How to fix CarPlay on Ford

This guide will be helpful to owners of the following Ford vehicles who have encountered a variety of errors when connecting Carplay to the Sync system:

1. Ford Mustang
2. Ford F-150
3. Ford F-250 Super Duty
4. Ford Escape
5. Ford Edge
6. Ford Explorer
7. Ford Expedition
8. Ford Fusion
9. Ford EcoSport
10. Ford Focus

It should be noted that this list contains the most popular Ford models in the USA manufactured after 2016. These vehicles are the ones that have support for the Carplay navigation system. (Accordingly, if your Ford vehicle was released earlier, this guide will be irrelevant.)

Make sure Carplay is not restricted in your country

If you're running navigation while in the U.S., there probably won't be a problem with the Carplay software. But if you're connecting Carplay to a Ford vehicle outside the U.S., make sure your country or region is available on Apple's website.

Method 2. To find out if CarPlay is supported in your country, follow these steps:

Type "carplay supported countries" into a Google search.

Method 3.

Alternatively, go to the official page https://www.apple.com/ios/feature-availability/#apple-carplay.

This page will always give you the most up-to-date and reliable information.

If you're not sure if your Ford model supports CarPlay, contact the car manufacturer for technical details.

Restarting Siri

The Siri assistant is used to control Carplay: you can use voice commands to control navigation, open and close maps, and change routes. Unfortunately, some problems with Carplay on Ford vehicle are due to Siri failures.

Therefore, if there is a sudden malfunction of Carplay in the car, you can restart the Siri app on iOS and thus influence the situation.

To restart Siri on iPhone 12:

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Tap on General.
3. Tap on Siri & Search.
4. Toggle the switch next to Listen for Hey Siri and Press Home for Siri to the Off position.
5. Restart your iPhone.
6. Open the Settings app and go to Siri & Search.
7. Toggle the switch next to Listen for Hey Siri and Press Home for Siri to the On position.
8. Open the Carplay app and try connecting your device to Ford on Carplay again.

"Forget phone" in Sync settings

Another fairly easy way to restore Carplay to work in Ford vehicles manufactured after 2017-18. This mostly applies to Ford Focus or Escape. The way to fix the bug is to go into Sync settings, forget the car and reconnect it. Here are detailed instructions on how to do this:

1. Forget the phone in the Sync settings
2. Forget the phone in Carplay settings on iPhone.

3. Turn off the car for about 15 minutes.
4. Reconnect the phone to Sync
5. Find the car in Carplay and add to the list again

Use the SYNC USB port closest to the SYNC screen

A common mistake drivers make is to misuse a USB port that is far away from SYNC.

As a result, Carplay doesn't work in the Ford vehicle - iPhone is not detected, head unit doesn't sync with the mobile device.

All you have to do is use the USB port closest to SYNC. You can easily find it at arm's length directly in front of you.

Updating Sync - the car's software

Sync is the Ford software that makes the devices attached to the car work. Keep in mind that updating your car's software is not the same as updating SYNC. It is SYNC that you need to update.

1. Visit the FORD SYNC® AND NAVIGATION UPDATES page.

2. Enter the vehicle's VIN (serial number).

3. Check if there are SYNC updates available that are ready to install.

4. Download and update SYNC via the vehicle USB port.

or choose the "Find a Dealer" option.

5. Connect Carplay to the Ford car and check if everything works correctly.

Your iPhone may be out of date

It is very important to use Carplay on a modern mobile device with an updated operating system.

Step 1: Make sure your device is an iPhone 5 or later.

To check the version of your iPhone's software,

1. Go to Settings > General > About
2. Look for the Version line.
3. The number that appears on this line includes the version number of the iOS and the version number of your carrier settings.

Step 2: Check if your iPhone is running iOS 7.1 or later.

To check the version of iOS currently installed on your device,

1. Go to Settings > General > Software Update.
2. The version number will be listed underneath the title "Software Update.
3. Turn on Automatic system updates for the future.

Reset SYNC

SYNC entertainment system malfunctions are often caused by errors in the navigation system, including Carplay.

To reset the Ford SYNC system:

1. Press and hold the “Phone” and “Seek” buttons on the SYNC system for 10 seconds.

2. Select “Settings” and then "General" from the SYNC system menu.

3. Select “Master Reset” and confirm that you want to do a reset by selecting “Yes.”

4. Reconfigure your SYNC system by following the on-screen prompts.

5. Once the reconfiguration is complete, restart your vehicle to apply the changes.

Reboot iPhone using the home button

The easiest and most obvious method of fixing iOS software bugs is to reboot the iPhone.

Of course this is not a guarantee that after rebooting Carplay will work stably and share in the car, but it's worth spending 3 minutes on this - and what if this really helps?

How to restart iPhone 12 - 13 or older using home button:

1. Press and hold the "Side" or "Power" button and the "Volume Down" button simultaneously for at least 10 seconds.
2. Release both buttons when the Apple logo appears on the screen.
3. Your iPhone 12 will restart.
4. Connect your iPhone to Ford Sync system.