Daimler is also installing Carplay in the E-Class that has been sold since April 2016. In the E-Class you connect an iPhone to USB port 0 in the front of the center console. Wireless Carplay, however, does not work.
In the E-Class, Apple Carplay particularly benefits from the impressive 12.3 inch / 31.2 cm screen. Because of the enormous screen size, it is easier to find the currently active menu item.
No Touch-screen
In the E-Class, as in the Audi A4, the large touchscreen is missing, so you have to select the desired menu item in the E-Class with the Command Controller on the center console: by turning and pressing. A simple tap on the screen icon is not possible in the E-Class due to the lack of a touchscreen.
This increases the risk of distraction because the driver has to look on the screen to see where the cursor is currently in order to be able to select the desired icon with the Comand Controller. However, Siri is also available, which makes Carplay much easier to use.
Apart from the problem of the missing touchscreen, Daimler has succeeded in integrating Carplay well. Particularly noteworthy is the extensive integration of the controls on the steering wheel, which is reasonably coherent and thus differentiates itself pleasantly from the chaos of some other automobile manufacturers.
With Carplay only the phone buttons to the right of the steering wheel do not work. The “Back to Main Menu” button on the right brings you to the Carplay Home page. Siri can be started with a long press on the right steering wheel button for voice control.
“Louder” and “quieter” as well as “silent” work from the left steering wheel buttons. The two smart touch controls, on the other hand, have no function with Carplay. The volume control on the center console also works as it should with Carplay.
Conclusion: All in all, we were able to operate Carplay in the E-Class solidly, but the touchscreen is missing.
