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Wireless Carplay problem, 2024 Prius LE, iPhone 14 pro max

Discussion in 'Gen 5 Prius Audio, Electronics and Infotainment' started by David W. Griffin, Dec 11, 2023.

  1. David W. Griffin

    David W. Griffin Junior Member

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    It's been working great for 2 weeks. Then it wouldn't connect this morning. I tried to connect and nothing. I rebooted my phone, no effect. I rebooted the car (off/on) twice, no effect. I tried forgetting the device and re-pairing it with the car and it seemed to go well right to the end where it failed with what it said was a bluetooth problem. I tried connecting bluetooth from the phone, and it failed.

    I then decided to connect by cable and that worked. When I got home, I pulled the plug first and it stayed connected wirelessly (at least temporarily not sure if it would have lasted).

    Any ideas? Should I take it into Toyota and see if they can troubleshoot the bluetooth stuff on the car side? Or do you think it's the phone? I just got home and connected a bluetooth speaker and it worked OK so I kind of think it might be the car.
     
  2. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    You can try a hard reboot by disconnecting the 12v for a few minutes. This will restore everything to factory settings. If problem comes back you'll have to take it in for warranty work. This is a known problem with Gen5 Prius and I've read of more than one buyer who took the car back for a refund because the software for this system is so impossible/inept. Toyota sucks at user-friendly software!
     
  3. David W. Griffin

    David W. Griffin Junior Member

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    I think there is a factory reset that might be easier than that in the settings. At least I think I saw a scary option by that name. That said, a short trip yesterday without the cord worked normally. I don't think the problem is solved by any means but doing a reset now wouldn't tell me anything. But the question is when will it happen again and will the cord work? I guess I can hope there will be a recall or a software upgrade that will actually fix it. Or I will need to wait till it happens again to bring it in.
     
  4. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

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    If there's a dash function for a factory reset and the glitch comes back try that first. If that doesn't work and glitch is still there disconnecting the 12v to reboot all systems, not just dash software is the next step. And contrary to your opinion that it won't tell you anything, in truth it will eliminate all the easy fix options before you go back to the stealership and make it their problem. But again, their techs will be worthless on this problem unless there's an existing service bulletin for the problem, which is possible.
     
  5. David W. Griffin

    David W. Griffin Junior Member

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    If carplay is currently working (after plugging it in for one trip and then unplugging it) then if I factory reset and it still works, what does that tell me? And if it doesn't that is bad and what does THAT tell me? Seems to me the answer is nothing either way. I don't know these systems so I can't really diagnose them, but I was a software engineer for 30 years so I'm not totally ignorant.

    I'll just say as well that my 2012's bluetooth connection was twitchy as well and I frequently had to turn the display off and on to get it to connect (didn't work this time, different system). I wonder if there is some kind of bulletin somewhere in the Toyota maintenance system.

    I also just learned when I screwed on my licence plate that the right side bolt is stripped! Annoying hope they can fix that on my next maintenance visit somehow.
     
  6. I Throw 99

    I Throw 99 New Member

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    I don't know if this will hep your situation or not, but when my phone wouldn't connect wirelessly, I just held down the voice control button on the steering wheel, and followed the prompts, which connected it. It was easier than restarting the car at a stop light.
     
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  7. Hammersmith

    Hammersmith Senior Member

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    Two other ways of reconnecting:

    1. Using the main screen: Settings->Devices and Bluetooth->[select your phone]->either press Connect at the bottom, or press the little slider that says Android Auto or CarPlay; whichever is not grayed out (I'm going from memory, so I might be off on the exact wording of the commands, but they should be close enough to figure out)

    2. Press and hold the round volume button. This will reboot the infotainment system without having to shutoff and restart the car.
     
    mountaineer likes this.
  8. Sharol

    Sharol Member

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    We have Android Auto. My husband's Samsung 10e connects without issue EVERY SINGLE TIME. My Samsung 20 is erratic. Sometimes it connects wirelessly immediately. Sometimes I have to plug it in (if I unplug it it continues to work fine unless I'm a one spot on our Interstate bypass, at which time the bluetooth quits working. (I haven't checked that on my husband's phone, but soon I will. It worked without issue for two weeks, there was a phone update for AA. Then it didn't work until I plugged it in. There is a bug somewhere, but I'm getting used to plugging it in on the occasion that it doesn't work wirelessly at first.

