Apple’s CarPlay system allows you to access apps and features from your iPhone while driving, and anyone that drives on a regular basis knows how handy it can be.
Still, there may be times when you want to turn CarPlay off, so let’s look through the various ways to disable CarPlay, both temporarily and permanently.
Disconnecting CarPlay During an Active Session
If you’ve already started a CarPlay session and want to turn it off before exiting your vehicle, there are a couple of methods you can use.
You can either unplug the lightning cable from your iPhone, which will immediately end the CarPlay connection.
Or, you can access the CarPlay app or menu on your car’s display and look for a “Disable CarPlay” or similar option to turn it off.
Either of these methods are fine to use, and it’s really down to your own preference. However, you may still find that when you get back into your car, your iPhone automatically connects via CarPlay again.
How to Prevent CarPlay From Automatically Connecting
The good news is that you can stop CarPlay from automatically launching whenever you connect your iPhone to your car’s USB port.
You can do this by toggling off the corresponding setting:
- On your iPhone, open the Settings app.
- Tap “General.”
- Select “CarPlay.”
- Tap on your car from the list of available vehicles.
- Toggle off “Allow CarPlay While Unlocked.”
With this setting disabled, CarPlay won’t start up automatically when you plug in your iPhone.
Instead, you’ll have to manually start a CarPlay session by following the instructions on your car’s display.
Unpairing Your iPhone and Car
If you want to take things a step further, you can completely unpair and disconnect your iPhone from your car’s system.
To do this, you just need to follow these steps:
- Make sure CarPlay is currently active and your iPhone is connected to your car.
- On your car’s display, look for a “Forget This Device” or “Delete Device Data” option related to CarPlay.
- If prompted, confirm that you want to unpair your iPhone.
After unpairing, you’ll need to go through the setup process again if you want to reconnect your iPhone to CarPlay in your vehicle. This option is useful if you’re planning to sell your car or let someone else use it.
Using Restrictions to Disable CarPlay
If you want to completely prevent your iPhone from using CarPlay at all, even manually, you can toggle it off via Restrictions:
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
- Tap “Screen Time.”
- Select “Content & Privacy Restrictions” and enter your Screen Time passcode if prompted.
- Tap “Allowed Apps.”
- Locate and toggle off “CarPlay” in the list.
With CarPlay disabled under Restrictions, it will be completely inaccessible until you re-enable the feature.
These are the key methods for disabling CarPlay on your iPhone, whether you want to turn CarPlay off temporarily or permanently. You can also leave CarPlay enabled and just turn off notifications.
Bear in mind that the exact steps may vary slightly between vehicle makes and models, but the premise stays the same!
