Bluetooth Audio Drops or Stutters
Causes and fixes:
Pairing cache corruption: Forget device on both phone and head unit. Re-pair from scratch.
Interference: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi from phone or surrounding devices interferes with Bluetooth (same band). In congested RF environments (parking lots, apartments), this causes dropouts. Solution: Disable phone Wi-Fi when audio quality critical, or upgrade to head unit with better Bluetooth antenna.
Phone case: Metal cases block Bluetooth signal. Phone in center console with metal divider between phone and head unit antenna (usually behind screen) causes attenuation.
Codec negotiation: Phone and head unit negotiate highest mutually supported codec at connection. If aptX negotiated but connection marginal, may fall back to SBC automatically. Check head unit's Bluetooth diagnostic screen if available.
USB cable alternative: For most critical listening, use wired CarPlay or Android Auto instead of Bluetooth. No codec compression, no RF interference.