Google Maps on Android Auto 14.3 is more personal: goodbye to the blue arrow

Google has started the distribution of a new update for its platform dedicated to the car, Android Auto, bringing it to version 14.3. Although we are not faced with a Major Update announced with Mountain View trumpet rings, this new release introduces a subtle but significant visual modification within Google Maps, destined to improve the consistency and personalization of the user experience.

Android Auto updates to version 14.3: small news in Google Maps, big step for customization

The main novelty, as reported by the first users, concerns the position indicator inside Google Maps when used via Android Auto. The historic and iconic blue arrowwhich for years guides us by indicating our position and direction of travel, gives way to the vehicle icon that the user has previously selected in the Google Maps application settings on his smartphone. If, for example, you have chosen a white SUV in the mobile app, it will be that icon to appear on the map on the display of your car.

This change does not come like a lightning bolt. It is useful to remember, in fact, how Google had already worked in this direction between the end of 2024 and the beginning of 2025, significantly expanding the range of vehicle icons selectable within Google Maps for mobile devices.

The arrival of version 14.3 of Android Auto therefore seems to represent the next logical step that extends this possibility of customization also to the interface displayed on the infotainment screen, thus creating greater visual continuity between experience on smartphones and the car.

An interesting detail is that the replacement of the arrow with the vehicle icon does not take place only during active navigation with road indications. Even when using Google Maps simply to view the map, without a set destination, It will be the personalized icon to indicate the current position.

The logic behind this choice appears rather intuitive: given that Android Auto is, by its nature, used inside a vehicle, viewing an icon that represents the car itself is more contextual and immersive than an abstract arrow. The front of the vehicle icon, of course, continues to indicate the direction of travel, thus fulfilling the same function previously performed by the tip of the blue arrow.

Although it is a purely aesthetic and non -functional change, it still represents a welcome aging of the user interface. It makes the experience on Android auto slightly more personal and aligned to the preferences expressed by the user in the main app of Maps, contributing to that feeling of integrated ecosystem to which Google has for some time.

How to receive the update to Android Auto 14.3

As usual for the updates of the Google apps, the distribution of version 14.3 of Android Auto takes place in a manner gradual through the Google Play Store. This means that the update could reach your smartphone automatically in the next few hours or in the next few days. The update concerns both users registered in the stable channel and those participating in the beta program.

For more impatient users or for those who prefer to have direct control over updates, the option of themanual installation. You can download the APK file of version 14.3 by sources considered reliable and safe, such as the well -known Apkmirror portal (at this address). This procedure often allows you to obtain the new version faster than the waiting times of the automatic rollout via Play Store.

In short, Android Auto 14.3 presents itself as a minor update but which introduces a visual detail capable of making the interaction with Google Maps by car a little more personal and consistent with the choices made on smartphones. We look forward to finding out which other news, perhaps more full -bodied, Google has in store for the future of its infotainment platform.