Should you remove the film from your CarPlay infotainment screen? It depends

Double-check before you accidentally remove a protective layer of your screen.

When you buy a new phone or tablet, you'll see a protective layer of plastic placed on top that helps to stop the display underneath from being scratched. You might find a similar layer on your CarPlay infotainment screen if you've just bought a new car. Your first instinct might be to keep it in place as a screen protector to stop the screen from being scratched or covered in dirt. That isn't always the smartest move, however.

Just recently, a mechanic's helpful TikTok video , warning of the potential dangers posed by these clear protective films, went viral. The mechanic's advice was simple: remove the film because, otherwise, you could find it "bakes on" and destroys the screen underneath, costing you thousands of dollars in repair costs. While that advice is pretty clear cut, it's important you tread carefully, as not every car (and every protective film) is the same, and you may damage your car without checking first.

The physical CarPlay screen in your car is going to look slightly different, depending on the model of car you own and the manufacturer, even if the interface is identical once you're connected. That makes it harder to know for sure whether any protective film on the screen is supposed to be removed or not.

The viral TikTok video muddied the water by referring to this film as a "screen protector." In the general sense, that's true: it's designed to protect your screen from the assembly line to your front door. Unlike a screen protector you'd use on your phone, however, which is usually applied after you've bought it to protect your screen, these protective films are really only there to protect it during the shipping process. Leaving it on for long periods of time isn't a smart move, as the adhesive (or the plastic itself) can melt onto the screen, which can cause your CarPlay screen to stop working .

You can buy third-party screen protectors that perform the same job, but these aren't typically manufacturer recommended. Depending on the material, they might make it harder to use your CarPlay infotainment screen, and you may need to check that the adhesive they use isn't going to damage the screen inside your car.

It's important to reiterate that not every CarPlay screen is identical. A CarPlay screen is just another name for the infotainment display inside your car and, as each manufacturer ships a new model, each screen can vary in size and design. More importantly, how they are physically built and operated can vary. It's this variation that adds the element of risk, and it's also why you should check before you start peeling.

Car infotainment screens are designed to be hit by heat and light from the sun. It's not impossible that your CarPlay screen has special coatings or bonded films applied that are designed to reduce glare, improve visibility or to stop the grease from your fingerprints from making the display visibly dirty.