How To Reset Apple CarPlay Without Your iPhone

CarPlay is a great way to connect an iPhone to a vehicle's infotainment system. It allows you to make calls, navigate to locations, reply to messages using your voice, and query Siri. Apart from these basic tasks, several underrated CarPlay features make driving easier. Convenient as it may be, it's possible to run into issues, bugs, or random mishaps while setting up or using CarPlay. In these situations, resetting CarPlay can be a quick and easy way to solve certain issues. The action can be performed via an iPhone or the vehicle's infotainment system.

If you drive frequently, CarPlay becomes an essential part of your vehicle — especially since it's the only safe portal to the outside world when driving. Apart from the built-in apps, you can also extend CarPlay's functionality by using third-party apps that make it all the more useful. However, all of this matters only if CarPlay works properly in the first place.

On your iPhone, navigate to Settings > General > CarPlay and select the vehicle you want to forget from the My Cars list. Then, tap "Forget This Car" on the subsequent screen. If you don't have access to the smartphone and you need to reset CarPlay without it, there are two options: Reset the car's infotainment system, or remove the iPhone from the system's list of devices.

Since not every vehicle has the same infotainment system, instructions for resetting will vary. However, a common way to perform a soft reset is to turn off the vehicle, wait a few minutes, and start it up again. You should find detailed instructions in your car's instruction manual. If that doesn't work, it's time to delete your iPhone and re-add it to the system.

To remove an iPhone from your car's list of devices:

1. Find the Settings screen for your vehicle's infotainment system.

2. Look for an option along the lines of Devices, Connected Devices, or Device List.

3. Choose the iPhone you wish to remove and select Forget Device or Delete.

The iPhone will be removed from the list of devices. Connect it once again by going to the same menu, but this time, selecting the Add Device option. On your iPhone, head to Settings > General > CarPlay and select your car from the list to complete the process. This should let you use the best CarPlay features coming in iOS 26.