American carmaker General Motors announced in March 2023 that it would be dropping CarPlay and Android Auto from its electric vehicles, in favor of its own infotainment system. As you might imagine, it was a controversial decision, causing concern among dealers, as well as customers, many of which consider CarPlay and Android Auto a must-have for their vehicles.
Last year, a GM dealership near Detroit, Michigan last year decided to resolve the issue by partnering with a third-party outfit to offer installation of aftermarket CarPlay installations in GM’s newer EVs. However, when GM heard about the service, it blocked the dealer from offering the service due to safety concerns, according to a report by automotive blog The Drive.
The dealer in question—LaFontaine Chevrolet in Plymouth, Michigan—told the publication that GM told them to stop offering and installing the kit. And without that distribution channel, the company that manufactured the kit, White Automotive, had to shut down the project.
“We have made the difficult decision to discontinue this product,” said White Automotive & Media Services, on its website that previously offered the CarPlay installation service. “This was not a decision we made lightly, but due to a variety of factors, continuing to offer this product is no longer viable in the long term,” it said.
A spokesperson for GM told The Drive that unapproved aftermarket services like the dealership was offering “could affect critical safety features,” and pose other issues.
“Aftermarket services that introduce features not originally designed, thoroughly tested, and approved by GM may cause unintended issues for customers,” the GM spokesperson said, in response to this matter. “These issues could affect critical safety features and may also void portions of the vehicle’s warranty.”
At the moment, it isn’t clear whether GM is truly concerned about the aftermarket CarPlay systems posing safety problems, or whether it’s due to GM’s worries about not being able to gather more information about owners’ driving habits and also allow the company to accelerate its strategy for vehicle-related digital subscription services.
