All -

Just out for a cruise on this fine summer day and wouldn't you know it, the GSP shows up behind me with the blue and whites flashing. Thinking - For once I wasn't speeding, passing on a double yellow, or anything even remotely close to wrong and I get stopped.

Long story short, He straddles my window with this black box with a few switches on it and tells me that my front windows are tinted 5%. In disbelief I have him check the rears, and he says they are 4%. "But sir, please understand my meter has a tolerance of 3%, so your front window could be 2% or 8%. The state law is 32% all around and if I catch you again, I'm going to issue a summons." signed johnny law.



BS! Don't you have anything better to do? Anyone deal with this before in Atlanta Suburbs (or anywhere else?) What are the odds that the same GSP could pull me over again? I picked up the car used in Florida, so I was only guessing it was maybe 30%F, 15%R, but I guess now the law wants me to change all that. So, thanks for letting me ramble.

-BH

 

Having a friend on the local Sheriff's Department and my brother-in-law on the Indiana State Police, I can honestly say that it's a safety issue with them. Any car that is tinted so damn dark that they can't see into it during a traffic stop is a serious safety issue to them as they can't tell what the passengers are doing.

They both say that they approach a dark tinted car much more cautiously.

Does GSP have more important things to do? At that specific moment in time, I guess not and he was trying to assist all other officers by informing you of your illegal tint.

Just doing his job...

 

I dunno if u remember but couple months ago there was no tint restrictions in GA

 

It's not summer yet

 

See, this makes absolutely no sense because SUVs come STOCK with 10% on the rear windows. A lot of minivans come that way too.

I recently moved from Kansas City to Atlanta a couple months ago. My G35 has 30% in the front and 20% in the rear. The Kansas law was 30% all around and I guess the same hold true in Georgia. I never got messed with in KS and they're pretty strict, but I guess I could see why they're hounding yzf because his rear tint looks to be about 10%.

This is what my G looks like with 30/20 tint

 

Ok, so I looked into the past owners paperwork on the car, and it is indeed 30% film on the front and 15% on the rear.

I had every right to be pulled over for the tint on the rear windows of my car - period. However I was told the drivers window was why I got pulled over. I find it interesting that this little black box claimed I had 5% on my driver window and 4% on the window in the rear door. I guess it has to do with both the film and the tint that the glass has from the factory.

Also in looking up the law, it was re-signed into effect May 2005. If you're interested you can look at it here http://dps.georgia.gov/00/article/0,...267808,00.html

By looking at all the cars around, seems the GSP will be very busy this summer. I also found it interesting that the law applies to all vehicles, not only vehicles registered in Georgia. Be ware if you're on your way through from Florida! I prefer windows down anyway! Thanks for letting me rant some more.

 

He will most likely pull you over again and be pissed off that you didn't fix the tints.

 

Slightly off-topic but your ride looks good!

 

Is this situation BS? Is it viable reason to get pulled over by SP?

If you read my signature, I used to have an 04TL/5AT/NAVI that was NBP w/parchment, tints 5% all around and FULL 30% windshield. If you have searched for tint threads, I have stated in a couple others you could not see into my car from more than 10ft in front - during the day! I used to work at an IT company in an area that was a haven for CSP. I was pulled over and ticket 2 seperate times for window tint, over $50 each. The second time was for not removing tint the first time. These guys are no dummies, and they knew where I worked after the first time. The second ticket, a CSP car followed me out of my work complex! I did not even have time to get through the light at the complex exit before he pulled me over. Yes, I had been pulled over before in that vehicle by other agencies, but none besides SP even said anything about it...the reason?

According to my father who is a high ranker at the local sheriff dept, the State Patrol's livelihood is (more than all other law enforement agencies) dependant upon generated revenue. The more tickets written, the more money generated, simple as that. Also, in the popo world you have to meet quota to move up. They don't have to pull you over for BS, but they almost always will. Speaking of CSP I have a court date tomorrow...

 

If you have the original tint info, keep that with you for future reference.

In the meantime, use it to get the rears tinted with the same film, no darker than the fronts. Most people prefer front and rear sides to match anyway.

If stopped again, show your paperwork!

 

theres always been one on the front windows...just not in the windshield in georgia. its been 32% for a long time

 

In a lot of states, you can tint the rear windows of sedans as dark as you want, too.

But by Federal law, only vehicles classified as a "truck" can come with tinted rear windows from the factory. That's why you'll never see a sedan in the United States with factory tint, whereas trucks, minivans and the likes do. For instance, the Dodge Magnum is somehow classified as a truck, so it comes with the rear windows limo tinted (not on the base level model, though). The Chrysler 300, though based on the same platform, is classifed as a sedan, thus comes with no tint regardless of model level.