AppleCarPlay, Android Auto, Bluetooth Issues

[VABolt]

I have had my new Bolt for close to two months. I love the car. It excels in performance and exceeds EPA ratings when it's not below 45 degrees or so. Now the not so good things.

Apple CarPlay Sucks!. Cannot speak for Android Car because I do not know anyone who has an Android phone to try it. Almost 80% of the time I cannot get Pandora or Spotifly to connect. I keep getting the message unable to connect, yet music is playing from my last time using either app. No menu/song selections being displayed on that beautiful 10" screen. When they do connect I cannot see all of my saved favorite content. I guess its called channels on Pandora and my albums on Spotifly. Pandora will display up to letter "F", and Spotifly will go down to about half. Is there a limit? No issues on my i-Phone. So I have this big nice screen but have to resort to changing songs using my phone. When the phone is connected via Bluetooth no issues, except for the times when the car will not reconnect via Bluetooth to my phone. When this happens I have to force a reconnect in the phone settings or turn off the car and start all over. Kinda of hard and a pain when driving.

When the phone is just connected via Bluetooth and if I try to make a phone call using voice commands, it never works 90% of the time.

I am running the latest software 14.5 (Just Released) from Chevrolet (GM) , and my I-Phone 7 is running IOS 11.3. I hate to say this but this is the worst interface I have ever had in a car since connecting phones via Bluetooth some 10 years or so. Its a real shame that Chevrolet (GM) cannot get this right.

Side note: Since I have had my car I wanted to use my big new 10" screen for navigation. I am a Google Maps guy, but I said what the heck Apple Maps cannot be that bad. Well yes it is. Compared to Google Maps, it sucks. Last week it failed me on two occasions getting me to where I needed to go. Both times I had to switch back using Google Maps on my phone. I am not talking about being out in the middle of nowhere. Once I was in Glenn Allen VA, and the other I was between I-95 and Warrenton VA on route 17 (Closer to I-95). Apple Maps would not accept that I was not going to do a u-turn and go up and over using I-495, a good hour out of my way.

I know this has turned into a rant, and I do apologize. I wanted to ask if maybe I was doing something wrong, but this is not rocket science folks. Its just a defective product. :roll:

 

[astroboy]

i agree that it is bad; the thing takes so long to switch between radio and carplay when google maps is trying to make announcements that usually the announcements are cut off and not intelligible.

i never try to use any other app but apple music to play music in the car and believe it or not the 14.4.2 works worse than the version that was installed when i bought the car. almost every single time the progress bar for the current song freezes and then does not update the title when the next song comes on. i have to take the car in for service soon so i am hoping they will install 14.5 but on the other hand based on my experience (and yours) i don't expect 14.5 to solve anything.

also how did they get to version 14 on a product that is only a couple of years old???

 

[WetEV]

also how did they get to version 14 on a product that is only a couple of years old???

As a developer, I always assumed that version numbers didn't have a cost. Increment for any excuse. Of course, I usually didn't get to roll the major number, only the minor number.

 

[astroboy]

also how did they get to version 14 on a product that is only a couple of years old???

As a developer, I always assumed that version numbers didn't have a cost. Increment for any excuse. Of course, I usually didn't get to roll the major number, only the minor number.

right, i mean the major number usually means "new features" but god knows what software discipline (if any) the developers of this thing use

 

[Sperling3]

I think the majority of your complaint is with Apple. My Bolt implements CarPlay as well as it is implemented on other cars that I have. As for AppleMaps vs not being able to load GoogleMaps, that is a restriction that Apple has placed on CarPlay. Can't speak to Pandora or the like as I don't use them in my car.

 

[VABolt]

I think the majority of your complaint is with Apple. My Bolt implements CarPlay as well as it is implemented on other cars that I have. As for AppleMaps vs not being able to load GoogleMaps, that is a restriction that Apple has placed on CarPlay. Can't speak to Pandora or the like as I don't use them in my car.

It may be Apple, as it is hard to know for certain. At the same time I am not letting Chevy off the hook because when I try to make a phone call using voice commands when the phone is linked via Bluetooth it does not work most of the time.

Update: I did do a hard reboot of my iPhone today and everything returned and worked as advertised. Not certain what will happen in the morning, but we can hope.

