Lexus to Begin CarPlay Rollout in New Vehicles in September

[MacRumors]

Lexus has announced that its first vehicle with CarPlay will be available in September 2018 at dealerships across the United States.

2019 Lexus ES​

That vehicle will be the new 2019 Lexus ES, equipped with an eight-inch display controllable via a knob in the center console. The sedan also features Siri Eyes Free and Amazon Alexa voice control, but lacks Android Auto support. An optional navigation system with a 12.3-inch widescreen display will be available.

CarPlay will also be a standard feature in the all-new 2019 Lexus UX crossover, but that vehicle doesn't go on sale until December 2018.

Lexus has previously said its CarPlay implementation is wired, so an iPhone must be connected via USB. BMW remains the only automaker to offer wireless CarPlay in new vehicles, despite the functionality being introduced in 2015. Alpine Electronics sells an aftermarket wireless CarPlay system for other vehicles.

Lexus and its parent company Toyota first announced plans to offer CarPlay in January, after years of holding out on the platform. Toyota's rollout will begin with the 2019 Avalon, available in May at dealerships in the United States, to be followed by the 2019 RAV4 and 2019 Corolla Hatchback later this year.

Toyota and Lexus plan to expand CarPlay to several other 2019 model year vehicles with Entune 3.0 and Enform 2.0 systems respectively. The rollout will likely include the yet-to-be-announced 2019 Camry and 2019 Sienna, given the 2018 models of those vehicles are already equipped with Entune 3.0 systems.

A spokesperson for Toyota and Lexus previously told MacRumors that they do not currently plan to offer CarPlay in pre-2019 vehicles.

Article Link: Lexus to Begin CarPlay Rollout in New Vehicles in September

 

[macpro2000]

They should do a firmware for some past years but that’s too much to ask for Toyota.

 

[now i see it]

Toyota finally concedes defeat. It took them long enough.

 

[sinsin07]

That grill...looks like it wants a cheeseburger.

 

[69Mustang]

Lexus is offering CarPlay on their ES (grandma) trim and UX (starter soccer mom) Xover. They may as well put out a sign that says we really don't want to do this but we will just to shut people up. If it doesn't move additional units, they can say they tried and drop it altogether. If it does help move units they can add it to the higher trim levels.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

They should do a firmware for some past years but that’s too much to ask for Toyota.

Not too much to ask of Tesla, should they ever choose to do it.

Seeming unlikely they'll do it, though. Traffic data is definitely valuable - there are companies that will pay you just to let them track you so that they have it. Knowing where you're going allows you to know what traffic will be like in the short term future. And it sounds like they want to have their own music streaming service, so don't want to let Apple Music get a foothold.

 

[BeefCake 15]

Mazda will continue to take their time...

 

[OutGolfn]

Finally so by 2020 looks like it will be on the rest of the Lexus fleet IS, GS, LX , etc...

 

[BruiserB]

It's 10:09 on the analog clock, but 9:09 on the digital CarPlay display?

Didn't know that Lexus had copied Infiniti and started adding analog clocks to their cars?

Why can't car system clocks simply auto-update to phone time when connected? I really hate having to pull out the owners manual twice a year in the spring and fall to figure out how to change my car clock.

 

[KazKam]

The rest of the automotive industry from 2016 called. It wants its feature back.

 

[IGI2]

That's an interestingly wide screen.

I'm curious how Apple Maps would look like on this screen, or just any app.

 

[technole]

Lexus is offering CarPlay on their ES (grandma) trim and UX (starter soccer mom) Xover. They may as well put out a sign that says we really don't want to do this but we will just to shut people up. If it doesn't move additional units, they can say they tried and drop it altogether. If it does help move units they can add it to the higher trim levels.

It'll likely be in all 2019 Lexus models like IS, NX, and RX since all of them use the Enform 2.0 platform. Like you really think they will exclude it from their flagship LS? That's the ultimate grandma car. The ES is more of a new businessman/woman spruced-up Camry.

