Hey guys,
I'm thinking of getting my windows tinted, but I'm not sure if its worth it? I was quoted $225 by these guys at Ultimate Body.http://www.ultimateshield.com/tinting.php They work on many exotic cars so figure their work is top notch. Also is there a legal window tint for the front windows? Also does tint help keep down the heat when the car is sitting in the sun?
thanx

 

the person who tinted my windows told me front windows were illegal. i wanted that protection though so i asked for 70% tint in the front and 20% in the back + the raer window. i could not be anymore happier with the results. the 70% in the front barely shows but that's what i wanted originally. 35% tints in the front can get you caught.

i live in SF and i paid 299 for mine. i think 225 is a nice deal as long as they do it right. i have a friend who went to King tint in San Bruno to do his tinting and it turned out ok. the only problem was that for some reason, his rear window tint has 2 "3M" labeled faintly onto the tint. i'd be pissed off if i saw that on my car.

 

go to california tint for $125 in rosemead

its highly recommended

 

check with your state laws for your front (driver & passenger) windows, usually 35% is legal.

 

I heard of them, but i also heard their busy as hell. I live in cerritos, so its quite of a drive for me. Plus I read of their tints peeling after awhile. lol Do they ( california tint) use high quality material? I'm thinking of going 75% in the front and not sure what percent to get in the back. I drive on the freeway at night alot so it cant be to dark where i cant see my blind spot. lol Can someone tell me if your car's interior is cooler during those hot summer days with tinting?
thanx

 

it does keep your car a bit cooler in the summer heat, it also helps protect your leather.

 

thanx for the input Alee! What percent do you have in thefront and back on your car?

 

im a window tinter part time for extra money i recommend you make sure your get quality film and work because if you go for the low ballers they can giv you a low price because of the cheap tint they use and that cheap tint can turn purple bubble or delaminate and can be your worst nightmare paying to take it off

 

I have 20% all around, with black interior and white exterior..

 

on my car i did 10% all around and 40% on the windsheild i used the greystone line from johnsons windows films

 

wow thats dark lol I was thinking 70 or 75 percent in the front and 50 % in the back lol maybe I should go 35% instead in the back lol. thanx for the help

 

thought about doing 50% on my windshield, but i don't want to risk getting pulled over.

i would have went darker than 20%, i didn't know if i would be able to see at night during rain though.

 

70 or 75 is really light, imo. 35% is much better and is also legal limit for very many states.

if you want to stay light, you could do 35% in the back and 50% in the front

except it wouldn't do too much..

 

on my yukon i had 5% all around and 20% on the windsheild


its was good with hids but dont expect to b able to see where the hids arnt shinning around here not many cops know what it looks a like ive gotten pulled over like 15 times for front window tickets only twice for the windsheild in this truck its a chance you are taking and the darker you go the more noticable i sell a lot of 50% on windsheilds rarely do i go darker than 35% on a windsheild

 

Sadly in california its illegal to tint your front windows at 50% as they must allow more than 70% of light in. Hopefully 70front/35back is dark enough for me.

 

on this tl i did 50% all around even the windsheild looked nice

 

hey man, i just got mine done a few weeks ago at cali tint. ur right they are busy as hella nd have to wait inline before they open. i got 23% in front and 17% in back. but that'd probably be reli dark for u up front..so i'd say u can probably do 75 or 50 in front and back u can probably go 20s and still be able to see out pretty well!

 

I sort wanna go darker cuz i feel that the paint of the car will stand out more. At the same time I want it legal, so maybe 75/30s lol, but 50/20s is becoming really tempting. lol
Can u see ur blind spot at night ed with 17% tint?

 

thanks for all the pictures Tintduptls. Its nice see the different %s.

 

if you see a cop roll your windows down, that easy. lol. but here is my current tls with double 5% in the rear windows and 35% on the front two. pictures of my old tacoma with 35% in the front and 20% in the rear

 

In NY this place was charging me $495 for 3M Crystalline tints. This was for 40-50%. The price is high but its reputable place.

 

yeah, the 17% is acually reli easy to see through. it just looks dark on the outside cuz of my black interior.

 

search for cali tint within acurazine and youll see a lot of the TL members here highly recommend them. i plan on using cali tint in the future. if it peels, im sure they have some sort of warranty against peeling that they will fix. also i would think they have quality materials. keep asking/researching

 

Getting mine done Saturday.

