Level 2

157 points

CarPlay stopped working after iOS 26 update.

I have an iPhone 16 Pro and a third party head unit with CarPlay which has been working flawlessly for over two years with two different iPhones, an SE and my current iPhone 6 Pro. The morning after I updated my iPhone to iOS 26, the Maps screen did not appear on the device as it normally would and instead, a connection error screen appeared. I tried repeatedly to reconnect without success and in the evening, I found various accounts of how this problem had arisen in iOS 26 beta releases and that it might be fixed by resetting everything, forgetting devices etc. well, I sat in my car for an hour doing just that. I managed to connect to the device via Bluetooth and WiFi and when I tried to initiate CarPlay, the device appeared. When I selected it, a CarPlay screen came up which I okayed and then the device disappeared from the CarPlay settings.

I gave my old SE to my girlfriend and there is no problem when I try to connect with that but it doesn't work with my £1000 iPhone 16 Pro literally since I updated to iOS 26.

I think it is fair to say that the iOS 26 update broke and I'm pretty annoyed.

iPhone 16 Pro, iOS 26

Posted on Sep 17, 2025 7:14 AM

Top-ranking reply

Brandon2021

Level 1

37 points

Posted on Oct 8, 2025 3:06 PM

The CarPlay widgets are what’s causing the issue. Your CarPlay head unit isn’t powerful enough to have them running even in the background. To fix it, go to Settings > General > CarPlay, select your CarPlay stereo, and then go to Widgets. Now, slide the Show Widgets toggle off to disable them.

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117 replies

patu90da

Level 1

8 points

Nov 12, 2025 5:13 PM in response to Brandon2021

どうもありがとう。このAutomationsに関する情報はとても役に立ちます。私も早速試してみます。

Nov 16, 2025 1:12 PM in response to mattattrent

same here!

floetic

Level 1

8 points

Nov 17, 2025 12:06 PM in response to chucknelson

what about B3?

floetic

Level 1

8 points

Nov 17, 2025 12:07 PM in response to chucknelson

It's not actually.. have you tried 26.2 B3?

JerzBoyz

Level 1

8 points

Nov 17, 2025 1:20 PM in response to floetic

It does not work still. Constant pausing and in some instances audio doesn’t transmit but you can still see the track playing on the timer.

Nov 20, 2025 4:21 PM in response to chadrcaldwell

Not one problem since I got the Beats cable. 2018 F150 about 6” screen.

FGDesign

Level 1

14 points

Nov 23, 2025 11:55 AM in response to Alf Megson

iPhone 16 pro. CarPlay does not show on my General Settings. I have an aftermarket Sony head unit stereo in my 2003 Jeep with wireless Bluetooth connection. Come on Apple. Get us an update asap.

Nov 24, 2025 1:15 PM in response to Alf Megson

My iPhone 13 Pro Max does not work correctly in my 2021 Ford F150 factory system using Ford's Sync, but it does work correctly in my wife's 2024 Toyota RAV4 on the factory entertainment system.

jdonn

Level 1

8 points

Nov 30, 2025 11:42 AM in response to jdonn

Still doesn't work.

Dec 4, 2025 10:04 AM in response to Brandon2021

Hero! This solved the issue on both my cats with aftermarket wireless CarPlay.

thank you so much! Perfect solution.

iPhone 17 Pro, iOS 26.1

Dec 4, 2025 1:46 PM in response to FGDesign

I didn’t find CarPlay as an app on my phone (maybe I’m missing something). I added Waze to the list since that’s the CarPlay app when I disconnected in the past.

Lb2005

Level 1

10 points

Dec 2, 2025 7:40 AM in response to Alf Megson

I have this same issue with my Ford Explorer 2018,. When directly connecting via the cord (which I bought 2 new cords to try to fix the issue), car play does not connect. I tried all the fixes listed here, twice with no success. My kids iphones (13, 15 & 16) connect perfectly. My new iphone 17 pro max does not connect directly to car play, at all. I can connect wireless but that does not allow me to use the car play interface with the needed features. I am very disappointed as I depend on car play when driving! Hope Apple finds a fix soon!

Thank you.

CarPlay stopped working after iOS 26 update.