Aston Martin has teamed up with Apple to become the first carmaker to bring CarPlay Ultra to market. In daily use, Apple’s system proves intuitive, but not without flaws.
Apple knows how to do marketing. A software or hardware update isn’t simply “new” or “next-gen”—that’s far too pedestrian for the team in Cupertino. “Ultra” sounds far cooler and more promising. The name graces their highest-spec Apple Watch, and now it’s also being applied to their next evolution of CarPlay. Expectations are high. After all, Apple’s smartphone interface has already breathed new life into ageing infotainment systems: just plug in your iPhone, and your key apps pop up on the car’s touchscreen. No more clunky menu navigation—just a few taps, and you’re off, whether for navigation or phone pairing.
This core principle doesn’t change with CarPlay Ultra, which makes its debut in the Aston Martin DBX. But now, it offers far more. Drivers can configure not only the central touchscreen but also the 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster. Various layouts are available—from a classic rev counter and speedometer to a full-screen navigation map. The climate controls also move to the touchscreen, and other widgets can be added from the iPhone to the home screen. Themes and colour schemes can be customised—though not wallpapers. “Photos as backgrounds could cause contrast issues,” explains Aston Martin’s Head of Cockpit & Digital Experience, Michael Wanzeck.
For Aston Martin, partnering with Apple is a godsend. As beautiful as its cars are, its infotainment tech has lagged behind. Apple has reportedly approached other manufacturers too. While BMW and Mercedes have invested heavily in their own systems and are wary of ceding control over their vehicle architectures, brands like Ford and Stellantis may be more welcoming. After all, Apple’s system is free—it simply brings its own ecosystem into the car, aiming to deepen customer loyalty. Combine your car’s screens with your iPhone and your Apple Watch (preferably the Ultra 2), and the Apple environment becomes complete.
Apple and Aston Martin began developing the integration two and a half years ago. “They came in droves,” recalls Wanzeck of the Cupertino engineers, who took the expansion of CarPlay very seriously. Unsurprisingly, Apple also dictated the direction. You feel that when using CarPlay Ultra on the road. For Apple users, it’s all second nature: you swipe and tap on the screen, adjust the digital cluster via steering wheel controls, and with one press of a centre console button, the driver assistance menu pops up—styled in familiar iPhone graphics. The logic follows Apple’s UI design, with items deactivated via simple finger gestures.
The result is a seamless symbiosis between iPhone and car—but even Apple has weak points. If you don’t rely on Siri, your smartphone remains the primary interface. Unlike many infotainment systems, the Aston doesn’t let you set preferences like “avoid motorways” directly on the touchscreen—you must do it on the phone. You can enable auto-zoom for navigation, but only on one of the two displays: either the central screen or the cockpit. The other just shows the route overview. And if Apple decides a future iOS version or iPhone generation is no longer supported, you’ll have to upgrade.
Currently, Google Maps isn’t available on CarPlay Ultra—but that’s down to Google, not Apple or Aston. Interestingly, Waze (also owned by Google) does work. And what about Aston drivers with Android phones? “They can fall back on the native infotainment,” Wanzeck assures. But Aston’s customer base is overwhelmingly Apple-centric—only 5–8% use Android.
Some manufacturers feel uneasy about giving Apple the keys to their infotainment systems. CarPlay Ultra taps into the car’s existing architecture and hardware. The graphics in the cluster run on the car’s onboard processors. This naturally raises cybersecurity concerns—any connected computer can be a potential entry point for hackers. Apple’s ecosystem is generally seen as secure, but not impenetrable. Aston Martin implements its own safeguards too, using encryption and constantly monitoring for attacks.
So, when does CarPlay Ultra hit the roads? The system is rolling out in the U.S. this month (we tested it in a DBX), and Europe follows in August with the Vanquish Volante, before wider adoption across the range. Crucially, Aston will also offer a retrofit solution that includes the full feature set.
