tofuprod

So my '18 never came with CarPlay and I recall posting last year about how this could be done and the answer was always to go to the dealer - which back then was ~$200 or so and recently now is ~$300.

I was inclined to do more research and wanted to tackle this myself in light of getting my other vehicles' "Carplay issues" resolved - so I figured, why not.. try it on the LC, worst comes to worst is I fry my radio (lol).

In any event - here are the steps. It takes about 1 - 1 hour 15 mins for this to be done, car must be running.

1. Go to this website: https://camryupdate.home.blog/
Select the one "With Navigation"


2. Read over it .. (ideally you should) and then scroll down below on main page to the section below where it says LC500/LC500H


3. Once you download it - take a USB Flash stick (I recommend one at least 16GB and with USB 3.0)

4. Make sure the USB stick is formatted to FAT32 (right click on the drive when it's inserted in computer, and just select 'Format' and select FAT32.

5. Drag and drop all the files that are in the Zip Folder into there, then eject the USB stick from computer


6. Go to your car - open up center console where the USB ports are, and plug this USB stick into there

7. Turn on the car - the update will start automatically.

8. Here are the following photos in the process, somewhere in the beginning it'll tell you to turn on/off your headlights 3 times, makes sure you flick the stalk to actually on - not auto.
(this whole process took about an hour - with the multimedia restarting at least 8-10 times)





Once you reach this screen, you're on the final stages!...


Once you remove the USB stick and turn off/on your car, make sure you leave it on and do not touch anything, your multimedia will still restart 2-3 times.

..and then, you're good to go - if done correctly, CarPlay will now show up under the General Menu.



I hope this helps some of you - any questions, feel free to message me.

Cheers.

Geonico

Do this work for all 2018 LC 500s?

tofuprod

Yes - had another buddy of mine try it and same results.

Geonico

cool, I will try it on mine. Thanks

NickL

Very nice. Thanks for posting.

antidentit

I've read that there are a few earlier model years that may not support Carplay even with a software update, so you may want to do a bit of research on your head unit and date of production just in case!

antidentit

Nicely done, Tofu! Your write-up is very detailed and includes pictures, which makes it very easy to follow so thank you.

DIY's like this are what make this forum so valuable!

antidentit

@tofuprod - do you have any pointers on how to update the map files on the 2018 LC 500?

tofuprod

Here you go:

1. Go to this site: https://www.lexus.com/firmware-updates#

2. Put in your VIN

3. Select 'Navigation' as shown below:


4. Select the appropriate selection for 'Multimedia Extension Unit for Maps'



5. Once downloaded to your computer, drag and drop all files into a USB flash drive that is formatted to FAT32.

6. Insert USB stick into car

7. Turn on car

8. Wait for the multimedia interface to auto-start the process.

9. Follow/wait for steps

10. Complete

Geonico

I read that somewhere too..: I can’t remember the exact details such as simply using my vin or digging up the manufacture date of the head unit itself.