Carplay stuck in speech mode

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Level 1

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Carplay stuck in speech mode

Ok, here's the deal. Every single time my phone connects to apply carplay it goes into speech mode. That means any music I was listening to on the radio gets muted and the system is listening for my speech. Also, if listening to music in Carplay it now comes out of certain speakers at a lower quality, like its a phone call. This has been happening on my last phone, an XR, as well as my current 12. In addition, this happens in every car I drive, GMC, Ram, BMW (3 different ones), and Mini. So it is not related to the model phone or the model/year of car or whether it is plugged in (GMC) or wireless (BMW) Carplay. It is extremely frustrating and quite embarrassing to get into a $60k car with my $1000 phone and have it all screwed up. Any chance there is a fix for this disaster? This has been going on for almost a year through various iOS versions, multiple phone hard reboots, etc.

iPhone 12, iOS 14

Posted on Mar 25, 2021 6:24 AM

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Answer 1

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Schwarz79 Author

Level 1

12 points

Mar 26, 2021 9:05 AM in response to mario49

As stated originally it happens wired or wireless. The canned response provided is not very helpful. After doing some serious digging I can tell you the answer lies in the “Hey Spotify” feature in Spotify. Even with that app closed and not being used the hey Spotify was connecting and causing it to switch to speech mode. After turning off that feature it works fine. I’m shocked that after dealing with this for several months that no one in the Apple community is aware of this issue. Hopefully my time spent resolving this issue will be of assistance to others in the same boat.

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Answer 2

mario49

Community Specialist

Mar 26, 2021 8:04 AM in response to Schwarz79

Hi Schwarz79,

Thank you for contacting Apple Support Communities. Based on what you stated, it seems like the iPhone will play music poorly across multiple cars when using CarPlay.

Are you connecting to CarPlay using USB or Bluetooth?

If you connect using the other method, is there a different in the sound quality?

"Check your connection to your CarPlay stereo:

- If you have a wired connection, try connecting again with a different USB cable to a different USB port if you have one.
- If you have a wireless connection, make sure that Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are enabled under Settings > Wi-Fi and Settings > Bluetooth."

If you need help with CarPlay

Have a good one.

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Answer 3

Mar 29, 2021 11:22 AM in response to Schwarz79

I am having the same issue , I’ve deleted, connected earless started over all to end up with poor sound quality and back to IPhone & BMW (2020 model) playing music with the loswest quality - in speech mode w/ voice control popping up on dashboard.

you said it best ... How do we pay what we pay to have such low quality and apples response was clearly automated and generic - Most of know the suggested steps.

any advise to a “Real” fix on this. I’ve called BMW they seem in fimilar , told me to update IPhone :-/ , googled and can’t find answer.

any help to getting back to enjoying good quality music would be nice!

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Carplay stuck in speech mode

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