 

I may be alone on this one but tinting your front windshield at all seems completely idiotic to me

 

cali tint has "lifetime warrenty" but they only cover peeling, turning purple, bubbles, etc ONLY after they inspect it and determine YOU didnt cause the defect. and they do not cover scratches

 

So i just found out that in the state of california, that it is illegal to tint your front windows no matter now light it is. Do u guys think i could get away with 70% in the front and 30% in the back?

 

What kind of person would tint their front windshield so it is almost impossible to see out of unless their headlights are shining directly at something? That is completely dangerous and irresponsible.

 

As far as legality is concerned, think of it from the officer's point of view. If you made a stop and could not see what was happening in the car due to tints, you would be more cautious when approaching that vehicle. Also with the windshield tint, I think that may be a good way to get a reckless driving ticket on top of a ticket for illegal tints. Per the california highway patrol, front aftermarket tints of any kind are illegal. Just some food for thought.

 

u can def. get away with it. make sure ur still pretty visible (which 70% is) so u shuodl be fine!

 

so when you've been saying "front", you were talking about the windshield itself?

 

no by front i meant front windows and windowshield lol

 

Pro Tint in rosemead... i've taken my last 2 cars to california tint and they've since become extremely busy with long wait times. So i figured since pro tint was down the street, i gave them a call, $160 gets u metalic tint..took my TL in its actually a bit lighter than the non-metallic stuff, but man does it keep things ALOT cooler, i have tint all around(cept windshield) and i've gotten cops looking in on the freeway and they just keep driving! (i believe i got the darkest for my rear window and the 2nd darkest for all 4 side windows.

give them a call, I was skeptical about the metalic @ first... but man am I glad... my previous cars i've had limo tint for back windows and 30 percent for the front... and it was still hotter... Jeff is the owner and if he's not there Ray usually answers, they're super helpful... GL

 

if you want to be perfectly legal 70% will do fine.. .but 70% looks pretty much like no tint at all... most cops will not mind if they can sea your face

(2) The window glazing with the material applied meets all requirements
of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 205 (49 C.F.R. 571.205),
including the specified minimum light transmittance of 70 percent and
the abrasion resistance of AS-14 glazing, as specified in that federal
standard.

 

hm i've heard mixed reviews about protint

 

^I got pretty good service/product/price... u sure it was protint on Rosemead blvd? Theres another one in Alhambra called promax... they're work for alarm/electronic installs is pretty hit and miss from my experience...I've used all three shops California/Pro tint/Promax. Promax seems like the cheapest as far as price matching, California Tint is pretty reliable but they won't give any room for pricing and they're are ALWAYS packed and busy/Pro Tint had the best service/decent price. great product... not sure if the other 2 had the same metalic tint since this is my 1st time getting it...

 

Boy.... if something bad happens, that truck is a lawsuit waiting to happen.

 

hah well glad u had good service there. my service advisor told me he got bad tint there. maybe it was just luck haha

 

The OP noted that in CA any tint on the front side windows other than clear UV film is not legal. But I lived in LA for 4 years and saw lots of cars with tint. Dark tint may give a cop a reason to pull you over. You may or may not get a ticket. If the tint is not "limo" dark you will probably be okay.

If the car has navigation you may want to stay away from metallic tint. Some owners think it may interfere with the GPS antenna which on the 1G TSX is under the rear shelf (the antenna on the roof is for XM). Not sure on the 2G. I now live in Houston and tint is a requirement. I spent the extra money on Ceramic tint and it is the best performing tint I've ever had. Even so I stayed legal since it was so damned expensive.

For others; tinting the front windshield is important to some with sensitivity to sun light. I have one such skin condition but it's not that bad. If I could get the front tinted just slightly I would. I could probably get a letter from my dermatologist. A clear UV film might also help protect the car's interior materials.


from chp.ca.gov.....

"Can I put after-market tinting on the windows of my vehicle?
The main requirements for legal window tinting in California are:


1.The windshield and front driver's side and passenger's side windows cannot receive any aftermarket tinting.
2.If the rear window of a vehicle is tinted, the vehicle must have outside rearview mirrors on both sides.

The law prohibits any person from driving any motor vehicle with any object or material placed, displayed, installed, affixed, or applied upon the windshield or side or rear windows, with certain limited exceptions.

However, legislation signed into law effective January 1, 1999, exempts from the above prohibition specified clear, colorless, and transparent material that is installed, affixed, or applied to the front driver and passenger side windows for the specific purpose of reducing ultraviolet rays. If, as, or when this material becomes torn, bubbled or otherwise worn, it must be removed or replaced."

 

You are not alone and it is not idiotic, it is criminal.