Whether you have a factory fitted or aftermarket stereo with Apple CarPlay, changing the side of your status bar between the left or right side of the display is very easy.
Having the status bar on either the left or right side is down to your own personal preference, there is no right or wrong location here. Having the status bar on left side will suit left-hand side drivers, because having the Home button closest to you might be preferred.
For me, with a right-hand drive vehicle in the UK, I should have the Home on the right side, so that it’s closest to me, however I don’t really use Home much, so I prefer to have all the icons closer to me instead and the status bar on the left side. But now that Apple has introduced the three recent apps in the status bar, having this closer to me might be more practical for me now.
How to Change Status Bar Location Between Left/Right Side
The switch to relocate the status bar between left or right isn’t located on your iPhone’s settings, instead you’ll find it on your car stereo’s own settings.
Now because each stereo’s menu varies, greatly, between factory fitted and aftermarket, I have added two guides for the two receivers I have – Pioneer SPD-DA120 and the Alpine iLX-700/iLX-007 – however if you don’t have either stereo installed, use the below steps as a rough guide and look for similar options on your own car stereo to find the right setting to switch the location of the status bar.
Pioneer (SPH-DA120)
- If you’re in CarPlay mode, press the Home function button at the middle of the display. This will take you to the Pioneer’s home screen.
- Press the Settings (Cog) button on the top right of the display to enter the System menu.
- Select the Apple CarPlay Settings option under the System tab.
- Now select Left or Right for the Driving Position option. Left will position the status bar on the left and selecting Right will locate the bar on the right side of the display.
- Exit the menu by pressing the X button
- Your change will not appear until you next reconnect your device, so disconnect from the stereo by unplugging your iPhone and reconnect it.
- Next time CarPlay loads up you should see your status bar in the location you last set it.
Alpine (iLX-700 / iLX-007)
- If you’re in CarPlay mode, press the Home function button at the bottom of the display. This will take you to the Radio, CarPlay and AUX menu.
- Press the Setup (Cog) button on the top right of the display to enter Setup.
- Press Application option at the bottom of the menu.
- Select the Apple CarPlay option.
- Select the left or right arrow for the Steering Wheel option. Left will position the status bar on the left and selecting Right will locate the bar on the right side of the display.
- Exit the menu by pressing the X button
- Your change will not appear until you next reconnect your device, so disconnect from the stereo by unplugging your iPhone and reconnect it.
- Next time CarPlay loads up you should see your status bar in the location you last set it.
Troubleshooting
If the status bar hasn’t changed position try the following:
- Make sure you have disconnected and reconnected your iPhone.
- Check the status bar location you have set on your car stereo again and make sure it has been saved.
- You might want to try hard resetting your iPhone and then reconnecting it.
