Window Tint: Final Product

[josh220]

So after spending over $1,000 and 8 or so trips to tint shops, I finally have my final product (I hope.) The first time I went fairly light since it was my first time tinting a vehicle, and then spent countless trips back darkening them. The final outcome is limo all around, and double limo on the very back window.

The exact combo:
Rear: 5% over factory, then another 5% over that.

Rear sides: 5% over factory, and 20% over that to get rid of the last bit of visibility into the truck from outside.

Front sides: Dark tint (I am unsure whether they used 20% or 35%) with limo over that. The first layer was used to kill the green in the glass, then the limo was applied afterwards.

Front Windshield: 5% strip on the top 4-5 inches.

 

[r32]

^damn that's about as illegal as they come in Ca. Looks good, but I wonder how long before you get pulled over.

 

[blindside]

^damn that's about as illegal as they come in Ca. Looks good, but I wonder how long before you get pulled over.

Exactly what i was thinking.... looks good though

 

[juneau92]

Looks awesome the black on black. But I agree it is illegal, at least in CA. You better quickly roll down those front windows when you see a cop, and hopefully they won't notice. Hope not, but I think sooner or later you'll be talking it over with a cop.

How's is it looking out the sides from the inside, okay I guess?

 

[MI4Runner]

I am thinking about tinting my windows and have a couple of questions. 1) Why do people tint the back window differently than the back sides and 2) if I simply wanted to get the front sides tinted to match the rear sides, what tint do I as for?

 

[simple]

Exactly what i was thinking.... looks good though

Strange... I was thinking that is the safest vehicle to ride in when it comes to UV rays from our sun... and rogue rays from suns from other galaxies.

Looks sweet dude! Especially with the stock rims. Let us know how the Police react when they see it.

 

[alaskaman]

looks great.......just don't speed or the CHP will give you a fix it ticket.....

 

[keylay31]

Looks awesome. Get ready to get pulled over as many times as you get compliments...

I expect to hear from you in a month that you're pulling it off.

 

[josh220]

Looks awesome the black on black. But I agree it is illegal, at least in CA. You better quickly roll down those front windows when you see a cop, and hopefully they won't notice. Hope not, but I think sooner or later you'll be talking it over with a cop.

How's is it looking out the sides from the inside, okay I guess?

During the day it's not hard, but at night I have to roll it down for parking and things like that. I am still able to see people next to me so that I don't turn lanes and hit them though. And yeah it's most definitely illegal since the legal allowance is 70% in CA. It's not as bad as people assume though. I know a few people with limo all around who haven't been pulled over once in 2 or 3 years, so I'll just have to be cautious.

I am thinking about tinting my windows and have a couple of questions. 1) Why do people tint the back window differently than the back sides and 2) if I simply wanted to get the front sides tinted to match the rear sides, what tint do I as for?

The back rear needs to be twice as dark as the sides if you want it to match. The side windows have the handicap of a 2nd tinted window on the other side of them, whereas the very rear window has a perfectly clear windshield on the opposite side of it.

You will need to go with 35%-20% to match the factory rear windows. It's your call on how dark you want to go, because the factory is in the middle of those 2 shades. Most people seem to find 20% a closer match, but if you want to be on the safe side, go with the lighter 35%.

 

[808BMW]

I have 20% on the fronts and it is noticably darker than the factory tint in the rear.

I put 5% on the all the rear windows but pulled it off because I didn't like the quality of the tint (scratches from my squeegees, cheap tint and you get what you pay for).

On my BMW I had 5% all around with a 6" front strip and 35% on the whole front windshield. If you tint the front window, you don't need to double 5 the back, but it is SUPER obvious. Although I had my BMW tinted like that for over 2 years with no problems.

Once I order some good tint I'm probably going to put 20% all around on my 4runner and then cut designs into it (most likely flames) and then seal it all in with a layer of 5% all around, and I'm going to try and 50% the whole front windshield.

 

[josh220]

I have 20% on the fronts and it is noticably darker than the factory tint in the rear.

I put 5% on the all the rear windows but pulled it off because I didn't like the quality of the tint (scratches from my squeegees, cheap tint and you get what you pay for).

On my BMW I had 5% all around with a 6" front strip and 35% on the whole front windshield. If you tint the front window, you don't need to double 5 the back, but it is SUPER obvious. Although I had my BMW tinted like that for over 2 years with no problems.