 

[VABolt]

Does anyone know if this is happening on 2018 models? I have a 2017, and I heard the software build numbers are like 5.00, not the 14.5.0 as on the 2017 models. I did test drive a 2018 and Pandora connected right off the bat with no issues. I opted for the 2017 because they made me a deal I could not pass up. Thanks!

P.S. I still love the car.....

 

[VABolt]

I think the majority of your complaint is with Apple. My Bolt implements CarPlay as well as it is implemented on other cars that I have. As for AppleMaps vs not being able to load GoogleMaps, that is a restriction that Apple has placed on CarPlay. Can't speak to Pandora or the like as I don't use them in my car.

It may be Apple, as it is hard to know for certain. At the same time I am not letting Chevy off the hook because when I try to make a phone call using voice commands when the phone is linked via Bluetooth it does not work most of the time.

Update: I did do a hard reboot of my iPhone today and everything returned and worked as advertised. Not certain what will happen in the morning, but we can hope.

Okay the next morning the problem returned. Pandora, Spotifly, Google Play will not load. Basiclly any non-Apple App does not always work. All I get is indicating its loading and then I receive message unable to connect. Sometimes during all this the last channel or song I was playing the last time when i was in my car starts to play. This is not right. I called onStar for some help and the call I received back informed me that I needed to sign up with a data plan from them. Really? I guess only their 4G LTE will work. Forget about my phone or when I am sitting in my driveway and the phone is hooked to my home network. Where do they get these so called tech support people?

Well my brother in-law came over and I hooked up my phone to his 2017 Chevy Silverado truck CarPlay and it worked like a champ. I could not get anything to fail. Even when I disconnected my phone from the USB cable I was able to make a phone call using voice commands via bluetooth. Yes I cannot do that either. Okay in my simple mind this points to the Bolt, not my phone or Apple CarPlay.

Has anyone had these issues? I have the latest 14.5 software. I plan on contacting the dealer and ask them to push GM for a answer. For a $40K dollar car I want the functionality to work as advertised.

 

[joeyfraser]

Hi,

Make sure that your USB lightning cable is from Apple.
I had similar problems with my music in my Bolt 2017 and also my FFE 2017 with a cheap USB cable bought on eBay.
Unfortunately Apple Maps is not the best navigation app in the market.... maybe Apple will allow third party apps integration with CarPlay in iOS 12 this fall... I would be more happier with Waze!

Joey

 

[VABolt]

UPDATE: Spent a few hours with my dealer and they took the time to figure out what was happening.

1) Concerning Bluetooth and making a phone car. Since the apple phone uses Siri it is required that you go to settings and make certain Siri is set to work when the phone is locked. Yea I feel a little dumb about this one. All is good now.

2) Apple CarPlay: After trouble shooting with the technician we learned that is you have a I-Phone 7 or higher (The one where there is not a separate headphone jack), and use the USB cable that came with the phone you will have trouble loading non-Apple app such as Pandora, Spotifly, Goole Play etc. It you use an earlier USB cable say from a I-Phone 6 (This phone has a separate headphone jack) everything works as designed. Every now and then you may have to start Pandora from your phone, but once it loads it works like a champ even going between app. I guess its the way Apple has the jack/connecter wired on the phone causing problems.

One would think this could hopefully be fixed with a software update. The technician said he was going to pass this on to Chevrolet as well. So if you are using a I-phone 7 or higher (Not 100% on above I-Phone 7 because do not have one), just use a USB cable that is designed for a I-Phone 6 or earlier.

I hope this helps anyone whop may have experienced the same issues as I have over the past two months with my Bolt. Happy camper now!

 

[astroboy]

One would think this could hopefully be fixed with a software update. The technician said he was going to pass this on to Chevrolet as well. So if you are using a I-phone 7 or higher (Not 100% on above I-Phone 7 because do not have one), just use a USB cable that is designed for a I-Phone 6 or earlier.

i'm not sure there is such a thing. never heard of a separate type of USB-lightning cable for iphone6 vs iphone7. i mean, apple makes no distinction on their website when you want to buy a replacement usb-lightning cable...

https://www.apple.com/shop/iphone/iphone-accessories/power-cables?page=1#!&f=cable&fh=458e%2B45c4

one thing that is true is that there is a chip in every lightning connector which does the work of translating the lightning data protocol to whatever is on the other end (and un-twisting the signals if the lightning connector is plugged in upside-down). so what might be happening here is that chevy's USB connector is somehow only compatible with older lightning cables, assuming the chip in the lightning cables have undergone revisions between the time of iphone6 and iphone7. IMO this would have to be some kind of a bug in chevy's USB implementation, otherwise there'd be millions of PC-based iphone owners with similar USB-lightning problems...

have you tried an apple USB-30pin cable + 30pin-lightning adapter?

