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. That protective film may only be there for shipping 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