Bluetooth weirdness; seriously weird stuff

Faults and Technical chat for the Mazda CX-3
Baggy Green
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Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by Baggy Green »

I love using my iPhone with my cars over Bluetooth. Have been doing it for years, multiple models.

So when I got my CX-3 recently, I paired my phone, and Bluetooth worked like a charm all that weekend. This included lots of stepping away from the car. Sometimes the phone would be turned off. Sometimes muted. Apps turned on and off. The works. And everytime I'd go back to the car and switch on, everything was tickety-boo.

It was the same that Monday morning when I drove to work. Got in the car, Bluetooth connected. Great.

But then Monday afternoon. Got in the car. Bluetooth connected. But would it play anything? Nope. I could go as far as opening my iPhone, and digging down into folders and even seeing the songs (or podcasts) in those folders, but if I'd try to play them, the screen would be blank where there information about the track goes, and if I turned up the volume I would hear a funny, whirring noise, like it was connected to something, but there was nothing to play?

I pulled over and tried the works. Car off. Phone off. Pairing off. Everything. Tried again. Nothing. So I listened to the radio on the way home.

Next morning I got in the car and everything worked first time. Flawlessly. Like it had that weekend. OK, I wonder what the afternoon will bring? And... sure enough... the same issue. The phone would connect. The car could read the contents of my phone, but could it play? Nope.

This continued all week. Perfect Bluetooth in the morning. None when I went back to the car in the afternoon. Then everything working again the next morning without me having done anything different at all. It's absolutely bizarre. At one stage, I could even select songs via the entertainment system, and they would play through my phones speaker, but if I switched back to 'Mazda', there would be silence. So the connection is there. It just doesn't want to work after work.

But here's the thing. Yesterday was Saturday and I jumped in and out of the car all day, including the afternoon, and the Bluetooth worked flawlessly all day. Every single time.

The 1000km inspection is in a week and I feel inclined to mention this, but it's such a bizarre fault, and the only way to repeat it seems to be sitting in my office for 8hrs then trying to drive home on a weekday afternoon, otherwise I daresay it will work great for the technician.

Any thoughts, or is this just crazy ape bonkers?
2018 Ceramic CX-3 FWD Petrol MAXX

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HouseSpider
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Post by HouseSpider »

Is there likely to be any interference etc where you park your car during the day and affects the Bluetooth when you start the car in the afternoons?
Sports Nav Auto Petrol 2017, 131bhp (chipped), Soul Red, Half Stone Leather, Safety Pack, Arm Rest, Auto Folding Mirror Kit, Detachable Tow Bar, HatchBag Boot Liner, Stebel Nautilus Compact horn. Space saver.
Baggy Green
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Post by Baggy Green »

HouseSpider wrote: Sun Jun 24, 2018 5:41 pm Is there likely to be any interference etc where you park your car during the day and affects the Bluetooth when you start the car in the afternoons?
That's a good question. It's just a regular parking garage and past cars haven't been affected... but that doesn't mean it can't happen. And indeed, it happened again today. Great Bluetooth all the way to work. After work, it didn't want to work at all. Bizarre.

I'd also pondered if it was networks at work, messing with my phone, but I don't even connect to the wi-fi there.

A bit of a mystery still. But it's so repeatable, there's got to be something happening there.
2018 Ceramic CX-3 FWD Petrol MAXX
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HouseSpider
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Post by HouseSpider »

If you drove from work for a couple of miles, stopped & turned your phone & car off, waited a minute, reboot your phone and then start your car, what happens?
Sports Nav Auto Petrol 2017, 131bhp (chipped), Soul Red, Half Stone Leather, Safety Pack, Arm Rest, Auto Folding Mirror Kit, Detachable Tow Bar, HatchBag Boot Liner, Stebel Nautilus Compact horn. Space saver.
Deleted User 1027

Post by Deleted User 1027 »

The only way to eliminate either the phone being the problem or the bluetooth in the Mazda is to pair another phone with the system and see if the problem continues.
This only helps if you have another phone you can use but for problems like this it is taking small steps to find the problem.
Baggy Green
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Post by Baggy Green »

HouseSpider wrote: Mon Jun 25, 2018 1:15 pm If you drove from work for a couple of miles, stopped & turned your phone & car off, waited a minute, reboot your phone and then start your car, what happens?
I hadn't seen your post, but this afternoon I walked into the car park with the phone OFF, then started up and drove a few blocks. Turned the phone on and it worked perfectly.

Now, in the past I had turned the phone OFF and restarted it AFTER the car was already running, and it didn't work, so the variable there is the phone being OFF when I entered the garage. I know it sounds bonkers.

Tomorrow I will go to the garage with it turned OFF again, start up the car, then turn the phone on before leaving the garage to see if there's any difference if I do it that way.
Last edited by Baggy Green on Tue Jun 26, 2018 12:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
2018 Ceramic CX-3 FWD Petrol MAXX
Baggy Green
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Post by Baggy Green »

<r><QUOTE author="MJC1216" post_id="10619" time="1530006989" user_id="1027"><s>
MJC1216 wrote: Tue Jun 26, 2018 9:56 am</s>
The only way to eliminate either the phone being the problem or the bluetooth in the Mazda is to pair another phone with the system and see if the problem continues.<br/>
This only helps if you have another phone you can use but for problems like this it is taking small steps to find the problem.
<e>
Unfortunately only a one phone household, but I'm likely to upgrade my phone soon, so that'll be a second.
2018 Ceramic CX-3 FWD Petrol MAXX
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HouseSpider
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Post by HouseSpider »

Definitely sound like there is an issue at the location you park your car.
When you get into the carpark what wifi networks are available to connect to and does the phone auto-connect to any of these?
Sports Nav Auto Petrol 2017, 131bhp (chipped), Soul Red, Half Stone Leather, Safety Pack, Arm Rest, Auto Folding Mirror Kit, Detachable Tow Bar, HatchBag Boot Liner, Stebel Nautilus Compact horn. Space saver.
Baggy Green
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Joined: Sun Jun 17, 2018 5:51 am
Location: Sydney, Australia

Post by Baggy Green »

I didn't check networks. I will next time I am there.

This past visit I started the car with the phone OFF, then switched it on (without moving the car), and again got a good connection.

But I bet if I walk into the carpark next time and the phone's ON at the time I switch on, it will balls up again. It's such a bizarre issue.
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HouseSpider
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Post by HouseSpider »

I think I was getting a little confused myself. The phone connects with Bluetooth not wifi unless you use the Connected Services.
However it may be possible for one to affect the other.
It probably a matter of trying all different scenarios and pinning down the ones that cause the issue. You may then find the reasoning for it.
Please keep us updated.
Sports Nav Auto Petrol 2017, 131bhp (chipped), Soul Red, Half Stone Leather, Safety Pack, Arm Rest, Auto Folding Mirror Kit, Detachable Tow Bar, HatchBag Boot Liner, Stebel Nautilus Compact horn. Space saver.
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