New Car Buyers Increasingly Interested in Apple CarPlay

[MacRumors]

CarPlay is becoming an increasingly important feature that consumers look for when purchasing a vehicle, according to a new report released today by Strategy Analytics.

In a survey querying future car buyers about their interest in Android Auto, CarPlay, and Baidu CarLife in the United States, Western Europe, and China, Strategy Analytics discovered the majority of consumers are interested in CarPlay.

In the United States, 23 percent of respondents said CarPlay was a "must have" feature, while 56 percent said they were "interested." Just 21 percent were "not interested." In Europe and China, the numbers were even higher. 36 percent of respondents said CarPlay was a must have feature in China, and 29 percent said the same in Europe.

No fewer than 30 percent of consumers surveyed said they were willing to pay more for a smartphone mirroring feature like CarPlay or Android Auto, provided it's offered at a reasonable price point. For existing customers who have access to mirroring systems like CarPlay, they're often used exclusively over the existing in-car infotainment options. From Strategy Analytics' Derek Viita, author of the report

"All of our research suggests that consumers will soon be ready to adopt CarPlay and Android Auto for their infotainment needs, which is another round of bad news for embedded navigation suppliers and OEMs that want to sell upgraded navigation systems." Continued Viita, "It also shows a missed opportunity: OEMs have been including these systems 'as standard,' when our research suggests that consumers would actually be willing to pay for them, even to the price of traditional navigation options."

For the survey, Strategy Analytics queried 1,503 consumers in the United States, 1,607 in Western Europe, and 2,003 in China. To participate, respondents were asked to confirm whether they owned or leased a motor vehicle and a smartphone, and they were only asked about in-car mirroring systems available in their regions and compatible with their smartphones.

Though CarPlay has been available since 2015, car manufacturers didn't begin widely adopting the feature until mid-2016. CarPlay is now included in many new 2016 and 2017 vehicles from a wide range of car makers like Ford, Cadillac, Honda, Kia, Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Fiat-Chrysler, and more.

CarPlay in the new Nissan Leaf​

More than 200 vehicles include CarPlay support, with Apple offering an official master list of all the CarPlay vehicles available in the United States on its website. CarPlay is also available in many aftermarket infotainment units from companies like Pioneer and Alpine.

Article Link: New Car Buyers Increasingly Interested in Apple CarPlay

 

[Blackstick]

Oh sure, give the automakers permission to arbitrarily charge $2500 extra for something they damn well should be including.

Also, CarPlay is quite sluggish and unremarkable on the three cars I’ve seen it on, using an iPhone 7.

 

[DudeDad]

I’ve had it in my new car since Feb....it’s great! Would not get a car without it.

 

[HiVolt]

https://www.apple.com/ios/carplay/available-models/

I wonder which of those offers the only version I'd want to use, is the wireless one... I know there was considerable delay in the implementation of the wireless one.

 

[mantan]

They may want to check out the iOS forum and see how many people have a problem whenever there is a major update.

 

[fairuz]

Also, CarPlay is quite sluggish and unremarkable on the three cars I’ve seen it on, using an iPhone 7.

Same, but I've only tried one car (Chevy Suburban). I've found it worse than useless. Literally would rather use the 1/8" aux input.

 

[ASUgrad1999]

I’m a few years away from buying a new car (truck) but it’s one of the features I’m going to look for. Last time I checked, Toyota had no plans to adopt Car Play so they probably won’t even make my list, unfortunately.

I rented a Buick over the summer and it had Car Play and it worked flawlessly - loved it!

 

[determined09]

Lexus/Toyota has no interest in Apple Car Play which is very strange. They have decided to create their own system.

http://www.thecarconnection.com/new...-instead-of-apple-carplay-android-auto-hooray

 

[4jasontv]

Some people are saying CarPlay is slow, but here I am with a Chevy that wont default to bluetooth and turns the sound to functionally zero every time the car is turned on. Every time I start the car I have to wait 30 seconds for it to turn on bluetooth. Then I have to go into a submenu to switch it to bluetooth, and I have to turn the sound up because the first 1/3rd of the volume knob doesn't make any noise. Or I can use the USB port that automatically starts playing the default music player on the same flipping song as soon as I plug it in, even if audio from another app is already playing or all apps are closed. Still, it does comes with the option of a $30 a month GPS "solution" that can't update fast enough to handle a wrong turn and another option to pay for radio.
[doublepost=1508201161][/doublepost]

Lexus/Toyota has no interest in Apple Car Play which is very strange that they are creating their own system.

http://www.thecarconnection.com/new...-instead-of-apple-carplay-android-auto-hooray

I actually went with Chevy after looking at the Prius. I couldn't justify the markup of a hybrid that didn't have modern tech. Even BMW has realized they can't make a good infotainment UX.

 

[Douglas B]

Ahh.. But if you don’t include it as standard you run this risk of a potential car buyer thinking you don’t have it at all and avoiding your car. Tread carefully.

 

[Steve.P.JobsFan]

Oh sure, give the automakers permission to arbitrarily charge $2500 extra for something they damn well should be including.

Also, CarPlay is quite sluggish and unremarkable on the three cars I’ve seen it on, using an iPhone 7.

Same, but I've only tried one car (Chevy Suburban). I've found it worse than useless. Literally would rather use the 1/8" aux input.

