Apple CarPlay GPS wrong location issue

Hello,

 


I bought a car with CarPlay functionality (RAV4 limited 2023). I am using it with an iPhone 13 pro under IOS16.4.1a (latest OS to date). CarPlay works except for navigation apps. When I use either Waze, Google maps or Apple maps, the location gets switched between the actual current location and somewhere 20-30 meters from the car. Therefore the GPS guidance doesn't work since the actual location is incorrect.

 

GPS apps on the iPhone works fine when not connected with CarPlay in this car. GPS navigation system from the car works fine when the phone is not connected.

 

I tried to start GPS apps first before connecting it to the car. It usually works for a few minutes (1-5 minutes) then the location is again off by 20-30 meters. I tried to start the GPS apps after I connect the phone to the car and I get the same result.


If I disconnect the phone, the car and iPhone GPS give me correct location. If I reconnect them, both give me the wrong location. When the car is not moving, the wrong location remains at the same spot even after I

disconnect/reconnect the phone. So it's not giving a random location. It's off by 20-30 meters.

Has anyone ever seen anything similar?

iPhone 13 Pro

Posted on May 2, 2023 4:40 PM

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Posted on Oct 3, 2023 3:27 PM

Update: With CarPlay in my 2023 VW Taos, the GPS will suddenly and unexpectedly show me to be in the wrong location. The error is several hundred feet to several miles. This is very dangerous when you are on a highlway and it suddenly tells you to turn on a road that does not exist. I updated my iPhone to iOS 17.0.2. It did not help. I have rebooted both the car system and the phone. It does not help. Most recently, this happened when I was parked in my driveway. I was connected to CarPlay. The map in the car AND on my phone showed the same WRONG location. I simply turned off Wi-Fi on my phone and immediately as the iphone disconnected from the car, the map on my phone switched to the correct location. Incidentally, my phone works fine with CarPlay in my Bolt.

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121 replies

Nov 10, 2023 6:13 AM in response to sealclas

I think I've caught more details of what's going on:


Here is the 'reported' accuracy of the GPS with GAI GPS while I am parked: Note, in the past it has report ~15-16 ft accuracy and still be off by a 1/4 mile.


I turn off my vehicle and for about two seconds it shows the ACTUAL accuracy:



Then about 10 seconds later: my accuracy of my phone normally:



If is very clear that the iPhone is NOT using what it has for greater accuracy when doing CarPlay. It's comically bad.

Aug 9, 2023 4:11 PM in response to HarrimanM

I’ve got the same issue on a new Pioneer DMH-WT7600NEX. Phone was on ios16.5 and Pioneer firmware was 3.0. Updated to iOS 16.6 and firmware 3.4. Have tried forgetting the devices, wireled, and wireless. Every time the phone is connected to the headunit it says I’m in a different location than I really am. Sometimes a road over or 10+ miles away.

Aug 10, 2023 9:47 AM in response to sealclas

Unfortunately this issue hasn’t solved yet, I’ve phoned to Apple customer service, a case number(101993164468) were assigned to analize this situation, after many calls, evidences, and photos provided, the resolution was: the desviation between real location vs shown in carplay its in a % error permited, perhaps in the next future a new version will correct it, so now I’m using my old samsung S8+ and it’s working Ok

Sep 2, 2023 2:20 PM in response to Kordon2

Tried looking for this, just to be able to use the CarPlay GPS, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to figure out how to reset it. Could you help us out with this, please?


Also, has Apple or Toyota helped with this problem so far? Have they even acknowledged that it IS a thing? It’s frustrating to buy a new vehicle and have this specific thing be an issue when the sole purpose of CarPlay is to mitigate the use of a phone while driving. 🥲

Sep 6, 2023 12:38 PM in response to sealclas

Same here, and even weirder!

I've got a new used car, Peugeot Rifter 2021, with wired carplay.

Using an iPhone 13 Pro Max.


At the beginning I noticed some rare difficulties to connect (had to unplug/plug a few times so that carplay pops-up in the car.


Then, after a few days, while I was driving, boom, same problem than this topic (position offset by a few meters).

Happens on Google Maps and Waze. When I disconnected the phone, position came back OK on the phone, when I reconnected to the car, after a few seconds, position came back offset.


Weirder part : the next day, the car doesn't recognize at all my phone. On the phone, carplay settings, I delete the car profile, plug it, and see like during 500ms the popup asking to accept carplay in locked mode. No time to accept it, the popup disappears, and the car is not registered.

After a few tries I got this message on the phone "water detected in lightning port, charge will not be active".

Never got it wet..

So I quit trying to make it work, make my drive with the phone not connected..

The next day, each time I try a connection it's the same story (the connection happening during 500ms... not the water detected part). Once on like 50 tries, connection establishes OK, I see carplay on my car, and a few seconds after it disappears for ever.


I've tried to connect the phone to a charger, a computer, everything works perfect.

I cleaned the lightning port which had A LOT of dust in it, but it's the same.

Oct 3, 2023 2:36 PM in response to sealclas

I have been having this issue as well with a 2017 Range Rover, I had an iPhone 12 and it was driving me crazy.

Especially since my wife's phone works fine when plugged in.....

So I can sort of rule out the car being an issue.

I recently got a new iPhone 15 and was so excited to not have this issue! But it is still happening!

Not sure I have s setting that is messing my phone up particularly. I reset my location and privacy, hopefully that helps will see when I take car out again tmr. I asked apple and they said to restore....

Also just plugged into a friend car earlier and it worked fine. No real rhyme and reason to my problem!


Oct 5, 2023 5:16 PM in response to HarrimanM

Same issue, plug the phone directly into the car with USB cable. Solve the problem. I think that the car turns off the Wi-Fi on the phone when it’s connected to CarPlay but normally the phone uses Wi-Fi to triangulate so this causes the discrepancy. But if you plug the phone in the phone, then uses the cars and antenna or whatever to get your location and it seems to fix the problem.

Oct 15, 2023 7:11 PM in response to Karter_Chill

Yes it is extremely annoying (and sometimes dangerous), but it's a car problem, not an Apple problem. Both Apple & Android use the car's positional data when connected because the car has a stronger antenna than the phone. Unfortunately car software sometimes screws up and misreports the position, which can be seen by checking the car's inbuilt navigation. Take the car to a dealer and get a system software update and a maps update. This may have no immediate effect in the workshop, but once you drive the car it will pickup the satellites again and correct itself. On the rare occasions that this doesn't work, you might need a new hardware unit or antenna.

Oct 16, 2023 4:55 PM in response to sealclas

I have had the exact same problem. It seems to work fine locally, but we were on a 5-1/2 hr road trip and the GPS just went off and on. It’s pretty scary when you are on a major highway with cars going 80 MPH and you’re missing exits because the GPS is not working. Apple needs to do something about it. I brought my car back to my dealership and they ran diagnostics on it, but said it was fine and that it’s an “Apple Car Play” problem.

Apple CarPlay GPS wrong location issue

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