Rate limit error auto-switches model from Auto to Composer 2.5 (also rate-limited)

Support Bug Reports
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Where does the bug appear (feature/product)?

Cursor IDE

Describe the Bug

When submitting a prompt while rate limited in auto mode the mode is switched to Composer 2.5 which just fails harder. This mean to actually use the prompt part of the editor you need to.

  1. Write prompt hit enter
  2. Deal with rate limit error
  3. Up arrow to your actual prompt
  4. Manually click the model back to auto
  5. Resent the request hoping cursor doesnt secretly switch back to Composer again

Even worse the button on the rate limit to “switch to auto” doesnt switch to auto, it switches to compose 2.5 and prompts you again.

Impact: When usage is exhausted, auto-switching to another rate-limited model makes the UX strictly worse. The banner mentions Auto as an alternative but the client picks Composer 2.5 instead.

Suggested fix:

Do not auto-switch the model on rate-limit errors; leave the user’s selection unchanged.
If auto-switching is intentional, default to Auto (not Composer 2.5).
If all models are rate-limited, show a clear “wait for reset” message without changing the model picker.

Steps to Reproduce

Steps to reproduce:

Open a new Agent chat.
Confirm the model dropdown shows Auto (default).
Send any message (Enter).
A rate-limit / usage error appears.

Expected Behavior

Expected behavior:

Model stays on Auto, OR
If the client suggests switching models, it should switch to Auto (which the error message itself lists as an option), OR
At minimum, not auto-switch away from the user’s chosen model without consent.
Actual behavior:

The error banner appears (wording along the lines of: “You’re out of usage. Switch to auto, Auto, or Composer 2.5…”).
The model dropdown is automatically changed to Composer 2.5.
Composer 2.5 is also rate-limited, so the user cannot send messages.
User must manually switch back to Auto, and may still be blocked until usage resets.

Operating System

Linux

Version Information

Cursor version: 3.7.42
OS: Linux Mint 22.3 (Ubuntu, kernel 6.8.0-124-generic)
Mode: Agent chat

For AI issues: which model did you use?

Auto, (Actually secretly switched to Composer 2.5)

Does this stop you from using Cursor

Sometimes - I can sometimes use Cursor

7

Hi @Nate_Fabian Thank you for the post and I apologize for the inconvenience here.

This matches a known issue we’re tracking internally. There are two related parts here: the usage-limit flow can switch the model to Composer 2.5 when Auto is the option that should keep working, and the “Switch to Auto” button can fail to select Auto correctly.

For now, the best workaround is to manually pick Auto from the model dropdown instead of using the banner button. I’ve linked this report to the existing internal tracking so the team has your version, OS, and steps to reproduce.