Apple CarPlay Ultra First Look: Taking Over the Entire Dashboard

Motor Trend

15-05-2025

Three years ago, Apple showed the world a sneak peek of the next generation of CarPlay and left us with more questions than answers. Was it actually a preview of the long-rumored Apple Car? Was this Apple taking over the dashboard? Or was it really CarPlay 2.0? Now, we have our answer, and it's called CarPlay Ultra.
As Promised
Turns out, Apple wasn't messing with us. Ultra really is the next generation of CarPlay, and it looks nearly identical to what was teased back in 2022 (and elaborated on last year if you're a Worldwide Developer Conference devotee).
It's not Apple taking over all the software programming in your dashboard but rather inserting itself between you and the automaker's software. To do that, it's expanding CarPlay's reach beyond the central infotainment screen to every screen on the dashboard. The biggest target: your digital instrument cluster.
Unified, Harmonized
People already like CarPlay, and many prefer it to the native, automaker-designed software that comes with their car. A lot of CarPlay users would prefer their car to include a blank screen that only mirrors their phone, and that's in effect what CarPlay Ultra is.
Think of it as a mask, taking data from your car and reimagining it in Apple's design language and taking inputs from you and translating them to your car. All the while, you never have to leave the CarPlay user interface you already know.
Rather than various color schemes, designs, and graphics with different controls on each screen, there's one harmonious look that works the same everywhere. That's the biggest thing: CarPlay Ultra will look and work mostly the same in every car, so you'll never have to learn a new infotainment system as long as the vehicle you're driving supports it. Whether it's your spouse's car, your friend's car, or a rental car, it'll all be basically the same.
CarPlay Ultra can be ordered today today on 2025 Aston Martins in the US and Canada and Apple says Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis have now signed up in addition to already announced partners including Acura, Audi, Ford, Honda, Infiniti, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Polestar, Porsche, Renault, and Volvo. Those brands will make their own launch announcements in the future.
GM is unsurprisingly absent from the list, given its goal to kick Apple out of its cars. Ultra is also somewhat backwards compatible; 2024 Aston Martins, for example, will need a dealer-installed update to use Ultra.
CarPlay Ultra works on iPhone 12 or newer with iOS 18.5 or newer.
Right in Front of Your Face
Far and away the biggest change happens where you can't miss it: the digital instrument cluster. Running Ultra will hand over the screen to Apple's software, which launches with several different gauge layouts ranging from minimalist to traditional and, of course, full-screen Apple Maps.
Each automaker can tailor the gauges to some extent, and you can customize them yourself by changing the colors and the background wallpaper among limited options.
If you've seen the previews, you'll recognize these new gauges, as the designs have barely changed since the 2022 announcement. Apple's instrument designs are either round or horizontal bars and come in different layouts chosen by the automaker.
Some feature a selectable section with various widgets from audio to Maps, tire pressures, driver aids, and more. The only things not redesigned by Apple are the warning lights, which are strictly regulated by the feds. Even warnings and pop-ups appear in Apple's design language.
More Control
The old part of CarPlay, over on the center infotainment screen, gets a major upgrade, too. It still looks like CarPlay, if the automaker wants it to, albeit with climate controls in the upper corners.
If a particular carmaker is feeling bold, though, it can opt to use a new layout that looks familiar to anyone who's used a Mac or driven a Tesla. It moves the recently used apps and the climate controls to a dock at the bottom of the screen where four apps can be displayed instead of the usual three.
The climate controls are a big deal. Previously, you'd have to back out of CarPlay into the automaker's software to change vehicle settings. No more.
Tapping the climate controls brings up a number of shortcut buttons for various HVAC functions. Otherwise, you can go to the new Climate app that appears with the rest when running CarPlay, along with a new Radio app.
This is the second biggest change: CarPlay can control your car's systems now. If you've driven a new Porsche, you've already got a taste of this, but Ultra takes it much, much further.
Tapping the Climate app brings up an Apple-designed menu where you can change all your settings. Same for the Radio app. You never have to use the automaker's software again, and of course, the physical knobs and buttons still work.
The only time you might see the automaker's software is in specialty menus. While CarPlay can do graphics and animations, automakers may choose to keep some of the custom software they've already paid for, such as interfaces for high-end stereos, massaging seats, and wellness programs. Even then, those screens will open within CarPlay rather than boot you out.
That's right, once you're in CarPlay Ultra, you'll never have to back out unless you manually turn it off. In fact, in the Aston Martin demonstrator vehicle, it was difficult to figure out how to get out of CarPlay Ultra. Diving into settings and then phone pairings was the only way we found to get back to the automaker's software.
It Loads Super Fast
While all the data is still processed in your phone (and therefore covered by Apple's privacy policy), Ultra software must be installed on the vehicle to translate between the iPhone and the onboard computers.
The benefit of this is CarPlay Ultra will load immediately when you start your car, long before your phone connects. There's no waiting and no sudden switch from the automaker software to CarPlay Ultra.
Ultra also brings a new widgets page to your center infotainment screen. When you're on the home screen—Maps, now playing, and audio controls—swipe right to get to the widgets. Displayed in two columns, you can choose from clocks to calendars, reminders to weather. More widgets will be added in the future.
Old CarPlay Still Exists
If you prefer your automaker's gauges or just don't use CarPlay that much, never fear. You can still choose to run regular CarPlay in the infotainment screen alongside the automaker's software.
You'll still get the new enhancements (depending on which your automaker chooses to enable), but it'll look a lot like the software you've been using since CarPlay was introduced in 2014. Namely, standard CarPlay doesn't get the widgets screen.
Hardware Agnostic
CarPlay Ultra is flexible, so it doesn't matter if your vehicle uses physical buttons, touchscreens, trackpads, or some combination thereof. Any function the automaker gives CarPlay access to works regardless of where the input comes from.
What's more, as some cars begin to offer programmable hard buttons that you can assign different functions, CarPlay will be able to work with those, as well.
Ultra is also designed to work with new screen shapes. Previously, CarPlay always existed in its little rectangle. Now that it can take over all the screens, it can be set up to show multiple apps and widgets simultaneously on the massive screens we see in some new cars.
It also has the ability to work with irregularly shaped screens and bleed graphics all the way to the edge of the screen rather than maintain strict rectangular borders as in the past.
CarPlay Ultra is also designed to work wirelessly, so you won't have to plug your phone in for it to work. You can, though, and it helps make the initial setup go a little quicker and keeps the phone charged, but for short drives, your iPhone never has to come out of your pocket.
Siri Does More, Not Everything
Now that CarPlay has more control of your car's systems, Siri does, too. It's not a one-to-one relationship, but a lot of the things you might control through the screens you can ask Siri to do. Some functions the automaker may not want to turn over to voice control, and some may simply require more software development down the line.
What Siri continues to lack is context. It doesn't know what car it's in, and it isn't connected to the car's digital owner's manual, so you can't just ask it questions about your car.
Apple wouldn't say if this would be possible in the future but suggested in the meantime you ask Siri to ask ChatGPT those kinds of questions (and hope ChatGPT provides a useful answer).
The future is here, but automakers may want to think about whether to fully embrace it.