Using spotify in car with USB cord

[sdrhythm]

I'm trying to play Spotify through the USB cord on my iPhone 5 in my 2012 jeep grand cherokee (RES 130 stereo with UConnect). When I plug it in it automatically starts playing music through the native iPhone music app. If i go to Spotify and press play it will play the song for 3-4 seconds then go back to the native music app. I've gotten it to play one song in full and then it will go back to iphone native music. I've gotten it to play 3 songs, sliding forward to the next song after playing for 10 seconds, and then it goes back to the native music app and wont go back. This has to have something to do with iOS 6 and spotify. I know it's worked before. Is there any way to override the native iPhone music app and play spotify? Is anyone else having luck playing spotify on their iphone through the USB of their car? Any help would be much appreciated!

Note: I can play Spotify with bluetooth turned off thru AUX, but that renders my bluetooth phone options useless. I can stream the audio through bluetooth but the audio is unbearably terrible.

[catze416]

I just updated to iOS 7 and now Soptify only works for a couple minutes at a time, and then I get the "Unsupported" error on my dashboard. I have to then unplug and replug the USB cable. It was working fine with iOS 6. (I have an iPhone 5 and 2011 Honda Insight).

Anyone else having this issue? Know of any workarounds?

[Peter__]

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@catze416 wrote:

I just updated to iOS 7 and now Soptify only works for a couple minutes at a time, and then I get the "Unsupported" error on my dashboard. I have to then unplug and replug the USB cable. It was working fine with iOS 6. (I have an iPhone 5 and 2011 Honda Insight).

Anyone else having this issue? Know of any workarounds?

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iOS 7 in-car issues are being investigated by the Spotify team if you would like to add your details to the bugs topic 😉 

Peter

[egordoncm]

I have the 2014 Lexus is250 and the only solution I have ever found to fix this problem is to use an auxillary cord instead of the USB cord. I know it's not technically a solution to the USB problem. Hopefully this works until Spotify finds a solution to this issue.

[actarus1011]

Hi, ....

Re-opening this subject as I still encounter the same problem...

Spotify plays only if I have no other song in the IPod section of my Iphone

But when it plays, it's only for some minutes then it hangs....

Still no updates foreseen ?

[Vercauterenn]

Hi, You have to get the new car software update from BMW to fix it. i've updated to the newest version, now cover art and playback is working fine with spotify on USB.

[actarus1011]

Hi !

My software version (BMW) is : tn-001.023.010 e-and mn-001.023.004

Is there a more recent one that I can't find ?

Disregard, I just found a more recente version on the UK BMW website.... I'll try it out

On the Belgian one, it's not the same "last version" ---- strange 

[Vercauterenn]

Dear sir actarus1011,

I've just checked my car, the software version i have is 

MN-002.038.015 (media & phone).

I hope this helps! since this software update, there are some minor changes but the spotify works great.

Let me know how it turns out for you!

[actarus1011]

Unfortunatly, I have now the last version available for my system (checked on the BMW website Germay)

I tried it out yesterday but the music still stops after 5-10 minutes playing....

Which audio system do you have in your car? Are you playing on bluetooth or via the USB cable ?

Thanks for your info !

[hamzah1024]

Hi,

I am having a similar issue with my 2014 Jeep Wrangler. When I plug my iphone 5 into the usb port spotify starts skipping songs randomly. I assume this is the Jeep telling it to play and not 'hearing' anything immedately so automattically skipping. I have found this only happens to music that is not stored locally. 

I can skip and play normally from the spotify UI but if I try to use the steering wheel controls on a streaming playlist it goes haywire. 

Locally downloaded playlists play fine. 

[Ka5h]

I have the same problem. Unable to play via USB via iPhone in my Toyota Auris. I had a pioneer stero in my old car that played all apps including say nav.

[Ka5h]

Resolved. Connected my phone via Bluetooth. Now I can operate spotify and use sat nav functions of Google and Apple Maps applications.

