Wired CarPlay won't connect iPhone 17 Pro Max after iOS 26 update

I was having the same problem on my Ford F-150 trying to connect CarPlay to my new iPhone 17 Pro running ios 26. I had tried three different USB A-C cables before I learned that many of those cables are charge-only and don't carry data. When I switched to a different cable, it immediately connected to CarPlay.

So I found my new iphone17 on iOS 26 wouldn’t connect to wired Apple CarPlay. I tried pairing and unpairing Bluetooth, new cables, factory reset of stereo, checking phone settings and permissions etc., turning the car and the phone off and on. Nothing was fixing CarPlay even though Bluetooth connection was working fine.

WHAT FINALLY WORKED was unpairing and forgetting the car and vice versa for the phone. Then resetting network settings by going to Settings > Transfer or reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Network Settings

It does mean you’ll remove all stored WiFi passwords and need to rejoin them again.

This made my car show up again in CarPlay and I was able to reconnect the phone through my wired connection. (It took two tries of the above as I accidentally clicked out of the CarPlay joining prompt I think 🤔)

In attempt to try solve this, I bought 10 different USB-A to Type-C cables in lengths from 50cm to 150cm

All of them worked with iPhone 16 Pro Max (and 15, 14, 13)

the 17 Pro Max only liked 4 of them, a 100cm long braided Mophie I bought from Apple online was one of them.

Note: The Beats cables from Apple did not work, none of them.

The other 3 that worked were no-name cheap Chinese cables, one 150cm and one 50cm and one 100cm, unbraided. One of them only connected when Type-C plug was in one direction, not when turned 180 degrees.

Note: The 17 Pro Max would start charging from all cables

Hopefully Apple learn from this and do some more certifications moving forward.

I do see some reports online from random users which could connect but got randomly disconnection from time to time. It will take a few days before I know how stable this is.

Apple: I now have a few cables I don't need. Let me know if you want to buy them - perhaps we can make a trade.

I just purchased an iPhone 17 Pro Max and was having the same issue with the CarPlay in my 2016 Chevy Tahoe.

I switched usb cords and the CarPlay still was not recognizing my phone.

Then I went into the apple carplay settings in my vehicle. I went to “Settings” then “Apple CarPlay” then “Manage Apple CarPlay Devices” then “Add Device”. As soon as I hit “Add Device” my new phone was added and CarPlay was working normal.

I understand this fix may not work for everyone, but it’s working for me. I tried the various usb cords that wouldn’t work before, and they’re all working now.

UPDATE: After swapping my usual cable out for the one sent with my phone from Apple, CarPlay is now working! No other software adjustments were required.

I just performed the Network Reset, and my wired connections to both of my cars are working again.

Update: I ended up purchasing a beats USB-A to USB-C connector from the apple store and it seems to have fixed the problem. Carplay now works in my 2018 Buick.

I just had this problem and went to BestBuy and bought the Nimble A to C cable and that fixed the issue I had. It was just the cable. The cable before still worked on my 16, but for some reason not my 17. Either way that’s what fixed it for me. Hopefully this helps!

Thanks for everyone's advice because this was making me nuts. Just got the 17promax today and tried to plug in as usual and no CarPlay. I was using my charging cable from beats headphones. I swapped it with my iPad cable and wouldn't you know CarPlay works. Crazy how it was just a simple cable.

Thank you! The comment about the cable being charge only and not carrying data saved me a ton of search time. Switched cable and it worked! Again, thank you.

Resetting the network settings will affect the wired connection as well. It's worth a try.

My current car doesn't have wireless CarPlay. I bought a wireless CarPlay adapter from Amazon and it works great.

Once every couple of months it will hang up, but unplugging it and plugging it back in clears that up. It consistently happens in the same areas, so I suspect RF interference from something in that area is to blame.

No, under the circumstances I would NOT assume the issue isn’t with the car. Is there a firmware update available for the car?

Check with Ford if it needs an update.

Test a phone that still has ios18 if a friend has one.

For me this also resolved my issue. I used the cable that was supplied with my iPhone 17 Pro in the box.

Have you successfully used the same cable previously to connect the phone to the car? Many USB A-C cables are charge only and do not carry data.

Also, if there is a reset button on the head unit, press it to reset the system (you shouldn't lose anything like presets.