 

[BoltEV]

2017 Bolt EV

iPhone 6+

3rd party USB Lightening cable puchaed from Amazon

Apple CarPlay:

Consistently use Apple maps with no glitches. Would prefer Waze but not holding my breath

SiriusXM app works like a champ

Pandora wouldn’t load until I updated the app and now it works like a champ!

 

[VABolt]

One would think this could hopefully be fixed with a software update. The technician said he was going to pass this on to Chevrolet as well. So if you are using a I-phone 7 or higher (Not 100% on above I-Phone 7 because do not have one), just use a USB cable that is designed for a I-Phone 6 or earlier.

i'm not sure there is such a thing. never heard of a separate type of USB-lightning cable for iphone6 vs iphone7. i mean, apple makes no distinction on their website when you want to buy a replacement usb-lightning cable...

https://www.apple.com/shop/iphone/iphone-accessories/power-cables?page=1#!&f=cable&fh=458e%2B45c4

one thing that is true is that there is a chip in every lightning connector which does the work of translating the lightning data protocol to whatever is on the other end (and un-twisting the signals if the lightning connector is plugged in upside-down). so what might be happening here is that chevy's USB connector is somehow only compatible with older lightning cables, assuming the chip in the lightning cables have undergone revisions between the time of iphone6 and iphone7. IMO this would have to be some kind of a bug in chevy's USB implementation, otherwise there'd be millions of PC-based iphone owners with similar USB-lightning problems...

have you tried an apple USB-30pin cable + 30pin-lightning adapter?

Maybe its Chevy's interface, I do not know. I can only say that I tried both a cable that came with a I-Phone 7 and a cable that came with an I-Phone 6, and the 7 does not work. Yes I did try other cables, but they all came with I-Phone 7 phones. There is a difference in the cable, the connector on the phone or both because the I-Phone 7 does not have a headphone, jack, which mean means the headphone audio is now going through the USB cable. That alone makes the wiring slightly different. Where I cannot say for certain. One could believe it would be on the cable because the I-Phone 6 has a headphone jack, and the I-Phone 7 does not. Either-way I now have a working system, where last week I did not, so I have no plan to go spend money on a new cable when its not needed for me.

 

[astroboy]

Maybe its Chevy's interface, I do not know. I can only say that I tried both a cable that came with a I-Phone 7 and a cable that came with an I-Phone 6, and the 7 does not work. Yes I did try other cables, but they all came with I-Phone 7 phones. There is a difference in the cable, the connector on the phone or both because the I-Phone 7 does not have a headphone, jack, which mean means the headphone audio is now going through the USB cable. That alone makes the wiring slightly different. Where I cannot say for certain. One could believe it would be on the cable because the I-Phone 6 has a headphone jack, and the I-Phone 7 does not. Either-way I now have a working system, where last week I did not, so I have no plan to go spend money on a new cable when its not needed for me.

no, it does not make the wiring any different. the lightning connector has two high-speed differential serial lines which can carry any kind of digital data. that side never changes. if you have the lightning to headphone adapter, there's a chip inside with a lightning interface on one side, a DAC in the middle, and an analog output on the other. when the iphone detects any adapter plugged in to the phone it negotiates with the chip inside the adapter and figures out what it is and what it can do. if it's an audio adapter, iOS offers the user to route sound out that port. but there's nothing different about the lightning port, and it has nothing to do with the capabilities of a lighting-USB cable. a USB cable has a lightning to USB chip; a headphone adapter has the aforementioned setup. nothing had to change between iphone6 and iphone7 with respect to USB/lightning cables due to the lack of the headphone port on the iphone7. in fact you can connect a lightning-headphone jack adapter to an iphone6 and it will output audio.

my point is that they may have made changes to the lightning-USB chip in older vs. newer cables, but the change does not necessarily track iphone6 vs iphone7. in any case i would be very very surprised if this prospective new lightning-USB chip were not 100% USB compatible and given the quality of the hardware and software on the bolt, the problem almost certainly lies with the bolt and not the iphone or the particular cable.

glad you found a solution but for someone that does not have older cables, they may be out of luck until chevy finds and fixes the problem.