Adding to the list of issues facing iOS 15 and iPhone 13 users, a new, seemingly widespread bug is causing CarPlay to suddenly crash whenever a user attempts to play music, such as through Apple Music or third-party providers like Spotify.
Dozens of posts on Apple Support [1],[2],[3],[4],[5],[6], the MacRumors Forums [1],[2],[3],[4], and Twitter include users complaining that only on their new iPhone 13 does CarPlay not work correctly. According to users, attempting to play music from any CarPlay app causes the system to crash, but it works just fine when they try on older iPhones. As one MacRumors reader chronicles:
Updated my iPhone 11 to iOS 15, drove to store with no issues with Carplay. While there, I activated my new iPhone 13 mini (and disabled the 11) and now Carplay does not work. Trying to play any music causes it to crash and not come back. Unpaired and re-paired the phone, powered phone off and on a bunch of times, reset the stero/display, tried new cable, nothing works. Now I drive in silence, and it's miserable.
Other users report that the issue persists in either wired and wireless form. If Bluetooth does work, the active music app, such as Spotify, must stay on the screen and will stop playing if the user switches to another app. A user on the Apple Support forums explains:
I had an iPhone 12 with iOS 15, everything was working fine and dandy. I upgraded to iPhone 13 and now music does not play using CarPlay when I am using either Spotify or Apple Music. I have a 2018 Audi and I use lighting to connect to CarPlay. When I click on a song either using Spotify or Apple Music my CarPlay app shuts down. CarPlay works and does not shut down when I use Google maps or Apple podcasts. But as soon as I click on a song Apple CarPlay just shuts down.
Frustrated users have also taken to Twitter to voice their complaints, asking Apple Support for solutions, only to be referred to Apple Support articles that do little to amend the issue. Amid the lack of guidance from Apple Support, users have found that disabling EQ or the equalizer, specifically ensuring that the "Late Night" toggle is turned off within Apple Music settings, fixes the problem, while others have found that resetting all network settings on the iPhone also helps.
One reader of MacRumors claims that Apple Support informed them that this is a widespread issue and could be patched in an upcoming update. The CarPlay issue adds to a growing list of bugs in the initial release of iOS 15, including serious bugs that could cause users' photos to delete from their library, touch screen issues, and storage, Apple Music, and widget problems.
