My 2017 S (MY 17- H in the VIN) has electric power steering. Ask me how long I looked for the fluid reservoir. Per the 2017 brouchure I think all 2017s are electric.

 

Over here there was a 2016MY, then for builds from the second half of 2015 there was a 2016.5MY. Mine is 2016.5. It had the newer infotainment and EPAS.

But to make it a little more confusing, the infotainment had already gone from the 2014/5 version (which was the kind of black and white screen), to one that had the 4 colourful tiles on the screen (which was the first version with a different skin), before it came to the "new" version which looked the same as the one before it. I'm not sure how to tell the difference though Cambo explained it thus:
"All F-Types up to VIN K22184 (2015MY) had the IAM2.1 infotainment system

Cars with the Base or 380W Meridian system from VIN K22185 onward got the NLI infotainment system, which is the "new" version with tiled main screen.

Cars in the 2016-2017MY with the 770W Meridian kept the IAM2.1 infotainment, VIN's K22185 to K47319., but they got an updated homescreen with the 4 tiles, but everything behind the main screen is the same as the earlier cars.

Cars after K47319 with the Meridian Surround have the NGI infotainment, which is the new "tiled" version with swiping, etc."

 

alright, alright, then. So here's what's up. a recent comment revived this old, dead, carcass of a thread I started. I did indeed sell my 2016 F-Type quite awhile ago. I did not end up doing the BAT auction, I sold privately to a nice member of this forum. I worked my way thru an i8, a C8 Corvette Stingray and finally a McLaren 720S (still have that). Out of all those bucket-list cars I tried during the Pandemic Pandemonium™, I still miss the F-Type R, but am now casually looking for a 2018 (the prices are down and also, the seats are sooooo much better for tall people.

BruceTheQuail, can you or some other forum member please bottom-line it for me. What year/month do I have to get in order to get CarPlay natively in the car? (I am not looking at later facelift F-types, just 2018-2019 or so). And what year/month can be outfitted with a retrofit, aftermarket or otherwise? I am trying to look this stuff up, but am being beaten up by a bunch of aftermarket hardware sellers.

even more important, what do I look for in TOPIx to know "which" version of infotainment I have on that VIN, so I can verify if the car is what I want, if I want CarPlay?

Much appreciated.

 

AIUI, late MY18 cars with the 10" screen (early ones had 8") can be software updated for CP and AA. Beware that (some?) MY19s had GPFs fitted to the exhaust to mute the glorious sound, so on test drives be sure to give it the beans and see if you still like the sound!

 

US Spec cars didn't get the GPF added to the cats until FY22 model year, so that shouldn't be an issue based on his location. However, the infamous software update was applied to US cars from MY18 onward, so a test drive is definitely still in order to see if it's the sound you remember, since most MY18 and on will have had the software applied to them which definitely mutes down the sound.

 

Thanks for the responses, guys. I had heard the software update can tone down pops and crackles, especially. I wonder if you can then get an aftermarket engine and TCU flash that will keep infotainment, but give you back what you want?

 

My MY18 had the first software update which makes the car reset the dynamic mode setting off between igntion cycles and changes the exhaust switch to only open the valves around 1500 rpm (they still open from tickover in dynamic) , but apart from that it didn't affect the racous nature of the car, nor the pops and crackles.

 

Some of it can be restored with a VAP tune, and they can also make it over-the-top if you want.

 

I had the same software update done to my MY18 here in the US and it definitely attenuated the noise level (pops, crackles, startup) in addition to the Dynamic Mode setting change.