I'm an developer and a fans of Apple, writing because you handled a forum thread that exactly matches an issue I can still reproduce today: "VPN causes CarPlay to not work" (developer.apple.com/forums/thread/712441), filed as FB11285432 back in August 2022. Summary: When any Packet Tunnel VPN with includeAllNetworks enabled is active, wired CarPlay fails to establish a connection. The phone charges normally, but the head unit never detects CarPlay. Steps to reproduce (iPhone on iOS [iOS 26.5.2], [Volkswagen's universal in-vehicle infotainment system for the 2023 and 2024 model years] head unit, USB-C wired CarPlay): Start a VPN configured with includeAllNetworks = true (reproduced with Shadowrocket; other users report the same with ExpressVPN, Google One VPN, etc.) Plug in the USB cable Result: CarPlay never connects. Charging works. Additional observations: With the VPN off, the same phone/cable/car connects instantly, ruling out hardware. If CarPlay is established first and the VPN is enabled afterward, the existing session keeps working — only the initial handshake/discovery is blocked. Consistent with thread 712441, excluding local networks does not help. This suggests includeAllNetworks blocks the mDNS/discovery traffic on the USB virtual Ethernet interface that CarPlay needs, with no exemption available. Two questions: Is there any supported configuration that allows includeAllNetworks and first-time CarPlay connection to coexist? If not, is FB11285432 still tracked? I'd be happy to file a new Feedback report referencing it with current repro details if that helps prioritization. Thanks for your time — your forum posts on Network Extension have been invaluable in diagnosing this.

I'm testing iOS 27 and face this issue that the accessoryImage on the CPListItem is no longer shown properly. It works fine up until iOS 26.5 but on 27 it is way to small. Check attached screen shot for details. Also filed FB23903072, hope this gets fixed before iOS 27 final arrives. 🤞

Working on a CarPlay app (Driving App) and despite setting tab bar icons, they don’t display in either the simulator or two physical devices (one no older than 2024 and with a very large screen), I only see the textual description/name of the tab. Am I missing something ?

We went through Apple's CarPlay documentation and, based on what we found, CarPlay provides templates for both Navigation and Audio, and our app has entitlements for both. One thing we would like to confirm before proceeding with implementation is whether a single app can expose both Navigation and Audio experiences in CarPlay, using both entitlements. Specifically, can the same CarPlay app provide a navigation experience (e.g., using CPMapTemplate) while also exposing an Audio/"Now Playing" experience, or does Apple expect these experiences to be implemented as separate apps or otherwise treated as separate CarPlay experiences? We'd also like to confirm whether CarPlay now allows an app to display a split-screen interface with navigation/map content on one side and audio controls or "Now Playing" controls on the other side. If so, is this something a single app with both Navigation and Audio entitlements can implement? The documentation explains the available templates and entitlements, but we couldn't find explicit guidance on whether the same app can leverage both Navigation and Audio experiences or whether these can be presented together in a split-screen layout. We'd like to clarify this before implementing the "Now Playing" screen, to ensure our approach aligns with Apple's CarPlay requirements and guidelines.

Hello, I am developing a native CarPlay application and would appreciate some clarification regarding AVAudioSession behaviour when using the vehicle microphone. The application is intentionally simple and designed to minimise driver distraction. The user presses a single button on the CarPlay screen, the application performs a brief (approximately five second) audio capture, performs application-specific processing on the captured audio, displays a simple confirmation to the user, and immediately releases the audio session. The goal is to allow the driver to continue their journey with as little interaction as possible. Because the audio being captured is often originating from the vehicle’s native DAB/FM radio rather than from the iPhone itself, preserving the existing listening experience during the brief capture is fundamental to the intended design. To better understand what is supported by CarPlay, I have carried out a number of controlled experiments. Test Environment Native CarPlay application Swift AVFoundation AVAudioSession AVAudioRecorder Vehicle connected via CarPlay Vehicle playing its native DAB radio Experiment 1 Configuration Category: AVAudioSession.Category.playAndRecord Mode: AVAudioSession.Mode.default Observed Route Input: CarPlay — CarAudio Output: CarPlay — CarAudio Result Recording succeeds using the vehicle microphone. Native DAB audio is muted during recording. The vehicle changes from “Audio Volume” to “Voice Volume”. When recording finishes and the AVAudioSession is deactivated, DAB resumes normally. Experiment 2 Changed only the session mode to: AVAudioSession.Mode.measurement Result Behaviour was identical to Experiment 1. Experiment 3 Changed only the session mode to: AVAudioSession.Mode.videoRecording Observed Route Input: iPhone microphone Output: CarPlay — CarAudio Result Input automatically switched from the vehicle microphone to the iPhone microphone. The vehicle remained in normal “Audio Volume”. However, the head unit switched away from its native DAB source to the CarPlay media source. Observation These experiments appear to suggest that the behaviour is specifically related to using the CarPlay “CarAudio” microphone route, rather than audio recording itself. Question Is this the expected behaviour for third-party CarPlay applications? More specifically: Is there any supported AVAudioSession configuration or CarPlay API that allows a third-party CarPlay application to perform a brief, user-initiated audio capture using the vehicle microphone without causing the head unit to enter its communications/voice audio mode or interrupt the vehicle’s native radio playback? If this behaviour is by design and no supported mechanism exists to achieve this, confirmation of that would be extremely valuable, as it would allow us to design the application accordingly. If additional information, sample code, AVAudioSession logs or detailed reproduction steps would be helpful, I would be more than happy to provide them. Thank you very much for your time. Kind regards, Neil Jenner Developer, HearSave

