GM Says It's Nixing CarPlay to Make Drivers Safer

[yoak]

I have a Model 3 and I really miss CarPlay. I really don’t like the IU in my Tesla. Most Everything I need to both see and touch are on the passenger side of the (landscape) screen. Why oh why can’t I swap it around. The only good thing is the navigation to charging stations, and the pre-heating of the battery. The navigation it self isn’t always so good. Maps often find better routes. I thought the navigation was by Google, but I realised only the background map and satellite view are from Google. The navigation is Tesla, guess that’s why the suggestion of when and where to charge is so good as it know a lot more about the car than Google maps would

 

[hbt15]

It's hilarious GM of all companies say this, becuase the GM infotainment in my car is an absolute dumpster fire of on-off-on spotty bluetooth connections, missed finger presses on screen or through menu with physical knobs and even the semi-frequent non-responsive alltogether screen. My wifes mazda carplay on the otherhand connects within perhaps 5 seconds, sometimes less and i have yet to encounter a single issue at all. While i'm here, i'll also add my best mates hyundai carplay is remarkably similar in reliability to the wifes mazda - it's almost like they're the same no matter what.

 

[svish]

CarPlay should have been supported. Don't think the lack of it will make roads/drivers safer

 

[trip1ex]

Nothing is safer than Nothing.

Welcome to the next-gen GM platform!

 

[hagar]

While their own infotainment system will undoubtedly be as distracting, it’s save to state Siri has at least killed dozens of people.

Me: Hey Siri, navigate to …
Siri: I don’t have a phone number for …
Me: *drives into a tree*

 

[atomic.flip]

I know there’s probably lots of opinions on this but as a person who’s been using BMW’s entertainment and navigation system just before carplay was introduced and then using carplay in a newer car with a very large display, it’s far less safe to use due to the reliance on touch screen iconography.

The jog / dial / wheels in the older BMW systems are much safer.

 

[Eric5h5]

LOL is apple's carplay licensing fees that expensive?

The CarPlay licensing fee is $0.00. So that would be a "no". Android Auto doesn't have a fee either.

 

[danny842003]

Never had any issues with wired CarPlay. Can’t say I’ve ever found wireless to be stable in any hire car I’ve had.

 

[threesixty360]

Find it odd that when selling cars is such a competitive thing you would remove what has become a standard feature for all new cars?

The revenue generated from selling your customers data or offering them a service will be peanuts compared to actually losing the car sale entirely over something as trivial as CarPlay.

And the silly thing is it wouldn’t cost GM anything to offer it either. Most companies have their own thing as well as car play / android etc anyway. It’s just normal.

Every dealership is going to tell customers that car play is unsafe just get though this. It’s going to be so stupid.

I suppose there’s always someone who wants to be different for no sensible reason other than to prove how maverick they are!

 

[dannyyankou]

This makes no sense. People will just use their phones more without carplay, making it more dangerous to drive. Nothing else is motivating this decision except for greed.

 

[m4mario]

Time to short GM stock. Or sell if you own some.

 

[mickobizzle]

.

 

[Reverend Benny]

Could there be other reasons for GM and possibly other car manufacturers moving away from Carplay and Android Auto?
Licensing fee seem to be €0 according to some so that don't seem likely.
And since it's €0, could it then be that Apple and Google are harvesting data of their users that GM don't like?
Could there be other reasons why GM makes this move?
Not trying to defend GM here but trying to understand their move and if there could be good reasons why they are doing this that aren't obvious to us?

 

[bollman]

CarPlay sux, have no interest. It sure is distracting when I've tried it, will not be missed.

 

[DEXTERITY]

Welp once less car manufacturer to consider.

 

[DEXTERITY]

CarPlay sux, have no interest. It sure is distracting when I've tried it, will not be missed.

Lol, no it doesn’t

 

[skoor101]

So glad to see that GM is putting perfect SW in their EV cars that just eliminates those nasty smartphones.

GM, we all know that is just a ploy to charge for more subs services. Will you charge a premium to change the volume also someday to stop that use also? You that is a distraction also? LOL

 

[kerr]

No Car Play, no car purchase

 

[skoor101]

Never have bought a GM car in 30+ years. Nice to know that trend will continue.

