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Waze and Apple Maps Can No Longer Be Trusted, BMW Owners Claim

A new bug that seems to be impacting BMW owners is causing navigation apps like Waze and Apple Maps (and in some cases, Google Maps, too) to become terribly inaccurate, eventually providing drivers with the wrong directions.
CarPlay in the BMW 6 Series Gran Turismo 6 photos
Photo: BMW
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It’s not precisely clear what’s causing the glitch, but the reports come from CarPlay users, so at the end of the day, the problem could be related to the way the iPhone receives data from the car’s GPS (if available) for navigation guidance.

The issue only happens with a wireless connection, and in this case, CarPlay should prefer the car GPS over the one integrated into the iPhone. As a result, it looks like the communication between the vehicle and the smartphone isn’t necessarily synchronized, eventually leading to GPS accuracy problems.

It’s not difficult to figure out what such a thing is leading to. BMW owners claim they end up being provided with the wrong directions, in some cases even being told to turn right or left on one-way streets.

Most likely, this happens because Waze, Apple Maps, and the other navigation apps are unable to determine the location of the car, therefore using an approximate location for navigation guidance.

Unfortunately, this makes it impossible to use Google Maps, Waze, and Apple Maps with CarPlay in a BMW, and the only workaround that seems to produce an improvement is a reboot of everything. In other words, you just need to restart the iPhone and the head unit itself, though whether or not the issue would be fixed appears to be a matter of luck right now.

Given the information on this glitch is rather limited, it’s still impossible to tell precisely who must issue a fix. If the GPS data provided by the car is the one responsible for the problem, then BMW should come up with a patch for the head unit. On the other hand, if the sync bug is caused by the iPhone or by CarPlay (which wouldn’t necessarily be surprising given the plethora of glitches caused by the latest iOS updates), Apple is the culprit this time.

For the time being, however, if you don’t want to mess with a buggy CarPlay experience, the only solution is to disconnect the mobile phone and use Waze and Apple Maps on your iPhone. Everything seems to be running perfectly fine, and if you wish, you can also use the car’s Bluetooth audio to listen to the voice guidance in the speakers.

Needless to say, neither BMW nor Apple acknowledged the problem so far, so you’d better not hold your breath for a fix. A new iOS update is expected in early 2023, but it’s too early to tell if a fix for this glitch is supposed to be part of the release.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
Bogdan Popa profile photo

Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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