On iOS 27, CPListItem.text and CPListImageRowItem.text` are rendered as single-line with ellipsis truncation, regardless of the available vertical space. On iOS 26 and earlier, these properties wrapped to 2 lines before truncating. There is no public API (numberOfLines, lineLimit, or similar) on CPListItem, CPListImageRowItem, or CPListSection to control the number of text lines. The change appears to be a platform-level rendering default with no app-side opt-out. Steps to Reproduce Create a CPListTemplate with sections containing CPListItem or CPListImageRowItem items. Set the text property to a string long enough to require wrapping. Present the template via CPInterfaceController. Run on iOS 27. Expected Results The text property should wrap to multiple lines (2-3 lines) before truncating with an ellipsis, consistent with iOS 26 behavior. Row height should adjust dynamically to accommodate the wrapped text. Actual Results The text property is truncated to a single line with ellipsis. Row height remains fixed at a larger size, creating excessive vertical spacing between items. Environment iOS 27.0 (CarPlay) - issue present Xcode 27.0 beta 4 (27A5218g) Tested on physical CarPlay head unit and CarPlay Simulator

Hi, I’m developing a CarPlay navigation app using the CarPlay Maps/Navigation entitlement. The app works correctly as a full CarPlay navigation app: The main CarPlay scene connects. The app displays a map template. Free-drive / map-following mode works in the full CarPlay app. Turn-by-turn navigation works. The Dashboard navigation scene works during active route guidance. The issue is with the CarPlay Dashboard/home screen behavior. Other navigation apps such as Waze or ABRP can appear automatically in the CarPlay Dashboard navigation widget when CarPlay starts, even when no active route guidance is running. My app’s Dashboard navigation scene only appears once route guidance has started. When no route guidance is active, the CarPlay Dashboard does not show my app as the navigation widget provider. My questions are: Is there any additional public API, entitlement, plist key, or runtime state required for a navigation app to be selected by CarPlay as the Dashboard navigation provider at CarPlay startup? Is the Dashboard navigation widget expected to launch the last-used third-party navigation app automatically, even when there is no active navigation session? Does an app need to keep some kind of navigation session, navigation metadata, free-drive state, or passive navigation session active for CarPlay to treat it as eligible for the Dashboard widget? Are there differences in this behavior between development builds installed via Xcode and TestFlight/App Store builds? Is the Dashboard navigation scene supposed to be created only during active route guidance, or can CarPlay create it for a free-drive/map-following state with no route? The relevant behavior I’m seeing is: The app works as a full CarPlay navigation app. The Dashboard scene is declared in the app configuration. The app is signed with the CarPlay Maps entitlement. The Dashboard scene appears during route guidance. Without active route guidance, CarPlay Dashboard falls back to another navigation app instead of showing my app’s free-drive map. Any clarification on the expected lifecycle and eligibility rules for third-party navigation apps in the CarPlay Dashboard would be appreciated.

We are investigating a wireless CarPlay connection failure between our vehicle headunit and iPhone, and have identified a suspicious pattern in the carkitd pairing flow through analysis of iPhone sysdiagnose logs. As we have been unable to fully interpret certain behaviors on our own, we would greatly appreciate any guidance or clarification Apple could provide. The original sysdiagnose log file is available upon request. Failure case — UTC 07:14 07:14:25 [carkitd] Transitioning: [started] → [Bluetooth confirmation] 07:14:26 [carkitd] Transitioning: [Bluetooth confirmation] → [Bluetooth contacts sync] 07:14:27 [carkitd] Transitioning: [Bluetooth contacts sync] → [waiting on messaging connection] 07:14:32 [carkitd] Consolidated ... CARiAPAuthComplete payload for event type 5 07:14:32 [accessoryd] sending EAAccessoryArrived to carkitd for accessory: Ioniq5566 07:14:32 [carkitd] updated partial session (null) (hasAccessory = NO) * CARCarKitWirelessPairingCreatedEvent not observed * [connect CarPlay] not entered 07:14:57 [carkitd] Transitioning: [waiting on messaging connection] → [dismiss/finished] ← Terminates ~25 sec later without sending CarPlayAvailability Success case (Ioniq5) — UTC 07:12 (same sysdiagnose file, same iPhone) 07:12:05 [carkitd] Transitioning: [Bluetooth contacts sync] → [waiting on messaging connection] 07:12:12 [carkitd] CARCarKitWirelessPairingCreatedEvent received 07:12:14 [carkitd] Transitioning: [waiting on messaging connection] → [connect CarPlay] 07:12:18 [carkitd] sending CarPlayAvailability {wireless: YES BT: <private>} ← Wireless CarPlay established successfully The only observable difference between the two cases is whether CARCarKitWirelessPairingCreatedEvent occurs. Could you help us understand what conditions prevent this event from being generated, and whether there is a fallback path into [connect CarPlay] when it is absent? Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.