 

[Steve121178]

I literally cancelled an order for an 2024 EV Equinox because of this. Sales guy was not happy.

Lets hope he passed on your feedback on why you cancelled.

 

[AlexisV]

Babbitt cited J.D. Power data suggesting issues with CarPlay and Android Auto are common complaints from vehicle owners, with customers often blaming the vehicle manufacturer rather than Apple or Google.

Yeah, I'm sure CarPlay is the problem. Not the other system that is designed for 20 different phone manufacturers.

 

[bollman]

Lol, no it doesn’t

I've tried it numerous times. Every time, I've just disconnected the phone and used bluetooth for audio due to carplay being difficult to use, way too difficult. You have to really look at the screen to do anything. A well designed built-in system with connection to HUD and Main instrument is way easier to use.
CarPlay is designed for a screen in landscape mode. How many cars have that anymore? Every car copies Tesla and uses portrait mode. Then carplay is just displayed on part of the screen which makes it tiny and difficult to use.

 

[Makosuke]

Gotta love the way late post-hoc justification for their data-mine deal that also manages to imply that they hate their ICE customers. If you're going to make lame excuses, at least do it right away instead of waiting months. Or maybe they're so dumb it took them that long to come up with something?

This excuse is particularly laughable, because if it were even slightly true they'd remove it from their ICE vehicles, too, not just the EVs. They're basically saying, "It's dangerous! We're doing it for YOU! But also we don't mind if our ICE drivers die, we just want to protect our EV drivers."

The irony for me personally of this stupid decision is that my last GM vehicle, a Volt, was the car that convinced me I would never again buy a vehicle that didn't support CarPlay. Overall I liked the car a lot, but the infotainment unit was a crashy, outdated embarrassment, and there was nothing you could do about it because it was fully integrated. At least with CarPlay I can override your garbage maps and/or music UI with something functional, it gets updated when my phone gets updated, and I get map updates without having to pay stupid amounts of money AND fiddle around with USB sticks and downloads before every road trip.

I'm headed for a new EV purchase in the not-too-distant future, and GM managed to remove themselves from my comparison shopping entirely, without even looking at the cars they offer.

 

[JoeShades]

I feel safer already, thanks GM

 

[coxda]

Earlier this year, General Motors (GM) announced plans to phase out Apple's CarPlay and Android Auto in its future electric vehicles, with the company instead relying on an infotainment system co-developed with Google. This has not been a popular decision with iPhone users, and today, GM provided some additional insight into the decision in a discussion with MotorTrend.

According to Tim Babbitt, GM's head of product for infotainment, GM has driver safety in mind. CarPlay and Android Auto can have issues like bad connections, slow response times, compatibility issues, and connectivity problems, leading drivers to be distracted from the road with smartphone troubleshooting.

Babbitt claims that drivers will be less likely to pick up their phones with a built-in system that does not rely on a service like CarPlay, leading to improved safety on the road. GM does not have any data to prove that an infotainment system is less distracting than CarPlay, nor has it done any testing.

Babbitt cited J.D. Power data suggesting issues with CarPlay and Android Auto are common complaints from vehicle owners, with customers often blaming the vehicle manufacturer rather than Apple or Google.

The infotainment system that GM plans to adopt instead of CarPlay will have integrated Google apps, including Google Maps and Google Assistant for voice commands, rather than a third-party navigation system. As MotorTrend points out, eliminating CarPlay will provide GM with more control over driver data, and it will allow GM to offer subscription services and apps that allow for purchases of food, gas, and other sundries.

Back in August, GM said that choosing not to offer CarPlay would give it more information about charge state information to assist with navigation routing and provide a better user experience.

CarPlay will be eliminated in electric vehicles under the Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands. Combustion vehicles from GM will continue to support CarPlay until they are phased out in favor of an all-electric lineup in 2035.

Article Link: GM Says It's Nixing CarPlay to Make Drivers Safer

Wait! GM still around? This is a really poor decision! When looking for a car now, I make sure it has CarPlay before even looking at any other features! I have been using CarPlay for years and I have never had issues with connectivity or response times! I also have my focus on to make sure my phone doesn't send me notifications while driving so I won't have any distractions.