Wireless CarPlay Adapter Question

[Eltaco]

I recently purchased a wireless CarPlay adapter on Amazon. Chose to go with a Heiha adapter, as the (limited) reviews were all positive. Overall, I’m sure they’re all coming from the same manufacturer anyways.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B09YXXZHMS/ref=ya_aw_od_pi?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That said, my adapter has worked really well thus far. I do have one problem, and curious if anyone can provide me some insight to whether this is a problem for all adapters or specific to this one. It seems the device retains power even with the truck off, so my phone is frequently switching to Bluetooth headset when I’m in my house near the garage. Apparently, the USB ports have power though the truck is in the OFF state.

Do other adapters (CarPlay2Air, CarLinkIt, etc) all share this same issue? Is there another USB port that does not have power when the truck is OFF?

 

[TittoPollito]

I tried searching for it but its a pain on my phone so I am sure someone far better than me will chime in with the correct answer. But IIRC it is a fuse position for constant power/keyed on power to the ports, i.e. if the fuse is in slot 33 its keyed power but if its in 34 its constant power (I know those are not the correct slot locations just an example).

 

[Lpsouth1978]

The USB ports cannot be changed to turn off with the ignition, only the 12V plug on top of the dash. The USB remain powered for some time after the truck is turned off. Most say 1 hour, though mine seems to stay powered for closer to 2 hours.

 

[SpeedyV]

I recently purchased a wireless CarPlay adapter on Amazon. Chose to go with a Heiha adapter, as the (limited) reviews were all positive. Overall, I’m sure they’re all coming from the same manufacturer anyways.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B09YXXZHMS/ref=ya_aw_od_pi?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That said, my adapter has worked really well thus far. I do have one problem, and curious if anyone can provide me some insight to whether this is a problem for all adapters or specific to this one. It seems the device retains power even with the truck off, so my phone is frequently switching to Bluetooth headset when I’m in my house near the garage. Apparently, the USB ports have power though the truck is in the OFF state.

Do other adapters (CarPlay2Air, CarLinkIt, etc) all share this same issue? Is there another USB port that does not have power when the truck is OFF?

Interesting. I observed this type of phenomenon just once, and it was a few days ago. I was in a Zoom call in the truck and continued the call after shutting the truck off. I noticed that the phone wanted to continue connecting to CarPlay (via CPLAY2air), and the infotainment system didn't want to shut off or "let go" of the connection. It took a few tries to manually select the phone's audio and disengage from the truck.

 

[StuartV]

Hey, I don't wan to sound like I'm being a jerk. I am just going to be very disappointed if this is true.

The USB ports for CarPlay/AAuto cannot be changed to power off when the key is turned off? Really?!? That is very disappointing.

I'm having the same issue as the OP. I just got a AAwireless adapter. I took it for its first spin and went out to get some dinner. The whole time I was in the restaurant, my phone was connecting to the AAuto adapter in my truck and messing with me.

If that is really true, is there a way in the Uconnect settings to set the power timeout to those USB ports to something short?

The USB ports DO time out and turn off eventually, right? If I leave the AAwireless plugged in and the truck parked for a week or two, it's not going to kill my battery, is it?

 

[Eltaco]

Hey, I don't wan to sound like I'm being a jerk. I am just going to be very disappointed if this is true.

The USB ports for CarPlay/AAuto cannot be changed to power off when the key is turned off? Really?!? That is very disappointing.

I'm having the same issue as the OP. I just got a AAwireless adapter. I took it for its first spin and went out to get some dinner. The whole time I was in the restaurant, my phone was connecting to the AAuto adapter in my truck and messing with me.

If that is really true, is there a way in the Uconnect settings to set the power timeout to those USB ports to something short?

The USB ports DO time out and turn off eventually, right? If I leave the AAwireless plugged in and the truck parked for a week or two, it's not going to kill my battery, is it?

I do not believe my USB ports ever actually power off. I happen to reconnect to BT randomly as I walk through or around my house with the truck in the garage. I’m considering putting some shielding around the antenna to knock down it’s effective transmit distance.

Aside from this issue, I really do enjoy the functionality of the device… but this is more than a minor annoyance for me.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

The USB ports DO eventually shut off, IME. It seems to vary a bit, but it is ~1hr. Mine seems to be a bit longer, but they do eventually turn off. I simply plug my adapter in ONLY when I will be using it, which only happens on longer trips, or if I want to use my phones GPS navigation (I prefer it over RAM's NAV). It is the ONLY complaint I have about the AAWireless adapter and makes me want to switch to the MA1 if I can find it in stock and have the extra funds to get it at that time.

 

[StuartV]

The USB ports DO eventually shut off, IME. It seems to vary a bit, but it is ~1hr. Mine seems to be a bit longer, but they do eventually turn off. I simply plug my adapter in ONLY when I will be using it, which only happens on longer trips, or if I want to use my phones GPS navigation (I prefer it over RAM's NAV). It is the ONLY complaint I have about the AAWireless adapter and makes me want to switch to the MA1 if I can find it in stock and have the extra funds to get it at that time.

