After I disconnected the cable and closing the Android Auto I noticed the phone was still lit, so I made a call using verbal commands and it worked. I tried to bring AA back up without the cable and no go. I shut everything off and then rebooted the phone and turned truck to ACC and it was active again. So apparently as long as my phone is turned on I can make calls using the buttons on the steering wheel without AA being on. Is that normal with the 8.4. Thanks