I have a 2025 with the expand button to include the Toyota sidebar. For what it's worth, it's totally useless and serves no purpose day to day. I just have carplay in full view. The Toyota sidebar is ugly vs carplay.
Apple Car Play with Toyota App Side Bar
- Thread starter BunLengthHotDog
- Start date
OK…working really hard to put this one to rest. Took my FE in for annual/10K service today at Novato Toyota (great shop BTW). Figured I would wait for it and chase the problematic issues…this one in particular. So….I asked Sales if I could connect my phone to CarPlay in a new 2025 LC. No LC on the lot, but they let me try it in a 2025 Camry which has basically the same head unit so I could show service what I was taking about. This was also the first time I’ve seen a Toyota with the sidebar in person…prior to this it was hearsay and knowing how our other non-Toyota cars work. So…I was able to see the full screen/minimize arrow and sidebar on the 2025. I was also able to show I did NOT have this one my 2024. Also, took pictures of the HU page from my car and the 2025 Camry. See pics below for comparison.
I have a current issue opened and active with the Executive Office Brand Engagement team (thanks for that guidance and email). They said to have the dealer: “open a product report case with Technical Assistance System (TAS), or they can contact their Field Technical Specialist (FTS) for assistance.”. I did so…had a service manager and master technician observe the difference between the two cars and they will document accordingly.
As people have suspected, it appears to be the Head Unit software version that controls this. Mine is 1810 and has always been that way. Never been offered a software update and no matter which method I use to check for one (dealer, app, on the car, download the .json file and verify) it always says I am up to date. The cars that have the sidebar feature are on version 2036. This is consistent with feedback on this forum.
Note…we know the Parts No. is slightly different between the Camry and LC. Don’t think it makes a difference, but if this is the reason…they need to explain that to me.
I am not going to rest until I get an answer from Toyota telling me how to upgrade to 2036 OR telling me I cannot upgrade to 2036 with a detailed explanation as to why I am stuck on 1810. Will post when I get one of these answers back.
Photos of screens from the 2025 Camry with the sidebar and full screen/minimize function and HU data screen.
Photos of screens from my LC without the full screen/minimize function and my HU data screen.
I have a current issue opened and active with the Executive Office Brand Engagement team (thanks for that guidance and email). They said to have the dealer: “open a product report case with Technical Assistance System (TAS), or they can contact their Field Technical Specialist (FTS) for assistance.”. I did so…had a service manager and master technician observe the difference between the two cars and they will document accordingly.
As people have suspected, it appears to be the Head Unit software version that controls this. Mine is 1810 and has always been that way. Never been offered a software update and no matter which method I use to check for one (dealer, app, on the car, download the .json file and verify) it always says I am up to date. The cars that have the sidebar feature are on version 2036. This is consistent with feedback on this forum.
Note…we know the Parts No. is slightly different between the Camry and LC. Don’t think it makes a difference, but if this is the reason…they need to explain that to me.
I am not going to rest until I get an answer from Toyota telling me how to upgrade to 2036 OR telling me I cannot upgrade to 2036 with a detailed explanation as to why I am stuck on 1810. Will post when I get one of these answers back.
Photos of screens from the 2025 Camry with the sidebar and full screen/minimize function and HU data screen.
Photos of screens from my LC without the full screen/minimize function and my HU data screen.
I tried to attack this from another angle by seeing if I could talk with the folks responsible for the software and hit a dead end.
I then asked my buddy who lives in Germany, works for BMWAG and owns a LC himself, to see if he knew anyone at Toyota Europe, he didn't, but one of his Engineering professors had worked at Toyota Europe prior to being a Uni Professor and he reached out to him.
He said he would ask some of his former colleagues and friends still working at Toyota Europe.
My buddy heard back today and the answer is yes it is a different head unit version. His former Professor heard from someone at Toyota Connected Europe and it comes down to philosophy, Toyota doesn't see the need for software parity among head unit versions, compared to my friends employer (BMW) who believes in software parity among head unit versions.
