Toyota Rolling Out Apple Wallet Car Keys on iPhone

[marte91]

Hyundai/Kia are cheaper and don’t charge for their digital keys.

Yes, but lets no joke around, can't compare reliability in Hyundai/Kia and Toyota, i don't like the whole subscription thing, in Japan the only thing i pay for is the built in hotspot so i can get internet in some places my phone does not get signal, i pay for this 12 -11 dollars depending on the Yen exchange rate, this includes the starting the car via the phone app if is a cold day, but in here i have not see any Toyotas that use the car play wallet for the keys, but my car is not a 2026, is 2024, and its not a Rav4 but a Crown sport.

 

[marte91]

I wouldn't laugh too hard, because BMW used to charge a subscription fee to use CarPlay in their vehicles.

They also tried that non-sense with the heated seats a while back, but the blowback was so intense that they had to stop it.

 

[s1m]

I have a digital key on my BYD but they recommend carrying the key so there is no need/benefit for me. No subscription for BYD either and I can remotely control the aircon from the app.

 

[dontwalkhand]

I have a digital key on my BYD but they recommend carrying the key so there is no need/benefit for me. No subscription for BYD either and I can remotely control the aircon from the app.

Sounds like Volvo/Polestar….Oh we have this app, and you can put your key in the app, but we don’t recommend you rely on it……THEN WHY HAVE THE APP???

 

[Saabtastic]

Bought Hyundai Palaside New, Enjoying Apple Car Key in Wallet, Same with Tesla, NO KEYS HERE, Zero fees for life! I can’t believe people will pay subscription fee for that feature or remote start and BMW BS, I have 10yr warranty on the Hyundai…. I skipped Toyota for so long yeah they do good in consumer reports but the tech was like a decade behind other mfgs, Wonderful choice if you seek NO FRILLS and 1990s tech, and the option to pay for 2020 tech yearly.

 

[qCzar]

I'm going to doubt this feature is behind a subscription. The source is a reddit comment, not a Toyota Press Release. I'm car shopping and most vehicles have a "Digital Key" and car sales people like to say it works with iOS when I ask about Apple CarKey and completely miss the point.

The cars I've researched (Kia, Hyundai, Polestar) that do support Apple CarKey don't charge for it, but car manufacturers may charge for their own Digital Key via App, which I suspect MacRumors and the reddit OP getting the fee from. We'll know more once Toyota issues more details though. Maybe I'll stop by my Toyota dealership again on Thursday and see if they have any info.

 

[FattiesGoneWild]

25 Toyota Crown Platinum here. Can confirm the digital key is complete ass and unreliable. Want to know how bad it is? My digital key suddenly stopped working. Was on the phone with Toyota Connect for 2 hours and we tried EVERYTHING they knew to do getting it to work again. No go and said take it to the dealer. The digital key would not unlink from the car and was stuck. Dealer had to do a hard reset removing the digital key using their tools. It worked. That is absolutely ridiculous! Because, guess what? If the car was not still under warranty, I would have been charged out of pocket for the fix. When it was not even my fault and somehow the key got corrupted. It’s also extremely unreliable unlocking/locking touching the door handles. My free year of service is coming up in March, they want $15 a month to keep navigation and remote connect. Want those two services AND able to stream Apple/Amazon music without a phone? That will be another $10 making it $25 a month to keep “all” services. 🙄🙂‍↔️

 

[svish]

Great to see another manufacturer supporting it. Really useful and convenient. Hopefully more manufacturers and car models will support it in the future.

 

[A.Goldberg]

Toyota/Lexus is getting ridiculous with their subscription models.I understand needing a data plan for any web based systems including "Remote Connect" (which previously was $8/month entailed just remote start, remote lock/unlock, and parking location on the app). To have to pay $15+ to use an ultra Wideband radio to unlock the car locally with your iPhone is ridiculous. That's like charging a subscription to use my TV remote.

