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Tesla Could Be Planning to Support Apple Car Keys

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Support for Apple Car Keys may now be more likely to come to Tesla vehicles, amid new evidence that the automaker is embracing native, system-level digital car keys.

tesla-red-orange-bg-feature.jpg

According to Not a Tesla App, 4.52.0 of Tesla's mobile app contains multiple code references to Harmony Wallet Key Cards. The discovery is notable because it represents a shift in how Tesla appears to be approaching mobile device integration.

Tesla's current Phone Key relies on Bluetooth communication between the vehicle and the Tesla app running in the background on a smartphone. By contrast, a native wallet key is stored at the operating system level and uses secure hardware elements, often making it more reliable and accessible.

The code strings identified in Tesla app version 4.52.0 specifically reference integration with Huawei's HarmonyOS, suggesting that the initial implementation is designed for Huawei Wallet on HarmonyOS devices. HarmonyOS is widely used in China, where Huawei is a dominant presence in the smartphone market. Tesla has historically used the Chinese market as a testing ground for new software capabilities before expanding them globally.

Although the references do not mention Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, the underlying functionality closely mirrors how Apple implements native digital car keys on the iPhone. Apple introduced Car Key support in Apple Wallet in 2020, allowing compatible vehicles to be unlocked, locked, and started using NFC, Bluetooth, or ultra wideband. Car Keys are stored in the Secure Enclave on the iPhone and Apple Watch, enabling features such as Express Mode, which allows a vehicle to be unlocked without Face ID, Touch ID, or a passcode, and even functionality even when the device battery is almost totally depleted.

Earlier this month, Rivian announced native support for Apple Wallet and Google Wallet digital car keys as part of its 2025.46 software update. In recent weeks, Porsche, Toyota, and General Motors all appear to be following suit.

Article Link: Tesla Could Be Planning to Support Apple Car Keys
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2025/12/28/tesla-could-be-planning-to-support-apple-car-keys/
david_n_n said:
Seems to be a mindset shift since we heard the rumor last month that they planned on supporting CarPlay soon, and I’m here for it! More options without affecting existing experiences is almost always objectively better!
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Yeah, I’ve got ‘18 M3 and sometimes the door unlocking doesn’t happen quickly. I have to actually wake the phone up for the car to connect. Not sure if it’s like that on all models and years but seems to happen at the worst times. Raining or hands full lol
 
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FWIW, I do notice that Teslas from past few years which use UWB + iPhone with UWB are much more reliable in terms of lock/unlock and even proximity to the vehicle.

This will be a nice addition if Apple CarKey comes as well for backup. Curious, for vehicles with CarKey and UWB, can the phone be a passive key, or is it still for tapping to unlock?
 
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stevet said:
Yeah, I’ve got ‘18 M3 and sometimes the door unlocking doesn’t happen quickly. I have to actually wake the phone up for the car to connect. Not sure if it’s like that on all models and years but seems to happen at the worst times. Raining or hands full lol
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2023 MYLR and same issue. It’s quite inconsistent. Sometimes it will work really well, sometimes it doesn’t. When it doesn’t, it’s super frustrating having to pull my phone out of my pocket. If Apple Car Keys make it more reliable, I would love this feature. Hopefully with less of battery impact too.
 
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profets said:
FWIW, I do notice that Teslas from past few years which use UWB + iPhone with UWB are much more reliable in terms of lock/unlock and even proximity to the vehicle.

This will be a nice addition if Apple CarKey comes as well for backup. Curious, for vehicles with CarKey and UWB, can the phone be a passive key, or is it still for tapping to unlock?
Click to expand...
This would make sense, Bluetooth isn’t entirely reliable.
 
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profets said:
FWIW, I do notice that Teslas from past few years which use UWB + iPhone with UWB are much more reliable in terms of lock/unlock and even proximity to the vehicle.

This will be a nice addition if Apple CarKey comes as well for backup. Curious, for vehicles with CarKey and UWB, can the phone be a passive key, or is it still for tapping to unlock?
Click to expand...
I’ve noticed on a 2023 M3 I haven’t used my keycard in about 6 months however a few times I had to open the Tesla app on either my phone or watch.

Since there are millions of Tesla on the road without NFC I don’t expect this to ever be 100%. But options that increase the value of the ecosystem are great.
 
Should be the standard everywhere. What I want next is TVPlay. Just plug in your phone and it becomes Apple TV. I hate having to log in and set up everything from scratch when I already have everything on my phone.
 
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Basic75 said:
Or secure. Did they fix the Bluetooth relay vulnerability?
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Yes. Pin to drive. Or don’t use phone key use the Tesla keycard if a Bluetooth relay attack is concerning to you at a theoretical level.

Edit I wonder if the Apple digital keycard will be use like tap to pay for teslas without uwb.
 
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why on earth is Tesla, a presumably American car company, offering new functionality first in the Chinese market, before only later bringing it to the United States?
 
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I7guy said:
I’ve noticed on a 2023 M3 I haven’t used my keycard in about 6 months however a few times I had to open the Tesla app on either my phone or watch.

Since there are millions of Tesla on the road without NFC I don’t expect this to ever be 100%. But options that increase the value of the ecosystem are great.
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Just looked, the highland / 2024 refresh 3 gained UWB (along with juniper Y, cybertruck, and S/X after the 2021 refresh at one point). I've had several teslas, and once in a while the passive phone key wouldn't always work (very seldom an issue), but with a current Tesla that has UWB, its been 13 months since I've had it and have yet to see the phone key fail.

Also, I believe it's all the legacy S/X that don't have NFC right? All Model 3, Y, CT use NFC for the key card on the B pillar and in centre console.
 
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Quick follow up (was reading online as I wasn't sure), CarKey with NFC requires tapping (as expected), while vehicles with UWB allow passive lock/unlock like Tesla Phone Key. That'll be quite nice as another option if Tesla adds it.
 
I wonder if the Tesla guys are only getting away with this stuff because the guy upstairs has his mind elsewhere.

Gotta give credit where credit is due, they built a fine car (ignoring the truck).
 
xmach said:
why on earth is Tesla, a presumably American car company, offering new functionality first in the Chinese market, before only later bringing it to the United States?
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China is a more important market than the US. There are more of them and their middle class is growing not contracting.
 
xmach said:
why on earth is Tesla, a presumably American car company, offering new functionality first in the Chinese market, before only later bringing it to the United States?
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I think you might be about to be tutored in world economics. The US isn't the country it once was.
 
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