Butter smooth in my parents' 2017 Dodge Charger. I guess it's just down to the automaker and how well they integrate it?

 

[Douglas B]

The car makers infotainment years are over. Why would I want one Navigation system in my hand and a different one in my car? And why would I want one music library/app in my hand (and therefore my home) and a different one in my car?

 

[delnerdo]

I cannot stand the Toyota infotainment UI. It’s one of the reasons I just purchased a Subaru.

Regardless, I wish it were easy to switch off any infotainment display, as it’s mostly a needless distraction, especially while driving at night.

 

[tomtendo]

Inevitable when more and more millennials are now buying cars.

 

[jdawgnoonan]

I cannot say that I am willing to pay a lot of extra money for CarPlay. But I am completely unwilling to consider any car that does not include it. Currently my wife is car shopping and she likes the CarPlay in my truck well enough to result in several cars she has always been interested in (such as a Subaru Forrester) being eliminated as contenders due to the lack of CarPlay. I have also used Android Auto and if I used Android as my daily driver phone I would feel the same way about Android Auto.

 

[whizstachio]

I have ACP in my VW Amarok, sound is slightly better than plain bluetooth, barely noticeable though, so now I'm just using bluetooth, don't have to dock or frumble with cables and I have almost all the features I use in CarPlay some features are even better executed in bluetooth than CarPlay

 

[pratax2]

For me it’s a must have but I’m really worry about how slow the development of CarPlay has been in the last couple of years... it is still very immature and it needs third party apps integration ASAP!!

 

[jdawgnoonan]

Why do car companies think they can do user facing software? They are usually about as talented at software as the companies that make set top boxes for Comcast.
[doublepost=1508201829][/doublepost]

For me it’s a must have but I’m really worry about how slow the development of CarPlay has been in the last couple of years... it is still very immature and it needs third party apps integration ASAP!!

It has third party app integration. More developers need to develop for it.

 

[fairuz]

Butter smooth in my parents' 2017 Dodge Charger. I guess it's just down to the automaker and how well they integrate it?

Probably is, but I think some of the big issues are on iOS's side. Like, how come when I plug it in, my entire iPhone screen gets covered with the CarPlay logo for about 10 seconds? Huge nuisance when I want to put on nav or music. That has to be Apple, right?

Probably Chevy's fault: The music skips sometimes. I could swear it only happens when going over bumps, like it's a CD player! Also, you really need a manual to configure it properly, which... you shouldn't.
[doublepost=1508202180][/doublepost]

Why do car companies think they can do user facing software? They are usually about as talented at software as the companies that make set top boxes for Comcast.

Seriously, the best systems I ever used were the most low-tech. They botch anything with a touch screen, and some don't get that many functions should also have real buttons for quick access. The 2010 Honda Accord didn't even try to be fancy, and it was the best. They understood that if there are only 6 inputs, just have a button for each instead of a laggy scrolling touch screen menu.

 

[Uofmtiger]

I just put a third party CarPlay Planet Audio setup in my Jeep and really like it. You need Apple Music to get the most out of it....but I already had a subscription, so it wasn’t a sacrifice on my part.

 

[kjvmartin]

I was a loyal Mazda driver for over 10 years. They're not into CarPlay, so... I just picked up a CarPlay enabled 2018 Chevrolet Equinox.

I'm hoping when the lease is up there are more/better options. I don't really love the Equinox but couldn't beat the price/feature ratio.

 

[rog]

Too bad it doesn't let you use Google Maps or something else. Maps is beyond useless and often dangerously inaccurate. It's also useless without a signal, which is the majority of the places I drive. I use my built in, but often outdated built in GPS system which can at least use my iPhone to search Google and import the location.

 

[SMGreenfield]

Count me as another Toyota / Lexus fan that is seriously interested in CarPlay. It MIGHT be enough to make me jump ship as someone that has owned at least 5 Toyotas and 6 Lexus vehicles.

 

[Razeus]

How would updates work. I keep my car for several years at a time.

 

[tfigs]

I have CarPlay installed aftermarket with an Alpine 007 in my Mazda CX-5. Cost about $800 with install and money well worth it. Works flawlessly. Plug in and go. Charges while plays. Maps app connects to Apple Watch and vibrates when turns are coming. My Apple Music is all there. It simply works. A must have on any future car for me or my wife. Siri integration with Messages and Phone. Makes driving safer than trying to fiddle with controls on phone or built in info system

 

[lordofthereef]

Oh sure, give the automakers permission to arbitrarily charge $2500 extra for something they damn well should be including.

Also, CarPlay is quite sluggish and unremarkable on the three cars I’ve seen it on, using an iPhone 7.

I e only seen it on a Chevy Volt (2016? Model). I thought it was quite speedy.

My bigger question is why we don’t just get a driving interface on iPhone, particularly the plus models. How easy would it be to slap your phone in a dock sideways and call it a day? With nfc, wireless charging, etc it could be pretty damn seamless. Just dock and go. This makes more sense to me than a second mini computer in every vehicle.

Granted this screen serves as vehicle information too. So it’s not just CarPlay and android auto (I think that’s what android calls it).

Anyway none of these things are a huge draw to me. If the car I’m looking at happens to have it, great. We just bought an suv without CarPlay and don’t regret the decision at all.