CarPlay connection issues after updating to iOS 18.4? Try these workarounds
Wireless CarPlay in iOS 18.4 is causing some drivers connection issues, but you can try these workarounds until Apple releases a proper fix to address the problem.
Complaints on Reddit and X (Twitter) reveal connection problems with wireless CarPlay for an unknown number of iPhone owners who installed iOS 18.4. Complaints range from CarPlay stuck in a reconnect loop, to not connecting at all to disconnecting intermittently. For one guy, CarPlay disconnects when invoking Siri.
Apple does not publicly comment on complaints on social media but you can contact the company’s support department if you’re having this problem. CarPlay issues typically occur after an iOS update before they’re fixed in subsequent releases.
Apple is currently testing an iOS 18.5 update, but the current beta version doesn’t contain a fix for CarPlay’s connection issues. The bug makes CarPlay unusable in the car, so hopefully Apple will prioritize a fix in the next update to iOS 18.
iOS 18.4 is causing CarPlay to disconnect and reconnect
When CarPlay is disconnected, the vehicle is no longer displayed in the CarPlay settings and the driver may see a message saying “The connection failed. Please check whether your mobile device is unlocked.” Some customers reported having this issue on their aftermarket CarPlay receiver. The following vehicles that integrate CarPlay’s instrument cluster are also affected:
- Audi S3 (2023)
- Nissan Frontier (2023)
- Honda Civic Hybrid (2025)
- Mazda CX-30 (2025)
AppleInsider readers have long reported various CarPlay problems before, so the latest issue won’t be a surprise to CarPlay fans. I’m just speculating, but CarPlay’s connection issues may have something to do with the fact that iOS 18.4 added a third row of icons to CarPlay, depending on the size of the car’s infotainment display.
Workarounds for CarPlay connection issues
There were no patches for CarPlay’s connection issues at post time. That said, you can mitigate the problem until a proper fix arrives by going back to the god ol’ wired USB connection. Another trick: visit parental controls in Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions and turn on “CarPlay” in the “Allowed Apps” section. The poster who said this solution worked for them speculated that Screen Time might be enforcing Do Not Disturb settings during normal use hours.
Resetting the car or the phone won’t fix the issue and neither will reconnecting Bluetooth, performing a network reset or repairing the phone. However, several people claim that CarPlay eventually connected for them after trying several times.
Other issues in iOS 18.4
An unrelated bug is causing iOS 18.4’s CarPlay to remove song information from the Now Playing screen. It’s unclear whether this problem is related to CarPlay’s newly-introduced support for sports apps where the Now Playing interface splits to show scores for each side. Yet another bug in iOS 18.4 is causing long forgotten, previously deleted iPhone apps to reinstall and appear on the Home Screen.
Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/04/04/apple-ios-18-4-bug-carplay-connection-issues-workarounds/
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