GM’s mission to eliminate Android Auto and CarPlay has been thwarted by this clever third-party kit [Gallery]

Ben Schoon | Nov 27 2024 - 10:45 am PT

GM has made its stance clear on the future of equipping its vehicles with Android Auto and CarPlay. It won’t be. However, a clever third-party kit promises to restore the functionality.

In March of last year, GM announced that its future vehicles wouldn’t support CarPlay or phone-projected Android Auto, instead adopting Google’s Android Automotive platform. The decision was met with overwhelming negativity from users, and has led to GM having to defend the decision over and over again.

However, for drivers still interested in the vehicles that GM is removing CarPlay and Android Auto from, a third-party kit is making it possible.

White Automotive & Media Services (WAMS), a small business based in Michigan, announced a new kit that allows Android Auto and CarPlay to work within GM’s new Ultium EVs, the ones that lack those platforms in the first place. The kit works with the Chevy Blazer EV, Equinox EV, Silverado EV and connects into both the main display and the instrument cluster for navigation.

WAMS explains:

This upgrade includes fully integrated wired and wireless CarPlay and Android Auto in all the ways you’ve come to expect (and some you haven’t!) without compromising any existing features or functionality. Full onscreen CarPlay and Android Auto, fully integrated Infotainment display source menu integration as well as Instrument Cluster media display/now playing, source lists etc. Even full Apple Maps integration in the Instrument Cluster and Turn-by-Turn Navigation instructions on the HUD (if equipped).

Pricing on the kit isn’t mentioned, and it’s also very limited so far in terms of locations where it can be installed. So far, it’s only available through a Chevrolet dealer in Plymouth, Michigan. That’s because WAMS believes that “the best possible customer experience can only be achieved by offering this upgrade through an OEM dealer that is up to the task of not only meticulously upgrading your EV but also one that will continue to provide stellar service after the fact.” However, it’s mentioned that “more locations” will follow.