School me on tinting

[nike001]

I've been meaning to take a pic of my car but it's been so dirty.

I washed it today so I'll take a pic tomorrow for ya so you can see what 35% looks like.

[az3579]

They can't measure your windshield.

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

Yeah, but it's an excuse to get pulled over. I'm sure they'll have no problem dinging me on my exhaust.


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[UdubBadger]

I have some precut ceramic 20% for the 3 rears if you're interested. I was gonna redo mine but decided they were ok for now.

[JupiterBMW]

I had 35% on my last car and I agree, its the perfect balance of daytime heat rejection and nighttime visibility. That is what I'll do with when I do mine. I am also thinking that a ceramic is best. The question, out of all the brands above, what are the ups and downs to each one? I don't care if one is better than another, but if one has different features, perhaps we can better select what will fit our desires best. That being said, a lot of guys on the X3 forum talk about Llumar and Huper Optik. I really don't know if it matters, but would be nice to know! Thanks for the all the input.

[cakM3]

Both of my cars are tinted 35%. I had my ///M tinted in Manassas, VA while on a business trip. The tint I went with on the ///M was called Pinnicle series. It was explained that Pinnacle Series provides a proprietary non-metallized, non-conductive, ceramic technology film with maximum heat reduction, maximum ultraviolet rejection, excellent optical clarity and blockage of infrared rays. Sounded good to me and I did not want my tint to interfere with my GPS so I went ahead and had this installed.

I went with Pinnacle 35 which provides 99.5% UV Protection, 50% heat rejection, and 60% glare reduction. I had this done three years ago shortly after buying my ///M and have been happy with this ever since. There are no bubbling on any windows (good sign of an excellent install) and no fading of the tint color which I am happy with.

As for the type of tint that's on my ZHP? Not sure and I will eventually take it out and have the tint re-done there. Both cars do have 35% on the side windows and rear window. I could go darker in the rear window but would rather have a more uniform appearance (my preference) where tinting is concerned. With that said, I haven't gotten harassed by the police because of window tint although we are not supposed to have any (factory tint only) on our cars in Rhode Island.

One thing to add... with the alcantara interior in my ZHP, having window tint has kept it in excellent condition. No fading of the material what so ever. The interior is fresh, the rear deck still black with no fading, and when going inside during summers, the interior isn't as hot as an oven. For those thinking about tinting, I say do it

@ BP: just find a reputable shop that does excellent installs of window tint and go there. Ask lots of questions on what type of tint they use and recommend. I find that 35% is a really good blend between dark and light. Depending on the day it looks darker than it really is and on other's it just light enough that you never have any problems backing the car late at night. I know with much darker tints, it get's extremely difficult to back your car since you can't see where you are going. Ryan can you chime in here on this???

[az3579]

I have some precut ceramic 20% for the 3 rears if you're interested. I was gonna redo mine but decided they were ok for now.

Thanks for the offer Seth, but 20% is way too dark for my tastes.

So everyone is saying ceramic. Why is metallic still being offered if it seems to have no advantages?

[UdubBadger]

It's really not that dark... Hard to tell difference in 30 and 20. If you do a 30-50 in front it'll be fine.

Let me now of you change your mind, it's jut sitting here.

Ceramic is best used because it doesn't interfere with gps or cellular/data signals. Metallic is cheaper so some just do it because of that. Or companies just make metallic to jack up the price on ceramic.


- Goin' H.A.M. Mobile

[M0nk3y]

Thanks for the offer Seth, but 20% is way too dark for my tastes.

So everyone is saying ceramic. Why is metallic still being offered if it seems to have no advantages?

Metallic isnt on the market anymore....rarely used.

It's non-metallic now, and its offered because its cheaper. Not everyone wants heat rejection

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[nike001]

Here's mine with the 35% ceramic I got installed earlier this week:

[az3579]

Here's mine with the 35% ceramic I got installed earlier this week:

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