GM Doesn’t Want Apple CarPlay in Its New Cars, but It’s Giving iPhone Owners Something They May Have Wanted for a Long Time

General Motors is rolling out Apple Wallet car key support to several Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC vehicles, letting owners unlock and start their cars with an iPhone or Apple Watch instead of a physical key fob.

The rollout announced by GM in September is already underway for select Cadillac models, with more vehicles scheduled to receive support in December.

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Your iPhone Can Replace Your Car Key

Once configured, Apple Wallet lets owners unlock their vehicles as they approach and automatically lock them when walking away. Drivers can also open the trunk and control the climate system remotely without launching a separate app.

The system uses ultra-wideband and Bluetooth technology to recognize nearby devices, with support for the following Apple hardware:

• iPhone: iPhone 11 or newer, excluding iPhone SE (2nd and 3rd generation) and iPhone 16e.
• Apple Watch: Series 6 or newer.

GM says owners will receive a notification in the “What’s New” section of their vehicle’s mobile app when the feature becomes available.

To activate it, download or open the vehicle app, sign in, and sit inside an OnStar-connected vehicle with the physical key fob nearby. Follow the prompts to add the digital key to Apple Wallet.

Support is available in the U.S. and Canada, with Google Wallet and Samsung Wallet compatibility also included.

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Apple Wallet Support, but Still No CarPlay

GM is in an odd position with iPhone users. Even as the automaker phases out Apple CarPlay in favor of its own built-in software, it is quietly expanding support for Apple Wallet’s digital car key feature across its lineup.

Digital keys solve a real daily hassle by letting drivers ditch physical key fobs. But it does nothing to appease buyers frustrated by losing CarPlay‘s familiar interface for navigation, messaging, and music.

By putting Apple in the driver’s pocket while locking it out of the dashboard, GM is forcing tech-conscious buyers to make a trade-off and testing how much loyal iPhone users are willing to give up for their next car.