Once I order some good tint I'm probably going to put 20% all around on my 4runner and then cut designs into it (most likely flames) and then seal it all in with a layer of 5% all around, and I'm going to try and 50% the whole front windshield.

You mentioned "ordering" tint, do you do your tint work yourself?

 

[RunnerUp]

dude, i hate to tell you this, but i could have saved you about oh... 700$

this is my 02 with ONE layer of limo all the way around and 30% down the front windshield... you cant see in, you can still see out, and it wont peel in a couple months like double layers tend to do....

yeah it might be super obvious that the windshield is tinted but down here in florida tint is a secondary offense only, meaning you have to be pulled over for something else in order to get ticketed for it

 

[josh220]

dude, i hate to tell you this, but i could have saved you about oh... 700$

this is my 02 with ONE layer of limo all the way around and 30% down the front windshield... you cant see in, you can still see out, and it wont peel in a couple months like double layers tend to do....

yeah it might be super obvious that the windshield is tinted but down here in florida tint is a secondary offense only, meaning you have to be pulled over for something else in order to get ticketed for it

Won't have it peel because the place I took it to the last time gets the tint placed down deep into the door panel. Besides, it's warrantied.

As for the front windshield, that would make it too obvious, not to mention totally redundant after buying an HID kit, to have my visibility reduced....

It wouldn't have saved me any money though, because It was still my first vehicle to have tint on it. I went light at first because I didn't want it illegal at that time. Then I went to limo, and it still wasn't dark enough, so I would have still ended up with a double layered limo.

I wish the cops here were like the ones in Florida, because there's no "crime" in Huntington Beach, so there's nothing else for cops to do except pull you over for stupid sh*t like no front plates, tinted windows, rolling stop signs, etc.

 

[RunnerUp]

well thats good that they do a good job tinting and warranty it

when i had double limo in highschool i didnt have it long enough to see if it would peel, but a couple of my friends did who didnt get it tinted at the same place i did.

well, when im up at school (go gators!) the cops dont really have any REAL crime all that often so they bust whoever they can...

when im back home in tampa the cops do have REAL crime and so you can roll around with your 26"s and triple limo blasting the latest and greatest rap song and they dont even look twice

either way, it looks good, though you might want to invest in a back up camera so you dont have to roll down that back window

 

[juneau92]

...so you can roll around with your 26"s and triple limo blasting the latest and greatest rap song...

FYI: Alot of folks would appreciate it if you'd keep from blasting your "latest and greatest rap song". We're talking respect for other people here.

 

[LandRvr Convert]

Limo tint on the front windows is illegal here in Georgia too, but then again, so is driving 56mph in a 55 zone! LMAO

I had my Land Rover Disco limo tinted all the way around and never got hassled by cops. I asked a cop once (before I tited the Rover) and he said it would be unlikely to get pulled over for tint alone, but said if you were pulled over for something else, they might add the dark tint onto your ticket. I had two minor fender benders in the Rover and the cops never mentioned the tint at either accident site even after being there a good 45 minutes each time.

BTW, I don't think I'll tint my Runner limo like I did the disco. Yes it does look great but I had too many close calls when changing lanes at night in the rain.......very difficult to see in the rear view mirrors.

 

[josh220]

I've noticed that many of you have suggested getting a back-up camera. That may be a nice idea in theory, but I don't have navigation, so I would also need to buy that. Doesn't Toyota charge around $2,300 just for that? Doesn't seem practical for someone my age......

 

[Wolf]

Josh your not a vampire are you?! That's dark! Do you have trouble at night or did you just put HID/HIR's in every socket? here in CA you'd be dealing with the courthouse for fix-it tickets every week!

 

[Ginuwite]

FYI: Alot of folks would appreciate it if you'd keep from blasting your "latest and greatest rap song". We're talking respect for other people here.

Pretty sure "Alot" is not a word


and if folks in AZ can hear his music, I want to know where he got that system and when I can get mine installed :biggrin2:

 

[josh220]

Josh your not a vampire are you?! That's dark! Do you have trouble at night or did you just put HID/HIR's in every socket? here in CA you'd be dealing with the courthouse for fix-it tickets every week!

I do live in CA, and probably farily close to you. Haven't had any problems in the last week yet. So I'll see how it goes. I just crack my window if I need to park in a dark area, it's not hard. I can still see headlights of cars next to me, and in my blind spots. I have an HID kit, so the road is lit up great.