If your car doesn't have Bluetooth then this won't help.

[pattont]

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@Vercauterenn wrote:

Dear sir actarus1011,

I've just checked my car, the software version i have is 

MN-002.038.015 (media & phone).

I hope this helps! since this software update, there are some minor changes but the spotify works great.

Let me know how it turns out for you!

---

I have this same version of the BMW software on my 2015 BMW 4-Series and Spotify does play and skip, but the album art and information only works on the first track.

[Knick007]

I have a similar problem - I can play the songs but I can't view my playlists or anything. It also doesn't like switching songs. Anyone found a solution to this yet?

[Phil123]

Two issues, one solution:
1) When using the USB cable from my X1 to my iPhone, playback would stop after a few minutes. This is fixed by DISABLING AUDIO VIA BLUETOOTH. Apparently the blue tooth would try to connect to the phone (even while plugged in via USB), and mess it up.
2) This worked for a long time, and just a few days ago this started happening: when playing in Spotify, a large BMW logo appears below a large sporty logo and no more controls. Seems like BMW is wanting to take over control. Playback still works, but I cannot control anything. Ideas?

[Ps8819]

By chance this morning i've managed to play spotify in my BMW via the lighting cable....

You need reset all the fields in music search. Genre, artist and album all need to be reset to ALL Music (please note would be in you BMW options not IPOD)... the tracks option might say how many tracks are on ipod but thats fine... By reseting the fields it allows a pass through of another app. 

Turn spotify on and it should play..... via the cable. 

[awmawm]

We have an iPhone 6, iPhone 5S and iPhone 5 with iOS 8.3 in our family and the same problem when attempting to use Spotify when phone is connected through USB (plays Spotify for a second and then switches back to music stored on the phone) happens in our 2015 Hyundai Genesis. We do not have a problem to play Spotify through USB on our other cars so it looks like as if the problem is a combination of car manufacturer, Apple as well as Spotify. 

Any update from other users?

[Ocifersven]

I just bought a brand new Kia Soul with their premium sound package with Kia's "Uvo". Same issue with me. I plug in via the USB port on my car and iPod music plays. When I try Spotify, it plays for about 2 seconds, fades out, and iPod music plays again. I can't find any support for this issue.

[Phil123]

This issue keeps changing for me as the spotify software updates. I can now
play via USB, even when bluetooth is on. For a while I could only play via
USB when bluetooth was off (try turning it off on the phone and / or on the
car). I believe the car was trying to connect to the phone, which would
cause the USB to stop working.

Also, my BMW is supposed to connect to spotify and control the app via the
car. This is very annoying, as the car controls aren't very good. Depending
on the version, it works or not. I haven't found a way to turn this off
when using USB.

Another workaround is to connect via bluetooth (this always works for me)
and use a car charger to charge the phone. That way the USB isn't plugged
in. I don't love it, but it works.

Last resort is to use a 3.5mm audio cable.

Good luck,
Phil

[Swanny]

Hey @Ocifersven, I think this is either a bug caused by iOS, or a bug caused by the car's software. You will probably find the same issue occurring with other apps that aren't the Music app.

Have you tested Bluetooth and seen if this works? You could potentially use Bluetooth and leave the USB cable plugged in to charge as a workaround. This appeared to work for @Phil123.

[Ocifersven]

I actually cannot have the USB plug connected to the receiver to even charge if I want to use Spotify via Bluetooth. I have to disconnect the cable from the dash to allow Bluetooth to stream audio to the receiver. It's pretty odd. I can use my old 12V car charger to charge and stream, but not the in dash USB port. I know Kia is an Apple CarPlay partner. Though I doubt it (but really really really hope), I pray there is a software update on my receiver to bring CarPlay to my Kia Soul - as Spotify is also a partner for Apple CarPlay.

I know I didn't clarify before, but I'm running an iPhone 6 Plus 128GB (iOS 8.3) with a 2015 Kia Soul + ("Plus") with the Premium Navigation receiver (UVO Infotainment System).