Problem one: your cat will not use the new unit at all
Refusal in the first days usually means the introduction went faster than the cat, not that the cat has rejected technology forever. Deposits beside the unit, use of a former tray location that no longer has a tray, or holding on until a chance appears elsewhere all point to a box that still reads as an unfamiliar appliance. The first corrective step is to put the familiar manual tray back beside the automatic unit, clean and inviting, and leave the new unit switched off as furniture until your cat has investigated it repeatedly and, ideally, stepped in voluntarily. Restoring choice removes urgency, and urgency is what turns hesitation into floor accidents that then scent-mark the wrong spot as an alternative toilet.
Problem two: an early cycle startles her into avoiding the room
A cleaning cycle that starts while a cat is leaving, or worse, still inside, can undo a promising introduction in one fright, after which she may avoid not just the box but the whole corner. The restart step is to set the longest available delay before any cycle, clean the sensors so the unit does not trigger unpredictably, and supervise the first several cycles from the room so you can see her reaction and confirm the timing is safe. Follow the maker's guidance on minimum size and age for your model without exception, and if she startles again, return to a switched-off period rather than hoping repeated frights will fade. A cat who watches a distant, delayed cycle calmly from across the room is giving you the signal that the level is right.
Problem three: the machine quietly stops offering a usable toilet
Automatic units fail silently in ways a manual tray never does: a waste drawer that fills sooner than expected, a jam that leaves the bed unsifted, or a power interruption that parks the mechanism mid-cycle. To a cat, each failure is simply a dirty or unavailable toilet, and the predictable result is a deposit somewhere cleaner. The management step is a brief daily check, drawer, bed surface, and status light, done at a set time, plus keeping the unit's litter at the level it was designed for rather than overfilling in the hope of fewer top-ups. Treat any day the unit has faulted as a day your cat was effectively without a tray, and judge her behavior that day with that fairness in mind.
Problem four: the household retired the spare too soon
Many post-switch problems trace back to removing the manual tray once the new unit seemed accepted, leaving a cat with no fallback during a fault, a power cut, or a bout of nervousness after a startling cycle. The durable step is to reinstate one ordinary tray in a different room permanently, scoop it on its own routine, and think of the automatic box as the preferred option rather than the only one. If problems persist despite a patient restart, or if you see straining, repeated small trips, crying, or blood in the urine in either tray, contact your veterinarian rather than continuing to adjust equipment, because a medical cause can coincide with a house change and hide behind it.
Sequencing the restart without losing the thread
A recovery plan only helps if the steps stay in order across everyone involved, from restoring the old tray to delaying the cycle to reinstating the spare, and if each cat's reaction is noted before the next step begins. When you are unsure which step comes next, put a follow-up question to KinsLe's Kinny; he answers using the KinsLe Answers library.