CarPlay Ultra just hit another speed bump. Several automakers reportedly won’t use Apple’s most advanced in-dash infotainment system because it takes over too many features of the vehicle that the carmakers themselves want to control. This is especially bad news for Apple as some of these holdouts are companies that previously showed interest in implementing CarPlay Ultra.
On the other hand, there are well-known carmakers still planning on adding the system to their vehicles.
CarPlay Ultra might never get up to speed
CarPlay lets users plug their iPhone into their dash to have easy access to navigation apps and streaming music. It’s grown very popular since launching in 2014. Perhaps that spurred Apple to get much more ambitious with CarPlay Ultra in 2022. This takes over the entire instrument cluster, displaying speed, engine RPM, fuel level and much more.
The unveiling of the advanced version included a lengthy list of automakers interested in it. But some of those apparently changed their minds, and others never intended to. Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Volvo, Polestar and Renault will not use CarPlay Ultra, according to a Financial Times report published on Wednesday.
“Don’t try to invade our own systems,” a Renault executive said their company told Apple.
These carmakers aren’t interested in a system that essentially makes their products into an Apple Car.
Some slow progress
Three years after the debut of CarPlay Ultra, it began rolling out to Aston Martin vehicles in the United States and Canada. That’s a win for Apple’s in-dash system, and Porsche told Financial Times it plans to add support to future models. The same goes for Hyundai and Kia. And Jaguar Land Rover says it’s still considering it.
Other companies like Ford, Honda and Mercedes that were initially interested in the system have not launched it in their vehicles.
In contrast, the regular version of CarPlay is still cruising along in the fast lane. About 90% of new vehicles support it. And the next version coming with iOS 26 will let iPhone users stream videos directly to their CarPlay screens.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
