Yunglinh

I have a 07 Acura TL and i was planning to get my windows tinted. The place told me that acura doesn't have this felt pad thingy and if i install the tint its gonna scratch my window every time i roll up and down the window. He told me that he can install this mold strip thingy but that could eventually melt when it get hot leaving glue on my window

Any suggestion ?

Thanks.

JTS97Z28

iTrader: (4)

Sounds like you found a reputable shop that knows about the Honda/Acura scratching issues. Yes they are 100% right over time your tint will get vertical scratches in the film. Some cars get it worse than others but I think no matter what its going to happen and will be an eye sore. I say get it done right the first time unless you want to watch your tint get scratched more and more over time. I believe the door panels need to be removed to add the moleskin or felt protection, but as long as the shop knows what their doing im sure it will be fine.
I got the windows tinted in my previous 07 Type S and eventually they did start scratching although it wasnt toooo bad, but was noticeable.
I saw a Type S for sale at a dealership once that had absolutely horrible scratching it almost looked like the windows were dragged on the pavement lol (not an exaggeration).

Goodluck!

James

mmmq

My car is only 3 months old so I can't speak for the "melt" situation but I did get moleskins installed on mine. Would rather not have scratches on tint you paid for then something that could/couldnot happen down the line. Quick search on the forums for other suggestions imo.

Bleak

iTrader: (1)

The stuff is called mole skin. Personally I got it when I tinted my windows so I don't have any first hand experience with tint being scratched. However, I don't have any glue or whatever from it... and don't expect to.

I'm pretty sure most people on this site get mole skin in their doors with no problems.

Also, make sure your tinters get the little triangular part of the rear windows. Lazy shops just skip it because it's not always easy. Here's a pic: its a pretty small piece of the glass but it'll look shitty if they skip it.

tones160

can someone post up a link on that mole skin product? My tints are barely new and they already look like i had an animal trapped in my car seriously lol. I'm going to have those windows retinted but i need that product first or does the shop needs to get it on their own?

mmmq

Shops should supply it and I don't know if they'll install it if you bring it to them considering they might not know how if they don't even carry it. First thing I asked before even getting quotes on the tint was if they had mole skins in the first place.


(snagged from another thread)


What it looks like on mine. Don't know if you could see it real well.

Bleak

iTrader: (1)

in my case I let them know I drove a TL and asked about moleskin. They didn't have any but they knew all about the TL's problems with tint and what moleskin was. They had used it before on TL's.

I just had them order some and when they had it in they called me and set up the appointment.

I suppose you could bring your own but probably won't save too much money. Most of the price is on labor.

Jhern007

If you plan on getting tint, I would 100% invest in the mole skin. i didnt and my windows looks like crap. there are a bunch tiny lines which make 2 pretty thick scratch strips on each window. I'll see if i can get a picture of what it looks tomorrow in the day time.

tones160

shit i know the feeling dude ...any idea for how much these moleskin go for since i hate getting ripped off.

Bleak

iTrader: (1)

I paid about $60 more than just normal tint for parts and labor. But I might have gotten a deal since I was tinting the front windows too and apparently a lot of people don't do it all... *shrug*

rico651

just tinted my car last week and had them add moleskin. try to find a place that will replace your film if the moleskin scratches it. took me a while, but i found one

tones160

so you got new films or something because i hear is really rare for the moleskin to actually scratch your tints after being placed.

Bearcat94

K-012: DIY: DIY Moleskin install step-by-step with pics
https://acurazine.com/forums/ramblings-12/how-set-up-transactional-web-sites-139437/



K-013: Window tinting-Moleskin/felt-Information and Installation Instructions
https://acurazine.com/forums/car-parts-sale-361/nokia-5100-6100-series-access-88957/
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=90330
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=109439
https://acurazine.com/forums/wash-wax-23/black-fade-112578/



Some of these threads are older and may not have all the pics hosted, but the general info is still on target.

