CarPlay is an Apple standard that enables a car radio or head unit to be a display and a controller for an iOS device. According to Apple’s website, all major vehicle manufacturers are using CarPlay. Let’s look at how to use it in iOS 26.
To set up CarPlay:
Connect your iPhone to your car:
- If your car supports CarPlay with a USB cable, plug your iPhone into the USB port in your car. The USB port might be labeled with a CarPlay icon or a smartphone icon. Be sure to use an Apple USB cable.
- If your car supports CarPlay both wirelessly and with a USB cable, plug your iPhone into the USB port in your car. An alert on your iPhone will offer to connect you wirelessly on your next drives.
- If your car supports only wireless CarPlay, press and hold the voice command button on your steering wheel. Make sure that your stereo is in wireless or Bluetooth mode. Then on your iPhone, go to Settings > Wi-Fi, and make sure that Wi-Fi is also turned on. Tap the CarPlay network, and check that Auto-Join is turned on. Then, go to Settings > General > CarPlay, and select your car. Check your car manual for more information.To use Siri to control CarPlay
iOS 26 offers some new CarPlay features:
° Customizable widgets: You can now create two editable widget stacks that appear simultaneously on your dashboard.
Interface Customization: Choose from nine wallpaper options and set display appearances to normal, dark, or clear.
Liquid Glass Design: Updated visual aesthetics with rounded UI elements.
Live Activities: Real-time updates (e.g., parking, food delivery) are now supported on the dashboard.
Improved Messaging: New features for managing messages, including pinned contacts at the top of the message app
