iPhone 17 Pro CarPlay pixelated screen issue with iOS 26

Same here with iPhone 17 Pro, moving from wireless to wired connection didn't help. My previous iPhone 14 Pro had no issues, also the iPhone 16 Pro worked well with CarPlay. It's not due to bad cables or wireless connection, it seems to be an issue within the iPhone 17 Pro software. I reported it to Apple, please do the same, Apple must fix it.

All my iPhones are running iOS 26.3, only the newest one (iPhone 17 Pro) shows this issue. My car is a 2016 Mercedes B180 W246.

I’ve found a workaround that worked for my 2018 GLC. Normally, when using Google Maps, the image becomes distorted (pixelated/glitchy) to the point where it’s impossible to use for driving.

However, I switched to the Home screen (the split-screen view where one window shows Google Maps and the other shows the music app I'm using simultaneously). By sticking with that split-screen view for the entire trip, the image never glitches or breaks like it does when the app is opened in full-screen mode.

I’m not sure what’s causing the bug, but this is the best solution for me right now since I don’t have to spend money on any extra hardware. For reference, I am running iOS 26.2

I have the same issue with the latest generation of iPhone. Tested iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air, both have the same issue.

The problem does not occur with any of the previous models of iPhone. My iPhone 16 Pro (iOS 26.0) can be connected without any artifacts.

Using different cables and wireless CarPlay adapter does not help.

Infotainment: Mercedes-Benz C-Class W205 NTG5.2

[Edited by Moderator]

Spoken to apple and they don’t care…. Spoke to Mercedes and they are happy to run a diagnostic check (£250) try a download(£270) and that will take 3 hours labour (£135 x3 =£405.00) and no guarantee it will work. So minimum of £905 but apple support say nothing they can do and at first they said there were no issues, 6 months after this thread started..

I’ve been experiencing the same issue since I got my iPhone 17. However, I don’t have any problems using my iPhone 11, even though both devices are running iOS 26.3. I also own a Mercedes B class, W246.

Have the same issue, tried everything that was suggested in forums. It looks to be a screen resolution / refresh rate issue. Maybe iPhone 17 is too quick with better refresh rate / resolution ?

Same issue, mercedes ntg 4.7 ios 26.1 iphone 17 pro

Correction NTG 5.1 Mercedes GLE 500

Mine is gla 2016 ntg5. I'm having the same problems and have also tried various cables.

Same problem with iPhone 17 pro max. Tried different cables without any result.

I know. It's annoying