We are investigating a wireless CarPlay connection failure between our vehicle headunit and iPhone, and have identified a suspicious pattern in the carkitd pairing flow through analysis of iPhone sysdiagnose logs. As we have been unable to fully interpret certain behaviors on our own, we would greatly appreciate any guidance or clarification Apple could provide. The original sysdiagnose log file is available upon request. Failure case — UTC 07:14 07:14:25 [carkitd] Transitioning: [started] → [Bluetooth confirmation] 07:14:26 [carkitd] Transitioning: [Bluetooth confirmation] → [Bluetooth contacts sync] 07:14:27 [carkitd] Transitioning: [Bluetooth contacts sync] → [waiting on messaging connection] 07:14:32 [carkitd] Consolidated ... CARiAPAuthComplete payload for event type 5 07:14:32 [accessoryd] sending EAAccessoryArrived to carkitd for accessory: Ioniq5566 07:14:32 [carkitd] updated partial session (null) (hasAccessory = NO) * CARCarKitWirelessPairingCreatedEvent not observed * [connect CarPlay] not entered 07:14:57 [carkitd] Transitioning: [waiting on messaging connection] → [dismiss/finished] ← Terminates ~25 sec later without sending CarPlayAvailability Success case (Ioniq5) — UTC 07:12 (same sysdiagnose file, same iPhone) 07:12:05 [carkitd] Transitioning: [Bluetooth contacts sync] → [waiting on messaging connection] 07:12:12 [carkitd] CARCarKitWirelessPairingCreatedEvent received 07:12:14 [carkitd] Transitioning: [waiting on messaging connection] → [connect CarPlay] 07:12:18 [carkitd] sending CarPlayAvailability {wireless: YES BT: <private>} ← Wireless CarPlay established successfully The only observable difference between the two cases is whether CARCarKitWirelessPairingCreatedEvent occurs. Could you help us understand what conditions prevent this event from being generated, and whether there is a fallback path into [connect CarPlay] when it is absent? Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.

Consultation on CarPlay Video Playback Review Requirements for iOS 27 Hello Apple Developer Forums team, Our app has been approved for the CarPlay Video entitlement, and we are preparing to implement video playback for CarPlay while the vehicle is parked. I would like to confirm several points before development and submission: Can we develop this feature using the current Xcode beta and iOS 27 beta SDK? If the feature is completed using the beta SDK, can the app be submitted to App Review now, or must we wait until the official public release of iOS 27 and the final Xcode version? For CarPlay parked video playback, does App Review require the app to implement or demonstrate its own P-gear / parked-state safety lock logic, or is this restriction handled by the CarPlay system and vehicle? Is a car infotainment system update required for CarPlay Video Playback support, or is support determined by the iPhone iOS version and the connected CarPlay system’s capabilities, such as supportsVideoPlayback? We understand that final App Review decisions are made during review, but we would appreciate any official guidance or documentation references regarding the correct implementation and submission timing. Thank you.

I have an iOS 17+ app (SwiftUI lifecycle, @UIApplicationDelegateAdaptor) with the granted com.apple.developer.carplay-communication entitlement. It's a voice-message app for family (leave/listen to short audio messages). The app does not appear in Settings → General → CarPlay, nor on the CarPlay Home grid, on a real head unit — across multiple TestFlight builds and full phone reboots. The iPhone app itself launches fine. Verified: The App Store distribution provisioning profile carries com.apple.developer.carplay-communication. The build is signed with that entitlement. Info.plist declares a CPTemplateApplicationSceneSessionRoleApplication scene with UISceneClassName = CPTemplateApplicationScene, a UISceneConfigurationName, and UISceneDelegateClassName pointing to a CPTemplateApplicationSceneDelegate. The delegate synchronously sets a root CPListTemplate in templateApplicationScene(_:didConnect:). My questions: Does a CarPlay Communication app require SiriKit messaging support (INSendMessageIntent, INSearchForMessagesIntent, INSetMessageAttributeIntent, the Siri entitlement, NSSiriUsageDescription, INIntentsSupported) in order to be registered/shown on the CarPlay dashboard? My app currently uses custom CPListTemplate rows with a direct audio recorder and no SiriKit intents. How can I confirm whether the App Store / TestFlight–re-signed build actually carries the carplay-communication entitlement at runtime? For an audio-message app that must never transcribe audio, is INOutgoingMessageType.outgoingMessageAudio the correct approach, and should playback use the SiriKit read flow rather than CPNowPlayingTemplate (which appears to require the Audio entitlement)?

