Currently, Tesla cars do not support CarPlay, but by the beginning of the year, 9to5Mac I reported on a nice project called Tesla Android with CarPlay. Created by developer Michał Gapiński to enable CarPlay on Telsa cars, this solution has now been updated to version 2022.25.1 with a lot of new features. In addition, it now supports all cars owned by the company.
In a YouTube video, Gapiński says this update makes it easier for first-time users to download software to enable CarPlay on Tesla. Not only that, but new features include support for up to a 60Hz refresh rate, and DRM video playback, so Netflix now plays in the car again, with a steering lock added to Apple Music, so it plays in landscape mode.
The release notes show that Tesla Android with CarPlay now behaves normally when loaded into Drive or Reverse and there is a simplification of the video collection that improves the stability of the Flutter app running in Tesla’s browser.
You will also find:
- Audio from Android is routed directly to your Tesla browser. Playback is allowed even when Drive or Reverse is on, which means there is no need to pair your Tesla Android to your car using Bluetooth (the Bluetooth link with the car is only used by your phone for Android Auto or CarPlay);
- Audio output from Tesla Browser does not pause media playback from Tesla OS or CarPlay. To activate this feature, open the Audio Capture app on your Tesla Android after installing the operating system. It will run automatically on every subsequent boot;
- Audio Capture can be terminated using a button on the status notification.
Gapiński says that not all apps support audio capture, but this limitation will be removed in a future update.
The Tesla Android solution with CarPlay is powered by a Raspberry Pi running on a custom build of Android. This is what makes it possible to load CarPlay into Tesla’s in-vehicle browser. You can learn more about that here.
9to5Mac’s Take on Tesla CarPlay Workaround
The big attraction of CarPlay is a seamless iPhone-to-car iOS experience. With more and more vehicles out there that support Wireless CarPlay, it doesn’t even need to be connected.
While this Raspberry Pi solution for bringing CarPlay to Teslas is certainly impressive and fun to see – and the experience has improved a lot – there’s still a way to go to become as reliable as if Tesla has built-in support for Apple’s solution.
As of now, the Gapiński project appears to have a greater chance of becoming a better solution for Tesla owners to enjoy CarPlay rather than Tesla starting to support it in the near future.
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