Connected Services Plans

Toyota offers a variety of Connected Service plans for our vehicles including wifi connect, music services, navigation and more. Find the best package for you and your vehicle.

www.toyota.com

$15/month for the data plan for remote connect + streaming music (Apple, Amazon only, service not included) doesn't sound terrible until you realize they want $25/month to use the GPS which uses the internet and offers voice commands (but it's Toyota navigation, not Google). Or just remote connect + GPS for $15 without music. If you want hotspot data, it's $25/month. Oh and Lexus models with Traffic Jam Assist (low speed autonomous aid) need the GPS subscription because evidently this system (limited to 25mph btw) uses Toyota's erroneous traffic data and otherwise can't figure out the traffic right directly infant of the car? It's nonsense, like the Apple Wallet Key.

I see no value in these services when 95% of functions can done with an iPhone and CarPlay, and almost certainly better at doing them. It wasn't't long ago that factory remote start once was accomplished with an RF key fob. And Toyota/Lexus infotainment has never been anything spectacular and there newest system continues that legacy.

People need to stop paying for these ridiculous subscriptions, it just encourages more companies to push more subscriptions.

To add insult to injury the amount of data car companies collect from cars concerning if you don't opt out- Toyota/Lexus very much included. Data is monetized and apparently is so valuable GM is dumping CarPlay in favor of Android Automotive to control the data collection.. I wish GM the best. Avoiding CarPlay hasn't worked for a single Automaker - Toyota/Lexus, JLR, Tesla, BMW (attempted a subscription for CarPlay).

I have a 2023 Volvo XC60 purchased in 2024 that uses an Android Automotive infotainment but also has CarPlay. It came with 4 years of data service (which was recently extended to 5 years for free). Beyond that is probably $150-200. That covers all data usage of the car- Google Maps/Waze, Streaming Audio, Google Assistant, mobile Start/Unlock/Lock, remote vehicle status, SOS function, OTA Updates, diagnostic reporting... the unused YouTube app, web browser, etc. No tiered plans.

I just wonder what's going to happen to all these modern cars in X number of years when the cell phone technology changes. Most cars, including mine, still use LTE modems and the LTE phase out is (allegedly) starting 2028-2030 and be gone by 2035. 5G modems are just starting become mainstream in new cars.

 

[1rottenapple]

I wouldn't laugh too hard, because BMW used to charge a subscription fee to use CarPlay in their vehicles.

Right bmw pioneered subscription heated seats. But people at the time were not ready to pay monthly for this. Apparently Toyota thinks we are ready

 

[sentiblue]

This is awesome! I applaud Toyota's integration.
I'm a long time loyal Sienna owner because I find the vehicle suits my family needs especially when it comes to transporting my children. I'm still good with my 2016, but I'll undoubtedly look for the next Sienna that has all these wonderful integrations as my next replacement, whenever that is.

 

[Juggernaut99]

Wait til you hear about how they even lock the physical key remote start behind this same subscription.

I know, and yep it's crap. (I have a RAV4 but bought it used and the previous owner had added a 3rd party remote starter.)

 

[Powerguru]

$15/month for this and may be some more features. NO thank you!

 

[deeddawg]

Facts. The cost is ridiculous and it's mainly for things nobody even wants. The only useful feature in there is remote start really and I'm definitely not paying $15 a month for it.

Yeah, used to be better when Remote Connect was available a la cart at $8/mo or $80/yr. Now it's force-bundled with unnecessary stuff for $15/mo.

On the flip side, as someone who regularly uses a third party LTE remote start/lock/unlock on my current vehicle, I'll want that capability when I buy my next one. Even if I buy and install a 3rd party setup, I wouldn't see breakeven against the Toyota $180/yr plan until the 8th year.

Seeing as Ford offers the equivalent of Remote Connect free with no end-date, and GM offers their version free for eight years, I wonder if they'll draw enough sales to get Toyota to rethink the pricing.

 

[deeddawg]

Wait til you hear about how they even lock the physical key remote start behind this same subscription.

Not true, at least not for current Tacomas. Lots of people reporting their fob still works fine.

 

[DogGone]

My next car will be electric for sure. The extra feature I will be looking for is wireless CarPlay. Anything with a subscription will be declined or I'll look at a different car. Toyota be warned. I've had 2 Prius's in a row. You will lose my custom if you act like an ass and don't have a decent EV model.