Essentially, Toyota takes the opinion of if it isn't broken, don't fix it, yes there isn't that side bar, but that is not major in Toyota's mind, if the head unit software had a major flaw, that they would fix it, but this they aren't going to push out new software for.
If down the road a software update is needed, that would probably be wrapped up in the update, but don't expect it soon.
Not the answer I was hoping for and maybe Toyota Europe doesn't speak for Toyota North America, that I don't know.
Hopefully, @McCloud_Rainbow has better luck with Toyota NA.
I then asked my buddy who lives in Germany, works for BMWAG and owns a LC himself, to see if he knew anyone at Toyota Europe, he didn't, but one of his Engineering professors had worked at Toyota Europe prior to being a Uni Professor and he reached out to him.
He said he would ask some of his former colleagues and friends still working at Toyota Europe.
My buddy heard back today and the answer is yes it is a different head unit version. His former Professor heard from someone at Toyota Connected Europe and it comes down to philosophy, Toyota doesn't see the need for software parity among head unit versions, compared to my friends employer (BMW) who believes in software parity among head unit versions.
Essentially, Toyota takes the opinion of if it isn't broken, don't fix it, yes there isn't that side bar, but that is not major in Toyota's mind, if the head unit software had a major flaw, that they would fix it, but this they aren't going to push out new software for.
If down the road a software update is needed, that would probably be wrapped up in the update, but don't expect it soon.
Not the answer I was hoping for and maybe Toyota Europe doesn't speak for Toyota North America, that I don't know.
Hopefully, @McCloud_Rainbow has better luck with Toyota NA.
So, I come from the BMW world and things are very different over there.
BMW releases i-STEP versions and prior to the G chassis (latest chassis) the dealer through ISTA could update the cars software either one module or the entire car.
With the G chassis, BMW released OTA updates and they roughly twice a year update the entire G chassis lineup via OTA.
ISTA gets the i-STEP update about 3 months before it goes OTA.
I have a J2534 passthrough device and a years subscription to Toyota GTS+ which includes TIS.
I have scanned my vehicle and there no calibration updates for my LC, without a calibration update being in TIS, the software doesn't have anything to update.
My 2024 FE was at the dealer for an unrelated issue and I asked them to upgrade the infotainment software. They gave it an honest try. It went on for almost an hour and finally failed at the end. It looks like we're out of luck until Toyota releases an official SW upgrade for the 2024 models.
- Aug 6, 2024
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This does not concern me.
I checked Global Techstream Plus (Toyota Factory Software) and at least my 2024 LC FE does not show any sort of calibration update for the infotainement system.
I wonder what your dealership was seeing because without a calibration update, they have nothing to update.
Hmm... Maybe they tried installing the 2025 Software Version from scratch? I really don't know.
I've got the expand option on my current loaner 2025 Tacoma while my LC is in the shop. I gotta say, the toyota sidebar next to carplay is hideous and I immediately went back to full screen carplay. It's such an eyesore that I'd much rather take the extra few taps to the Toyota app than have the Toyota sidebar in my face.
it doesn't help that the new taco screen is absolutely gigantic. Maybe it's less obnoxious on a smaller display.
it doesn't help that the new taco screen is absolutely gigantic. Maybe it's less obnoxious on a smaller display.
FWIW - I just had a Mazda CX-90 as a rental on vacation. Nice vehicle actually.
It does this exact same thing with CarPlay - to access to vehicle’s native multimedia functions you have to move to the CarPlay app tiles where a “Mazda” tile appears to provide that.
In general the MME interface on the Mazda was so similar to the LC to make me wonder if both companies are private labeling the same system.
It does this exact same thing with CarPlay - to access to vehicle’s native multimedia functions you have to move to the CarPlay app tiles where a “Mazda” tile appears to provide that.
In general the MME interface on the Mazda was so similar to the LC to make me wonder if both companies are private labeling the same system.
