music and for viewing maps in navigation apps.

1. First, you need to know what mount to buy. Sit in the driver’s seat of the car and position the tablet where you think it would be best mounted in the car’s interior. The best location is usually in the centre of the car interior, at or slightly below eye level, and at a distance that the screen is easily at arm’s reach away whilst driving. This will commonly be where an existing display screen or air vent is in your car’s interior. If your tablet isn’t too big, you can position it on top of the dashboard, but this location might block your view out of the car windscreen if you are mounting a large screen tablet.
2. With the location chosen, now look at the available surfaces near, around and behind where the tablet will be located. This will tell you what kind of tablet mount you will need to buy. If it is near an air vent, then if the tablet is not too heavy (around 500-800 grams) an air vent mount could work here. Otherwise, a glass windscreen or dashboard mount will work for mounting the tablet on or near the top of the dashboard. Some dashboard mounts can also position it lower than the top of your dashboard and cover the original car stereo.
3. For an easy and clean-looking mount, look into using a magnetic or MagSafe adhesive ring and MagSafe compatible mount. The ring will be just a metal ring that you fix onto the back of the tablet, and the MagSafe mount will be the magnetic part that will attach to the metal ring on the back of the tablet. This will make mounting and removing the tablet much easier and the tablet will look very modern, like it is floating in the car or in front of your existing car stereo system.
4. Alternative mounts such as a cradle or clamp type of tablet mounting are also possible. These are usually big and bulky-looking things, but the clamp or cradle attachment to your tablet usually means a more robust and stable mount compared to using magnets. The risk of these mounts is that they are more likely to leave the screen or air vent first than the tablet leaving the mount itself. So pairing this type of mount with a robust fixed mount type would be the most secure solution, especially if the tablet is heavy in its overall weight.
5. With the tablet mount chosen, you simply buy and follow its installation instructions and then mount the tablet onto the magnetic mount or clamp it into the gripping portion of the mount.
6. Attach any audio cables or power cables into the tablet.
7. Position the mount so it faces you correctly and its screen is easy to reach from the driving position.

Step 7: Power the Android Tablet

For light use, or if you intend to take the tablet out of the car when its not being used for Android Auto, you could get by with charging the tablet each time from home and operate the tablet wire-free without a power cable connected to it. However, for continued operation, you should consider supplying the tablet a power source.

If the tablet is powered by USB (most of them are these days), then you can simply connect its supplied power cable to a nearby USB port or 12V USB adapter in your car interior. Make sure the 12V USB adapter has a suitable power level to it. At least 18W of output should be significant enough to keep a power-hungry tablet charged during use. Consider channelling the power cable through ventilation and car interior panels for a seamless and professional look in the car.

Step 8: Tablet Security

Tablet safely from theft

If you are parking your car in a high crime area or an unfamiliar location, town or city, you may want to consider removing the tablet from the car mount and stowing it either in the glove box or side door bins whilst you’re away from the car. Using a MagSafe type of car mount makes this process much easier when removing the tablet often. Whilst parked at home you may want to continue to use the tablet for home use, this also helps remove the tablet from the car at night and it keeps the tablet safe also.

Logged in apps

Leaving a tablet in the car with apps with accounts signed into them also offers some security risk, should the tablet get stolen from the car. So removing the tablet from view will help reduce any risk of theft and your online accounts from being compromised.

Tablet Wi-Fi Hotspot security

Sharing the Wi-Fi hotspot from the tablet also opens the door to a security risk from nearby hackers. Consider using a secure and hard-to-guess password for the tablet’s Wi-Fi hotspot password.