Iphone 8 not wireless charging

I posted this same message on another forum about wireless charging, but seeing I started this thread, I figured I would update it to. Sooooo....

So after messing around with this forever, I think I finally have it working. I have a 2017 Denali HD that came with the wireless charger that wouldn't work with my iPhone 8. I ordered the wireless charger module for a 2018 Denali HD part number 13521066 from needgmparts.com. It was 97.65 plus shipping. The new charger module has a different plug but uses the same 3 wires. I ordered the new plug from Mouser electronics part number 571-2035363-4 . It cost 71 cents. I easily unpinned the old connector. When installing the new connector, the pins on the wires had a little "nub" sticking out on one side that wouldn't allow me to slide it into the new connector. I took a small pliers and just squeezed these "nubs" down so they were flush. The pins then slid in easily and clicked in place securely. Plugged the new wireless module in and put the lid for the center console back together and it seems to be working the way it should now. Little green lightning bolt shows up on the screen when phone is on the charge pad. I can pick the phone up, set it back down and it starts charging again immediately. It's not really that finicky about where it is on the pad.

I have a 2016 GM SUV. The factory wireless charger will not work with the iPhone 8, but you can replace it with the 2018 model year charging unit and then it works great. The new unit is the same size and screws into the console lid just like the original. The only thing you have to do is shave a little of the plastic off the end of the wiring plug to make it fit the new unit because the plugs are not quite the same. The back of the console lid is held in by clips. Simply pry the back off to access the charger. The whole process took me less than half an hour. The cost of the charger from GM was $160.

The wireless charging pad in GM vehicles (I have a 2017 Silverado) is plainly awful. I've used multiple phones (S7 Active, S8+, iPhone 8) with it, and none of these phones charged properly with the rubber pad in the stock position. The S7A charged only if i flipped the pad upside down, the S8+ and the iPhone 8 only charge if i completely remove the rubber pad.

This is not an issue with Apple or Samsung. The problem is two GM things :

1) the charging coil is placed too low in the tray, so many phones can't line up with it properly.

2) the charging coil presumably has some 'smarts' built in to prevent some issues with people throwing change / other keys / etc. into the tray, so if you put a phone down and it starts charging, and that phone moves (if the pad detects some kind of movement or change in makeup) then the charging stops. in order to get it charging again, you have to remove the phone from the tray, wait like 5 seconds, and put it down again. Normal Qi pads keep trying to charge if it senses something there, regardless of movement. The GM pad gives up.

So GM puts a vehicle out in 2017 compatible with basically no phones that came out after 2015

The iPhone 8 charges just fine on any of my other wireless charging pads.

I was researching this as well. Apparently there are WPC 1.0 and WPC 1.1 Qi certification levels and GMC pads aren't properly certified. Like others have stated - a GMC problem, not Apple. This is from Mashable.com - here is the link:

http://mashable.com/2017/10/24/cars-that-support-wireless-charging-list/#6nVJhwl Bbiqz which states in part:

General Motors vehicles are trickier. While some Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC models from 2017 and before are equipped with wireless charging, they do not, according to Apple, meet the requirements for Qi certification. This means to charge your iPhone 8 or iPhone 8 Plus, you'll need a 2018 model.

The following are compatible:

• 2018 GMC Terrain
• 2018 GMC Yukon
• 2018 GMC Sierra
• 2018 Chevrolet Bolt
• 2018 Chevrolet Tahoe
• 2018 Chevrolet Silverado
• 2018 Chevrolet Suburban
• 2018 Cadillac Escalade
• 2018 Buick Enclave

For the uninitiated, Qi is a charging standard developed by the multinational Wireless Power Consortium. To gain Qi certification, devices must pass rigorous tests for compatibility with wireless charging products, resistance to overheating, and power transmission capability. All new iPhone models feature Qi wireless charging, as does Samsung's Galaxy lineup.

Sounds like these disgruntled new iPhone owners, myself included, needs to pressure GM for a recall. On GMC website, the state this about their 2016 - yes 2016 - models:

Fortunately, GMC’s Wireless Charging feature, available on the 2016 GMC Sierra, Yukon and the Yukon XL, helps keep phones charged without a cord.

WILL MY DEVICE WORK WITH THIS SYSTEM?

GMC’s Wireless Charging is compatible with PMA 1.0, WPC 1.0 or WPC 1.1 charging standards, meaning it can work with many Powermat and Qi charging accessories.

