Back in early 2021, Spotify introduced the Car Thing—a hardware device that quickly gained love from users, especially those with cars lacking infotainment systems like Android Auto or Apple CarPlay. With its 3.97-inch touchscreen, physical navigation buttons, and voice control via "Hey Spotify," it felt like a solid option for cars without modern infotainment setups. It was designed for Spotify Premium users, offering customizable presets for playlists, artists, and podcasts.
People who had a Car Thing seemed to enjoy it, until Spotify announced earlier this year that they would discontinue the product entirely on December 9, 2024. This essentially turned the device into $90 paperweight. Spotify claimed they were shutting down the Car Thing to focus on core services and new innovations.
When the announcement came, Spotify didn’t offer much to existing Car Thing owners—no refunds, no trade-ins, nothing. Users were simply advised to reset their devices and dispose of them properly. But, after much outcry from users, the music streaming giant reversed its "No Refunds" policy and now offers a refund for affected users.
Well, now we’re past December 9, and some users have shared the discontinuation message displayed on their devices:
Car Thing is discontinued and no longer operational.
Thank you for being on this journey with us. Safe travels.
For more information, visit carthing.com.
Contact customer service by no later than January 14, 2025 to discuss your refund options.
But interestingly, not everyone’s Car Thing has gone dark. Reddit users have reported mixed results. Some say their Car Thing still works, likely because they had automatic updates turned off. Others have reported that while the device functions, the preset buttons no longer work.
There might still be a way to keep your Car Thing alive. Reddit user u/bralma6 shared a method to bypass the discontinuation screen:
- Hold the back button (below the volume knob), the settings button (above the volume knob), and the first preset button (top-left corner) all at once.
- Keep holding all three buttons while the device is booting up.
Keep in mind that it might not work on the first attempt, so you’ll probably need to repeat the steps a few times to get it right.