SerpApi.Org
Infotainment systems in vehicles have long been notoriously bad for a variety of reasons, whether it's distracting drivers or delivering sluggish performance.
I'm frequently found within both camps, which is why I heavily promote the use of Android Auto and Apple CarPlay whenever possible, making full use of their streamlined interfaces and more powerful smartphone internal parts. After putting up with subpar infotainment experiences, I decided to see what hardware the carmakers use, and it's not surprising we've had so many issues.
The hardware just isn't up to scratch
Underpowered CPUs under the hood
I bought a Cupra Formentor in early 2023. It was the VZ2 with north of 300 horsepower under the hood, thanks to the indestructible 2.0-liter turbocharged TSI engine Volkswagen uses in many high-performance vehicles. This compact crossover wasn't slow off the mark and put many smiles on our faces with some truly epic journeys, but that's also where it started to fall apart. Even from day one, the dealership was brought in to get to the bottom of sluggish infotainment performance.
The system inside Volkswagen vehicles of this generation is horrific. It didn't matter if you had a VW, Skoda, Seat, or Cupra. The same system, hardware, and software combination was installed, and it was awful. The NXP i.MX 8 is a System-on-Chip (SoC), but not a smartphone-class chip in the way most people would understand one. It is an automotive and embedded applications processor family, often used as the heart of a larger module that also includes memory, storage, power management, and other supporting components.
In the configuration I found referenced for this generation of hardware, the processor uses two Cortex-A72 cores and four Cortex-A53 cores, with clock speeds around the 1.6GHz mark depending on the exact module and thermal conditions. That is fine for many embedded applications, but it is not a generous amount of headroom for a modern car interface that needs to load navigation, profiles, phone projection, vehicle settings, media, and connected services simultaneously.
This was not unique to Volkswagen Group, either. Plenty of carmakers leaned on embedded chips that were perfectly serviceable for basic in-car systems but much less convincing once expected to run modern navigation, media, connected services, and increasingly complex touchscreen interfaces.
But the software is also to blame
Companies just didn't do it as well as Tesla
Let's talk about the software running inside vehicles. Sticking to the Cupra Formentor, the MIB3 system would boot up navigation, connect to wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, load the driver profile and settings, and surface settings or warnings from other vehicle systems. All of that running on a 6-core chip that can hit 1.6GHz under ideal conditions. From the get-go, the CPU is pegged at 100%, and everything feels awfully slow, but then the software issues creep into play. Profiles refusing to load, sensors becoming unavailable, and the entire system locking up.
But even once this has all happened, the entire experience can sometimes be anything but smooth. I recall very clearly being stuck in a grocery store parking lot in the outskirts of Plymouth trying to get the infotainment system working inside the Formentor. We had just returned from visiting friends for the four-hour journey home late on a Sunday night, and everything was closed. The profile refused to load and kept locking up while trying to load the driver profile. This is fine, and I would typically be able to continue, but it was 28.4 Fahrenheit (-2 degrees) Celsius outside, and the air conditioning was set to full blast.
We tried everything. System reboots (which would also knock out some of the safety systems), as well as getting out of the vehicle, locking it, and waiting a while. Nothing seemed to work, but after a few attempts the profile loaded and everything started working again. That's the issue I have with these software implementations. So much of the in-car functionality is handled through the screen that, should the software fail, you're out of luck. Want to adjust the HVAC? Good luck with that. Who doesn't want ice-cold air blasted at them in the middle of winter?
Tesla shows what happens when infotainment hardware and software are treated as core parts of the vehicle rather than awkward extras bolted onto it. More recent models use AMD Ryzen Embedded hardware, bringing more CPU and GPU headroom than many traditional infotainment systems. Combined with tighter software integration, this usually results in a smoother, more responsive experience. Volkswagen and other "traditional" carmakers are making progress and improving the overall experience, but there's still some way to go before it's as smooth as the 6-inch device in your pocket.
Phone projection still does it better
Granted, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay don't have the overhead of safety systems, profiles, and countless other features that the built-in software offers. But these are running on your smartphone and are often considerably less sluggish than vehicle software. It's why I appreciate my Maxus T90 EV. The infotainment is about as basic as it gets, with satnav not even natively available, but wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay work really well on the display. I even have dedicated climate controls!
Car makers are working on customer feedback. Volkswagen finally added backlit climate controls, because why would you need to see them in the dark? Tesla uprated its hardware to better handle its software demands. Volvo is going all-in with Android Automotive OS, which is actually superb, especially when paired with the right components. Vehicles are finally becoming less like traditional automobiles with bolted-on software and smart features and more like actual appliances in 2026.
