iPhone 12 Getting Hot Whilst Using CarPlay

Hi Thomas2361,

Thanks for reaching out using Apple Support Communities. It sounds like you have concerns about the operating temperature of iPhone 12 while using CarPlay. We understand and hope to help!

We wanted to provide a resource regarding keeping iOS devices within acceptable operating temperatures. It is normal and expected for the device to become warm during certain situations or conditions, and will return to a regular temperature when more intensive tasks such as GPS navigation are complete.

Keeping iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch within acceptable operating temperatures

Has your iPhone 12 displayed a temperature warning screen, such as the one shown in the article above? It may be helpful to know the device takes steps to regulate the temperature if it goes outside of normal operating range. Certain features may slow or stop temporarily to allow the device temperature to regulate, and if unable to sufficiently regulate, you will be shown a temperature warning screen.

If you do not receive the temperature warnings, and the device does return to normal temperature, there should be no need for concern. If you are seeing temperature warning screens that cannot be reasonably explained by conditions, such as extended time in a hot car, you may wish to contact Apple Support. Advisors can run a diagnostic test that could provide further insight on temperature warnings.

Contact Apple Support

As far as comparing the iPhone 12 to other devices, this could relate to differences in device materials. Consider also what type of case you are using and if the behavior seems different without having the iPhone in a case. It is also a good practice to keep your iPhone and its applications up to date.

Hope this helps! Take care.

Hey Thomas2361,

Thanks for following up.

Since you are receiving the temperature warnings on your device regularly, there would be some recommended next steps.

Since you have replaced the device already and the issue persists, further isolation would be appropriate.

A good next step would be to restore the iPhone as new, seeing if the issue persists when not restored from a backup. The restore processes would reinstall a fresh copy of iOS, while testing without a restoring from a backup would let us know if any previous apps, data or cache may have been causing conflicts. If the issue does not persist in this state, you can try to restore your backup, or just redownload the content you need. We'll link the article for this process below.

This process does erase the iPhone, so make sure to backup and check iCloud settings prior to performing the restore.

Restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to factory settings

Additionally, it may be worthwhile to contact Apple Support through official support channels. A diagnostics can be performed remotely and may give additional detail on what is causing the temperature warnings. It would be best to contact them prior to restoring the device, as the restore may erase the diagnostics data they would use.

Contact Apple Support

Best wishes!