Honda and Hyundai Rolling Out Wireless CarPlay to Select 2021 Vehicles, Including Accord and Santa Fe

Honda this week introduced the 2021 Accord with upgraded styling and tech features, including wireless CarPlay and Android Auto integration on the higher-end EX-L and Touring trims, accessible through an 8-inch touchscreen display.

carplay dashboard ios 14
Wireless CarPlay works over Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, eliminating the need for the iPhone to be connected to the infotainment system with a Lightning cable. Together with wireless charging, these features free up the USB ports in the vehicle, which have been moved to the front of the center console for easier access.

Hyundai has also added wireless CarPlay and Android Auto to the 2021 Santa Fe, on models that are not equipped with navigation. Wired CarPlay and Android Auto remain standard on navigation-equipped models. The vehicle is now equipped with a larger 8-inch touchscreen, an upgrade from the 7-inch display in previous models.

In addition to Honda and Hyundai, wireless CarPlay is available in select vehicles sold by Ford, GM, Chrysler, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz. Alpine and Pioneer also offer aftermarket wireless CarPlay systems for self installation.

CarPlay‌ is Apple's in-car platform that enables drivers to access a range of iPhone apps from the dashboard, such as Messages, Apple Maps, Apple Music, Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Pandora, WhatsApp, and Downcast. Since iOS 12, third-party navigation apps like Google Maps and Waze have also been supported.

The 2021 Accord went on sale at Honda dealerships in the United States earlier this week, with pricing starting at $31,090 for a trim equipped with wireless CarPlay. The 2021 Santa Fe will arrive at Hyundai dealerships in the United States by the end of the year, but pricing was not disclosed in the press release.

Related Roundup: CarPlay

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Leak Reveals All-New Design

Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app. Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Changes Trade-In Values for iPhones, iPads, Macs, and More

Thursday January 16, 2025 6:45 am PST by
Apple today adjusted estimated trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models in the U.S., according to its website. Some values increased, while others decreased. The changes were not too significant, with most values rising or dropping by $5 to $50. We have outlined some examples below: Device New Value Old Value iPhone 15 Pro Max Up to $630 U ...
2024 App Store Awards

Apple Explains Why It Removed TikTok From the App Store in the U.S.

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:58 am PST by
Apple on late Saturday removed TikTok from the App Store in the U.S., and it has now explained why it was required to take this action. Last year, the U.S. passed a law that required Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok due to potential national security risks, or else the platform would be banned. That law went into effect today, and companies like Apple and Google...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.3 Beta 3

Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features. Notification Summary Changes Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines. For...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Rumored to Be Compatible With These iPhones

Saturday January 18, 2025 10:28 am PST by
iOS 19 will not drop support for any iPhone models, according to French website iPhoneSoft.fr. The report cited a source who said iOS 19 will be compatible with any iPhone that can run iOS 18, which would mean the following models: iPhone 16 iPhone 16 Plus iPhone 16 Pro iPhone 16 Pro Max iPhone 15 iPhone 15 Plus iPhone 15 Pro iPhone 15 Pro Max iPhone 14 iPhon...
iPad Pro vs iPhone 17 Air Feature

Here's How Thin the iPhone 17 Air Might Be

Friday January 17, 2025 3:38 pm PST by
For the last several months, we've been hearing rumors about a redesigned version of the iPhone 17 that Apple might call the iPhone 17 "Air," or something along those lines. It's going to replace the iPhone 17 Plus as Apple's fourth iPhone option, and it will be offered alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We know the iPhone 17 Air is going to be super slim, but...
mail categories macos

Apple's Redesigned Mail App is Expanding to the Mac — Here's When

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:02 am PST by
Apple plans to expand the iPhone's redesigned Mail app to the Mac starting with macOS 15.4, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The first macOS 15.4 beta should be made available in the coming weeks, and Apple has previously suggested that the iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4 series of software updates will be released to the public in April. The revamped Mail app debuted on all...
apple power beats pro 2

Powerbeats Pro 2 Coming Soon: Apple to Announce Them 'Imminently'

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:25 am PST by
In September, Apple said that it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and it appears the wireless earbuds are coming very soon. Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the Powerbeats Pro 2 are "due imminently." In addition to Apple filing the Powerbeats Pro 2 in regulatory databases last month, Gurman said Apple is...

Top Rated Comments

redgreenski Avatar
56 months ago
Wireless CarPlay was always the most obvious future. I don’t know why most car makers didn’t embrace it from the beginning. Soon we are going to have a bunch of older cars CarPlays incompatible with iPhones that no longer have a physical plug in.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mnsportsgeek Avatar
56 months ago
If Apple doesn’t make a dongle for CarPlay when the phone goes portless, we riot.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bornee35 Avatar
56 months ago

What is the audio quality like over Wireless CarPlay? Last time I checked, Bluetooth audio still sucks in comparison to USB, and could be one of the reasons Apple and car manufacturers didn't focus on Wireless from the get-go.
I’m fairly certain wireless CarPlay uses a wifi access point.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Deinocheirus Avatar
56 months ago

Wireless CarPlay was always the most obvious future. I don’t know why most car makers didn’t embrace it from the beginning. Soon we are going to have a bunch of older cars CarPlays incompatible with iPhones that no longer have a physical plug in.
My guess is that it costs more to implement, and the user experience is actually quite dismal. Wireless CarPlay does not always work as well as Wired does, and wireless charging in cars is only just now starting to become a thing...no one enjoys wireless CarPlay and arriving somewhere with their phone dead.

The phone really does need to still be charging while using CarPlay, so unless you have the complete experience of wireless charging + wireless CarPlay...you're better off with with Wired. And that has been the case for the years.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
yossi Avatar
56 months ago
They need an adapter that will let older cars provide wireless car play
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AnorexicPig Avatar
56 months ago

My guess is that it costs more to implement, and the user experience is actually quite dismal. Wireless CarPlay does not always work as well as Wired does, and wireless charging in cars is only just now starting to become a thing...no one enjoys wireless CarPlay and arriving somewhere with their phone dead.

The phone really does need to still be charging while using CarPlay, so unless you have the complete experience of wireless charging + wireless CarPlay...you're better off with with Wired. And that has been the case for the years.
This is false. I have been using wireless CarPlay in my 2018 M3 for last 2 years and it works flawlessly.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)