 

[HiVolt]

What the heck is happening to wireless CarPlay? I hardly ever plug in my phone in the car, even though it doesnt have CarPlay, I don't think I would plug it in especially on shorter drives.

Wireless CarPlay has been announced with iOS 9, I believe. Yet all these cars that come out are still wired.

 

[technole]

What the heck is happening to wireless CarPlay? I hardly ever plug in my phone in the car, even though it doesnt have CarPlay, I don't think I would plug it in especially on shorter drives.

Wireless CarPlay has been announced with iOS 9, I believe. Yet all these cars that come out are still wired.

It's not that easy to implement as people want to make it seem. Some cars do have Wifi LTE hotspots which could likely be amended to support such. Even of all the aftermarket decks, only Alpine supports wireless CarPlay since it was introduced in early 2017. It uses 5Ghz Wifi.

 

[bergert]

"The analog clock now lines up with the dash" .....

buuuaaaaaahhhhh - LOL!

 

[Bigsk8r]

Lexus is offering CarPlay on their ES (grandma) trim and UX (starter soccer mom) Xover. They may as well put out a sign that says we really don't want to do this but we will just to shut people up. If it doesn't move additional units, they can say they tried and drop it altogether. If it does help move units they can add it to the higher trim levels.

Damn... now I am required to identify as a grandma when driving my ES 300h. Does that mean I also can identify as a senior citizen while driving it?

/s
[doublepost=1524686889][/doublepost]CarPlay does have one very annoying feature though... when you have the map on the car display, your phone screen is taken up with directions, and if you leave the screen on your phone, the map goes away on the car display. Very annoying if you want to drive for a rideshare (Uber / Lyft) or be able to see other notifications outside of the official Apple supported ones on the phone.

 

[Juicy Box]

BMW remains the only automaker to offer wireless CarPlay in new vehicles

What the heck is happening to wireless CarPlay? I hardly ever plug in my phone in the car, even though it doesnt have CarPlay, I don't think I would plug it in especially on shorter drives.

Wireless CarPlay has been announced with iOS 9, I believe. Yet all these cars that come out are still wired.

It's not that easy to implement as people want to make it seem. Some cars do have Wifi LTE hotspots which could likely be amended to support such. Even of all the aftermarket decks, only Alpine supports wireless CarPlay since it was introduced in early 2017. It uses 5Ghz Wifi.

I think Apple is blocking it for some reason. A while back, VW wanted to demo its wireless CarPlay, and the rumor was that Apple told them not to.

It was never reported why Apple did this, but companies other than BMW do have Wireless CarPlay capabilities.

I wonder if it has to do with some exclusive deal that Apple has with BMW?

 

[69Mustang]

Damn... now I am required to identify as a grandma when driving my ES 300h. Does that mean I also can identify as a senior citizen while driving it?

/s

Yes, in fact you do. You do have to identify as a grandma. An ancillary benefit of your new classification is a 10% discount at any buffet on Sundays... as long as it's before 4 p.m.

 

[SuperMatt]

I like how the “luxury” brands are so far behind the curve on a feature like this that everybody wants.

 

[Aston441]

Toyota's (they make Lexus) refusal to support CarPlay and Android Auto drove me away, after six Toyota/Lexi in a row. MY EYES WERE OPENED to how awful Toyota suspension and especially their electric steering has become. Toyota steering is so horrible (it gives phantom feedback) it is quite dangerous, and so fatiguing as it requires constant attention, and even taking one's eyes of the road to check a blind spot can let the car suddenly veer into another lane or worse.

Look up "visual reference steering" in relationship to electric steering.

Basically, the software in their steering gives false feedback. I test drove a new Tacoma a few minutes ago and the problem, present since 2010, is still present.

The Big Bobby Pin most Toyotas use for rear (cheap) suspension leads to snap oversteer in defensive maneuvers.

I suspect the combo has led to many horrific accidents.