    It sounds like you are having the same issues I am albeit with a different OS on the phone. I'm trying to decide whether to make an issue of it with the dealer (who knows nothing about the app by his own admission), or just let it ride and hope for a firmware update for the car.
     
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  9. David W. Griffin

    David W. Griffin Junior Member

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    I tried 1 at the time multiple times and it didn't work. I even forgot the device and connected it all over again. It would try to connect but errored out. Thanks for number 2 that sounds useful.

    The only thing that worked was plugging in the cord by USB.
     
  10. HacksawMark

    HacksawMark Active Member

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    I think this goes without saying but is your phone running the latest IOS update? Should be 17.2.1
     
  11. David W. Griffin

    David W. Griffin Junior Member

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    Hey, I think the problem is the software is ...ummm... VERY fragile in the 2024 prius. Someone suggested I turn the wifi hotspot on. I did that without selecting a network and it seemed to bring carplay back up. I have no idea why that worked or if it will work when I get back in the car.

    So the first time, I tried forgetting the device and resyncing my phone and then turning it off for a while and then connecting it by USB and that worked for a while. This time I turned on the wifi hotspot (which should have had no effect but did). I suspect the resetting suggested above might work too. I think the car REALLY needs a stability update for the software.
     
  12. Hammersmith

    Hammersmith Senior Member

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    I believe this software first debuted in the 2022 Tundra, so it's still fairly new. But Toyota really should have made more progress than they have so far. On the positive side, the software is going into a host of new vehicles over the next year*, so hopefully they'll be forced to sort their crap out soon.

    (Personally, I wouldn't hate Toyota firing their entire software departments(infotainment, app, and website) and starting from scratch. They've really got a Jekyll & Hyde thing going on between the hardware and software sides of the company.)


    *2022 Tundra
    2023 bZ4x, Crown, Prius
    2024 Corolla, Tacoma, RAV4, Highlander, Grand Highlander, Sequoia, Venza
    2025 Camry, Sienna
     
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  13. David W. Griffin

    David W. Griffin Junior Member

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    Hey, yesterday my Carplay failed again. This time I was tired so after trying a couple of things that didn't work, I just drove the car. When I got home I tried plugging it in USB and that had no effect. Then I turned the car off and on and again no effect. Then I gave up to go eat dinner. The next morning I turned off and on my phone and went into the garage to work on it and it seemed to come up. I really don't understand this car's software.
     
  14. Agent337

    Agent337 Junior Member

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    I also get kicked out of Apple Carplay occasionally. Most of the time, plugging the phone in using the USB-C cable into the USB-C port that is data capable (the one on the left, directly above the #hiddencompartment that has the lightning bolt symbol) usually works for me. Another remedy that has worked for me was to push and hold in the volume button on the infotainment screen. This resets your infotainment system without having to restart your car. I have an SE with the 8" screen. I also have an iPhone 14Pro Max. Hope that helps.

    As to why Carplay disengages, I have no idea. Peculiarly, it always happens at a specific point on PCH (Highway Coast 1) right at Reef Point Dr. in Newport Beach. Perhaps there's some strong electromagnetic interference there?
     
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  15. peternumber2

    peternumber2 Junior Member

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    Can anybody tell me how to check if wireless android auto is available in my prius? thanks
     
  16. Argyros

    Argyros Member

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    All models of 2023/24 Prius includes Wireless Android Auto. It connects with Bluetooth.

    Go to Settings- Bluetooth and connect your phone. Make sure Android Auto is connected as Wireless in the AA settings also, then it should connect.
     
  17. Hammersmith

    Hammersmith Senior Member

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    AndersOne likes this.
  18. Argyros

    Argyros Member

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  19. peternumber2

    peternumber2 Junior Member

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    unbelievable...assuming the system is structurally the same, I think it's more expensive to disable such feature than leaving it on...
    it smells like apple is paying something here....
     
  20. AndersOne

    AndersOne Active Member

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    Youre right - European models seems to only support Android Auto by cable. On the one hand they have quite a different navigation unit (with offline maps) but on the other hand it still doesnt make too much sense. Perhaps the EU navi is slightly older.
     
    #20 AndersOne, Feb 21, 2024
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2024