We're experiencing an issue where the CarPlay Simulator (from Apple Developer Additional Tools) stopped connecting to our iPhones as of March 4th, 2025. The simulator gets stuck indefinitely on "Connecting to phone" and never completes the pairing. Environment App: Oracle Field Service iOS app (with CarPlay support) Tool: CarPlay Simulator from Apple Developer Additional Tools (developer.apple.com/download/all/) Issue start date: Wednesday, March 4th, 2025 Tested on: Multiple Mac machines, multiple iPhones Multiple CarPlay Simulator versions tested What's happening The CarPlay Simulator launches but displays "Connecting to phone" indefinitely. It was working correctly prior to March 4th with no changes on our end. What still works CarPlay functions correctly when the same iPhone is connected to a real car, confirming the issue is specific to the simulator. Troubleshooting steps already attempted Reset permissions and re-added the simulator Forgot the simulator and re-paired it Changed the USB cable Tested on multiple Mac machines Tested on multiple iPhones Tried multiple versions of the CarPlay Simulator Confirmed no VPN is in use Confirmed with IT, no OS updates or enterprise restrictions were applied Questions Has anyone else experienced this since March 4th? Was there a change in CarPlay Simulator behavior or a requirement on the Apple side (certificate, entitlement, protocol) around that date? Is there a known workaround or fix?

Bonjour, Je viens ici afin d'exposer mon problème en espérant trouver une solution. En Août 2025 j'ai publié une demande afin de pouvoir développer une application Carplay de type navigation. Ma demande n'a jamais été traitée, j'ai soumis une autre demande en février, puis en avril. Toujours sans réponse. Depuis environ 3 semaines, j'appelle Apple toutes les semaines afin de demander à ce que ma demande soit traitée. J'ai bien évidemment une réponse m'indiquant que la demande était remontée, mais sans retour par la suite. Je commence à sérieusement perdre patience, et ne trouve aucune solution. Quelles seraient vos propositions ? Merci par avance pour vos retours

Under Xcode 27 beta (27A5194q) the built-in CarPlay external screen from iOS simulator can be launched but shows an empty black screen every time on iOS27 device configurations. I have tested many different simulated devices (iPhone 17, 17 pro, 17 pro max) and different screen resolutions. Under iOS26.3 it works as expected. Is this a known issue? Is there any workaround or fix?

When using the new list section headers that include an image, title, subtitle, and action button (e.g., on playlist entity pages), the header remains fixed while the underlying content scrolls. This results in visual overlap between the header and list items, creating readability issues that can appear visually broken during interaction. Is this a known issue, and is there a workaround or fix planned?

I have questions about how the Video Now Playing experience for music apps is configured and what controls are available: Subtitles / Closed Captions — Does the Video NPV support subtitle or closed caption selection? Playback Speed — Is playback speed control surfaced in the CarPlay Video NPV UI? Playback Controls — Beyond play/pause and seek, what controls are available on the Video NPV? Fallback Behavior — When CPSessionConfiguration.supportsVideoPlayback becomes false mid-session (e.g., vehicle starts moving), how does the transition from video to audio-only Now Playing work? Is there a delegate callback, or should we observe supportsVideoPlayback via KVO? Configuration Scope — Is the video playback surface fully driven by AirPlay streaming + CPPlaybackConfiguration, or are there additional configuration points we should be aware of for controlling the video NPV experience?

Is there any way to know the exact number of grid items that will fit across before you render your template? I'm currently delivering 7 items to accommodate the largest screen sizes, but on smaller screens 3 of these are wasted per row.

I'm looking for options concerning this matter, aiming to have automatized tests in a navigation app. I wasn't able to control either the iOS simulator's extended display nor the CarPlay Simulator (additional tools) via available CLI commands. I couldn’t scan for AX elements either. Closest thing I found is to control the macOS window, take screenshots and simulate user gestures using an agentic workflow. May I have missed something regarding already available tooling?

Condensed grid items and circular grid images with transparent backgrounds render with a subtle border around their edges, creating unintended visual artifacts. Is this a known issue, and is there a workaround or fix planned?

For large, frequently updated catalogs that live on a server, should Siri resolution use EntityStringQuery with disambiguation, or is IndexedEntity required for acceptable quality in the car?