Window Tinting

[Boomer23]

Great shots, Skywagon. The car looks great, and I agree, with the black trim, it makes the windows look even larger.

Great time of day and location for the shots, too. Great lighting on the trees.

 

[IBELEAF]

I'm sold! I've never tinted a car, but this will look really nice on my Black Leaf. What's a good shop in Seattle?

not sure about Seattle, but Jay's is highly rated on the East Side

http://www.yelp.com/biz/jays-tint-shop-kirkland

 

[LEAFfan]

Most do not have templates... they cut each window each time. They may double up to cut both sides at once (R and L).

Did you get 35/15? I found the state's legal %...has to be more than 33% front sides and any for the rear and back. I'm thinking about 30/5. :mrgreen:

 

[planet4ever]

So all the folks from CA and WA report that good quality window tinting looks great even after 10 years, but my observation here in FL is that it looks like hell after five years. From correlation to causation, we can only assume that the tinting material sold there is better quality than it is here.

Or maybe it's the salt air.
Or the hurricane force winds.

 

[Herm]

So all the folks from CA and WA report that good quality window tinting looks great even after 10 years, but my observation here in FL is that it looks like hell after five years. From correlation to causation, we can only assume that the tinting material sold there is better quality than it is here.

Or maybe it's the salt air.
Or the hurricane force winds.

Nah, its the lousy quality films that the local shops use.. they substitute crap films for the 3M stuff they should be using and pocket the huge difference.

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Window_Film/Solutions/Markets-Products/Automotive/

If you need to remove film use an industrial heat gun, not a blow dryer, the adhesive will soften and you peel off the film in one piece. Dont burn yourself or the car's plastic trim.. the glue residue comes off easily if you use Windex (must contain ammonia).

 

[TRONZ]

When I worked at a car dealership very long ago I was friends with the tint guys. They told me that a "bubbling" tint usually means poorly cleaned glass, poor quality film and poorly squeegeed installation. I usually get all my cars tinted and have never had one bubble... but like many, have seen some real bad tint jobs to. Find out who your dealer likes and use them. These people are well trusted and will often do your tint on their own outside the dealer.

 

[StrangerTides]

LTL, the tint job on my current vehicle still looks perfect after 11 years, and I've lived here the whole time. Here's where I went: http://www.bocatintandtunes.com/

 

[Nubo]

Anyone looked into or had their windows tinted on the LEAF? Any suggestions? I like the look and also the heat reduction but need to stay on the right side of the law here in CA. Thanks!

Look into V-Kool film. It selectively blocks Infra-red without blocking much visible light. So you can block out nearly all IR and still get 70% visible light transparency, totally within CA limits. This is the way to go, imho, unless you're a "gangsta" and need to be invisible to the outside world. Seriously, if you're ever stopped, police really appreciate being able to see into the car. Not knowing if there's a '45 pointed at you tends to make one a bit edgy.

 

[turbo2ltr]

I would suggest doing darker than you normally would as the interior is very light in color (and the windshield is large) and it will not be as dark as you think... as in 18% all around...

Man I missed this. +100! I got 35 all around and it's not dark at all.

Not the greatest pic, but..

 

[IBELEAF]

Does anyone with the tint have any scratches showing up from window going up and down? I am about to schedule tint appointment and just want to make sure this will not happen again like it did in my other car.

EDIT: Talked to tint guys and they will check if I have rubber strip that might cause that in Leaf and they could replace it with felt.

 

[Rake]

I'm sold! I've never tinted a car, but this will look really nice on my Black Leaf. What's a good shop in Seattle?

I agree, it looks really sharp!
So there will be at least two black tinted Leafs running around Seattle...

 

[IBELEAF]

I'm sold! I've never tinted a car, but this will look really nice on my Black Leaf. What's a good shop in Seattle?

I agree, it looks really sharp!
So there will be at least two black tinted Leafs running around Seattle...

...and a silver one. Scheduled appointment for next week. Most likely do 20/25% all around. Although, i would prefer to stay legal at 35%, but I think it would be waste of money doing 35%.

 

[dash]

I also got my car tinted. I went with a Wincos film (92% IR reduction) which I think looks pretty awesome. It's not ceramic, but I really like the way it turned out.

 

[1051]

Is the tint 18% or 20%?

 

[dash]

It's actually 30%. The photos might make it look slightly darker but it's still pretty dark. Here's the url for the product: http://www.madico.com/window-film/automotive/

Shop in Plano, TX charged about $300 for the whole car.

 

[cdub]

Anyone recommend any good LA shops? Or can Fontana Nissan recommend one?

 

[1051]

This is who I am going to use. mytintguys.com, I took a look at the shop and saw some of his work, the shop is super clean and the cars he did looked great!. Michael 888 990.8468 He quoted me $175.00 for 20% tinting on all windows except front.

 

[Azrich]

I had Formula One tint film intalled in my LEAF. I choose the Pinnacle Series because it blocked out the most heat, about 55 - 65%. The Pinnacle Series has a ceramic layer but it does not interfere with radio or phone transmissions. The man at the tint shop priced it as a Versa which was $330 but lowered the price to $300 - this was less than the dealer's generic tint film. I also paid $40 extra for scratch insurance - if it scratches, in any way, they replace the film on that window. I decide if there is a scratch that warrents replacement.

You can see photos at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60752910@N02/sets/72157626369430734/

Look at the third photo and read the caption. The front was done with #35 tint and the back was done with #15 tint. It looks darker looking into the car than it does while sitting in the car looking out. I've noticed very little heat build up in the LEAF and we have had days of 95 degrees already where my car has set out in the sun all day. My old car would have been a hot oven.

 

[TomT]

Or one in the San Fernando Valley area?

Anyone recommend any good LA shops?

 

[IBELEAF]

It's actually 30%. The photos might make it look slightly darker but it's still pretty dark. Here's the url for the product: http://www.madico.com/window-film/automotive/

Shop in Plano, TX charged about $300 for the whole car.

Could be an angle, but that does not look like 30%. I've just seen 35% and this is a huge difference. Are you sure they didn't put 20% by accident?