What does the MA1 do that resolves this problem? The USB port says on, so won't it keep an MA1 turned on, too, which is the real problem?

 

[Lpsouth1978]

What does the MA1 do that resolves this problem? The USB port says on, so won't it keep an MA1 turned on, too, which is the real problem?

I do not have an answer for you, however everything I have seen about the MA1 states that it does not have the issue. AAWireless is supposed to have a feature that stops the device from connecting after the UConnect system turns off (start/stop), but it has never worked for me.

 

[StuartV]

I do not have an answer for you, however everything I have seen about the MA1 states that it does not have the issue. AAWireless is supposed to have a feature that stops the device from connecting after the UConnect system turns off (start/stop), but it has never worked for me.

Thanks! I just emailed AAwireless about it and got an acknowledgement back that I have opened a Support ticket. Maybe if everyone that has one contacts them about the same issue, they will give us some updated firmware that will fix it.

 

[StuartV]

I do not have an answer for you, however everything I have seen about the MA1 states that it does not have the issue. AAWireless is supposed to have a feature that stops the device from connecting after the UConnect system turns off (start/stop), but it has never worked for me.

Thank you again. AAwireless emailed me back and told me about a setting in the AAwireless app to do what I wanted. I turned it on and it seems to work for me. I didn't even have their app until now.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

Thank you again. AAwireless emailed me back and told me about a setting in the AAwireless app to do what I wanted. I turned it on and it seems to work for me. I didn't even have their app until now.

Do you mind posting what settings you have that got it to work?

 

[StuartV]

Do you mind posting what settings you have that got it to work?

It was just to Enable Start/Stop and I chose Uconnect as the "signal".

Did that on my way to lunch and AA shut off on my phone pretty quick after I turned my truck off. Came home from lunch and same thing. Seems to work.

My phone is a Galaxy Note 20 5G. From what I was reading, what specific phone it is seems like it might make a difference.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

It was just to Enable Start/Stop and I chose Uconnect as the "signal".

Did that on my way to lunch and AA shut off on my phone pretty quick after I turned my truck off. Came home from lunch and same thing. Seems to work.

My phone is a Galaxy Note 20 5G. From what I was reading, what specific phone it is seems like it might make a difference.

Thanks, I will have to try again. I have the Samsung S21 Ultra 5G, but haven't been able to get it working. Maybe they have updated things since I last tried.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

Looks like the app has seen some updates since I last used it. It looked completely different. I re-enabled the start/stop feature and selected UConnect and it seems to be working so far. The only annoying thing now is that it will not automatically connect to AA, instead I have to "allow" the phone to connect, then AA starts right up. I will see if it requires that again when I go to lunch, it may have been a first time thing. I can hope anyway.

 

[StuartV]

Looks like the app has seen some updates since I last used it. It looked completely different. I re-enabled the start/stop feature and selected UConnect and it seems to be working so far. The only annoying thing now is that it will not automatically connect to AA, instead I have to "allow" the phone to connect, then AA starts right up. I will see if it requires that again when I go to lunch, it may have been a first time thing. I can hope anyway.

I was emailing back and forth with AAwireless support, as I encountered one issue after another. They asked me for the dongle ID from my AAwireless adapter. I gave it to them and they enabled me to get the new v2.x version of the firmware. I went into the app and it it said there was a firmware update available to update the AA adapter firmware from v1.12 to 2.1 (IIRC). I've had that now since last Friday or so and, so far, the AA adapter is working seamlessly for me. No more issues at all.

It takes 25 - 30 seconds to get fully connected when I first start my truck, then it automatically connects, starts playing music, resumes navigation (if I was navigating when I turned the truck off), etc..

The only thing I really had to do was train my phone to turn on the WiFi on the phone when I'm in my truck. I was doing some "smart" thing where it turns off when I leave my house and turns on automatically when I come home or when I arrive someplace where I normally use WiFi. Now, I'm not sure if WiFi is just staying on (on my phone) all the time, or if it's turning on automatically when I get in my truck. Whatever, the AA adapter is "just working" now.

 

[theblet]

I contemplated getting a wireless carplay adapter. I don't know that this will be useful since my truck doesn't have wireless charging. How is that working out for yall?

 

[Lpsouth1978]

I contemplated getting a wireless carplay adapter. I don't know that this will be useful since my truck doesn't have wireless charging. How is that working out for yall?

I use the Course Motorsports MagSafe phone mount. I purchased magsafe rings from Amazon and glued one to the back of my phone case so I have wireless charging now. Works great. If you were to go this route, just know that it will work best with a thin phone case, not only does it not charge as well with a thicker case, but the phone gets considerable hotter.

 

[theblet]

Sounds cool. Do you have any pics of your setup? Thanks!

 

[Lpsouth1978]

Sounds cool. Do you have any pics of your setup? Thanks!

Sure, here you go. There really isn't much to see though. All of the cables and the AAWireless adapter are hidden behind the radio. The cable for the mount goes behind the radio and is plugged in to the outlet above the radio. The adapter is plugged into one of the USB ports below the radio. Everything is out of sight and makes for a clean install IMO.