TexanAttorney

Yeap, get the Mole Skins. If the tint shop already knows about it, they are probably reputable.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

good shit bearcat!

those diy helped me install my own "moleskin"

rico651

yea, well i heard that sometimes the moleskin traps dirt particles and stuff, which actually scratches the film itself. so i decided to play it safe. i think i might use my air compressor and blow all the crap once a while, just to be super safe. im kind of OD

jpgayan

Moleskin is just a brand name for the felt they install. There are other brands that work just as well. My tint shop charged me and extra $100 to felt all four windows. The shop said that the Formula One Pinnacle was pretty scratch resistant and they hadn't seen any problems with scratching on Accords and TL's but I had them do it anyways. Cheap insurance in my opinion. As far as the felt catching dirt and still scratching, if you live in sandy areas and drive with your windows down a lot that might be a problem but it's pretty unlikely for most people. The felt, like the tint, is on the interior side of the window so the only dirt it sees is what's inside the car. I take advantage of the fact that I have air conditioning and a cabin air filter and keep my windows up most of the time. As an added bonus, my interior stays cleaner longer!

Souljah

I want mole skin now...

Aretardedorange

iTrader: (2)

A few of my friends have the TL without this moleskin...and the windows are fine. I was planning on getting my windows tinted in the near future should I really worry about this or no? I hardly roll my windows down maybe a few times a year.

Bleak

iTrader: (1)

If you hardly roll down your windows you'll probably be fine. I roll down mine every day so I worried about having moleskin more.

tones160

Good info dudes! I like to drive around with my windows down even when is 10 degrees lol.

lowchef

getting my windows redone next week with this moleskin.

dwb993

iTrader: (13)

Get moleskin from here

Aubrey

Since tint was brought up, I have another tint question. I just bought an 08 TL on 3/28 that had tint installed before I bought and was part of the purchase price. Apparently, I did not have mole skin installed because I have scratches on both rear windows. I called up to the service center and the guy said that he could not help me, but would have the manager call me back.

My question, who should I be asking to fix this? The service manager or the sales manager?

tones160

If you paid at the dealership for those tints then that's definitely service manager unless you want return the car cause of the tints lol. Now if the tints were already installed by the previous owner there's nothing that they can do for you my friend.

tones160

link?

dwb993

iTrader: (13)

Click the word "here".

tones160

all i get is a blank page dude lol

dwb993

iTrader: (13)

DOH! My bad: Looks like URLs are blocked. tintprotector.com
Sorry.

tones160

Great! thx man.

jungy4

I had my windows tinted on my ex Pontiac and the tint slightly got scratched on one of the windows, so I am assuming a lot of cars have this issue. Whenever I get my TL tinted, it would be just rear which I won't roll down much at all so I won't need moleskin.

jungy4

You mean the shops don't do a good job on that little piece right next to the rear window? Can you explain a little more?

VQPower37

he means that some shops when the tint the rear quarter window they do not tint under the weather stripping area. so from the inside it appears completely tinted while, when you look at the car from the outside there is an area that isnt tinted. they have to get up underneath it for it to look good from the outside as well

Bleak

iTrader: (1)

Yea this is exactly what I meant. It's not the easiest part to tint so the less skilled shops just ignore it thinking you won't notice.

Luckily my shop knew exactly what I was talking about haha.

Brozee

The moleskin is supposed to be the only option to prevent scratching. The issue is the windows are quite lose compared to many other high-end cars. And with the looser connection between the door-wall and the window that leaves room for it to scratch. For instance my 2007 EX-L V6 Accord was tinted by two shops (thinking the first did a bad job I had it done elsewhere) both times (without mole-skin) the windows had very prominent vertical scratches on all windows. From the outside it didn't look bad but looking out from the inside it looked terrible.

rico651

my place knew about this as well. but they actually take the door panels out and take the windows out to place the film on them. he said that you just unscrew something from the pillar and it comes out.

for places that dont take the windows out, its either ignorance or laziness. for places that do, its standard

Bleak

iTrader: (1)

Interesting. Yea, I didn't know HOW they actually managed to do it I was just worried that they did. My place probably knew because when I was setting up my appointment over the phone he was like, "oh yea, we know all about that. don't worry."

I think it's just some places have never tinted a TL before and don't know about it. Seems like it'd be obvious though lol

dj5

There is no need to take the windows out to tint behind the gasket. I watched my tinter and he just slid the tint under the gasket. It took him about 10 minutes each for the quarter windows. I would avoid any tinter that says you have to take the windows out.

tones160

+1 lol

soon2b954

Any idea how they do it? I took a look at the gasket and it's very tight around the window. Looking to get my windows tinted in the next few weeks.