Even as CarPlay 2 work keeps chugging along, Apple has been slowly adding new features to the existing CarPlay too. Last fall CarPlay got some Apple Intelligence enhancements, and recently Ford EV owners gained NACS routing. Now, with iOS 18.4, there are three more new CarPlay features that just arrived.

#1: Third row of app icons

One of the complicated things about CarPlay is that it needs to adapt to a wide range of vehicle infotainment systems.

Fortunately, iOS 18.4 brings a nice enhancement for vehicles that have especially large displays.

Users throughout the beta found that on certain screen sizes, CarPlay gained a third row of app icons where it only supported two before.

This extra screen real estate for apps pairs nicely with this next CarPlay addition…

#2: Sports apps

Apple has made a new API available to app developers that will bring sports apps to CarPlay.

Starting in iOS 18.4, apps that show sports scores can integrate with CarPlay. This way, you can stay on top of how your favorite team’s doing even while in the car.

It could take some time for third-party sports apps to officially add CarPlay support, but here’s hoping we get a CarPlay update for the Apple Sports app before long.

#3: Default navigation in EU

iOS 18.4 brought a long-awaited new option for EU users: the ability to set a default navigation app.

That’s right, rather than relying on Apple Maps, users in the EU can set alternatives like Google Maps as their default.

This change should have a huge impact on the CarPlay experience.

Source: 9to5mac