They don't seem to know anything.. BUT I WAS ABLE remove the bottom of the console.... Expose the charging pad, SOFTLY remove the cover... THERE WAS a small green thing plugged in with a magnet attached to the coil (assuming it is a repeater that doesn't help).... ONCE I removed and reassembled, viola... Mine DOES charge.

I saw it on a YouTube video as well... Totally confirmed and working .... IT is a 10 minute deal start to finish.

Brandmotion has a solution to this issue, and is very easy to install. It uses the factory plug and does not require splicing wires. See the link below:

http://www.brandmotion.com/gm-wireless-charger-retrofit-fdmc-1275.html

The iPhone was OK, your truck was not. Obtain the 2018 GM charging module 13521066 and the new red plug 571-2035363-4 from Mouser Electronics and change them out. Then buy the iPhone X.

zoz

I have had two customers of ours, both with iPhone 8. Neither would charge on the Chevrolet vehicle wireless charging pads. However they did work when I tested them on my Samsung wireless pad at my desk (I am a Tech Expert at Cecil Clark Chevrolet in Leesburg, FL). It looks to be a possible phone issue, but I am not 100% certain as of yet. We have no updates released as of yet by GM. I would suggest, for now, to report the issue to Apple Support and hopefully we can get a solution released soon.

As a follow up to this, I found an article you might find interesting. It appears GM for model year 2017 did not use QI standard with their charging pads. They have changed this for the 2018 models. I thought you might find this part of the article interesting and supports why you can't use the charging pad with your phone in your car:

"Things get messy with General Motors brands, though as the maker starting including wireless chargers in its 2017 model line but those pads do not employ Qi standards. As such, only the following models at this time support wireless charging on the iPhone 8 and iPhone X.

• 2018 GMC Terrain
• 2018 GMC Yukon
• 2018 GMC Sierra
• 2018 Chevrolet Bolt
• 2018 Chevrolet Tahoe
• 2018 Chevrolet Silverado
• 2018 Chevrolet Suburban
• 2018 Cadillac Escalade
• 2018 Buick Enclave"

Again proving your anger is completely misdirected.

I don't think you're quite getting this. GM chose to install charging pads in that model year that WERE NOT to QI wireless standard specification. iPhone 8, 8 plus and X use QI Wireless Standard specification. Did you expect Apple to build millions of phones not to QI Standard to work in a car not to QI standard? That would have been a horrible design mistake. It's not your fault GM didn't use QI standard and it's certainly not Apple's fault your cars charging pad is not to QI standard. But they won't work together and you can still use a charging cable or if it's that important to you, trade your car in on one that will work.

I don't want to play the blame game, but it seems obvious to me that it isn't the iPhone 8 or X that is the problem. These new phones charge fine on all other third party Qi compliant wireless charge pads that are new or even a couple years old without problem. I have a 2017 Denali that has the charging pad that states it meets the Qi standards. My iPhone 8 would not charge on the pad in the truck. It charges fine on the other Qi compliant charging pads I have tried. The 2018 trucks that are now out have a new charging module that does work with the iPhone 8 and X. GM fixed their chargers so they work better now. And it wasn't just iPhone 8 having wireless charging problems with the GM charging pads, there were samsungs too that were not working. Apparently GM's new charging pad is better and works well from what I have read. GM knew there was problems with the charging pad before the iPhone 8 even came out, which is why they changed the charging module in the 2018 vehicles which were well into production before the release of the iPhone 8 or X release.

Casagrand wrote:

Bravo for Apple coming out with technology that makes cars from 2017 and earlier ancient technology. By the way when we bought one this week at the Apple store, the sales person somehow didn’t have a clue when asked if it would work on a 2017 SS Camaro. This isn’t misdirected anger BTW.

Apple didn't do any such thing. Apple is using the current industry standard for wireless charging. It's General Motors who did not install charging pads that conformed to an industry standard. It's unfortunate.

I'm not sure why you think that an Apple employee should be fully conversant with the products of another company.

The problem is the 2017 and earlier use a different wireless charging/ the 2018 are Qi as the iPhone is... I personally tested the 2018 works the 2017 do not.

I am working to find a solution. Is the 2017 pad under the console removable and is it plug and play? That’s the question OR can the whole console be removed?

Rick,

There was an article I read on Yahoo a few weeks ago that explained why the 2017 GMC's won't charge the iPhone. It appears GMC did not build the charging pad in those cars in 2017 to full QI Spec. Apple designed the iPhone 8, 8 Plus and X wireless charging system to full QI Spec. Hence the incompatibility. It's all on GMC and as has been noted, GMC has redesigned their charging pads in the 2018 models to full QI Spec.