Should I tint my car?

[Raine]

Should I tint my car?

The spring/summers here can get pretty hot. I also hear tinting reduces UV rays and keeps your interior cooler and protects it from damage.

This is how my car currently looks like:



Thanks!

[M3Newbie88]

no brainer.. first mod you should do

[Mega Man]

I also recommend Llumar tint on your front windshield, it's colorless (a slight blue), reduces UV and heat. I can also say this is true, not just gimicky advertising. I get in my sister's car and hold my hand under her front windshield, you can feel the heat of the sun. I can do the same thing in my car with Llumar, and it feels cooler than in my sister's car.

There's also plenty of threads in this forum about tint, ceramic/metallic that you may want to look at.

I posted this last year. There's a Llumar brochure scan in the post.

Do it before summer. Your occupants will thank you.

[GaryS]

Get this thing! I haven't tried it, but it looks so geeky cool. http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=212389

[onefastman]

Tint it dark. I have 5% in rear and 20% in front, much cooler.


I will look into Llumar tint on my front windshield too. How much should I expect to pay?

[Mega Man]

It's hard to say, but make sure you get it by an authorized Llumar installer. They'll give you a lifetime warranty card (just good piece of mind) against any bubbling, peeling, scratching (replaced for free if any of those).

My GF got duped into getting Llumar...she was at work when some guy offered to tint her windows; she asked about Llumar since I had it, and he said he had it. When she got home to show me, it was just some crappy light blue tint that did nothing.

[ronster]

Originally Posted by Raine

Should I tint my car?

The spring/summers here can get pretty hot. I also hear tinting reduces UV rays and keeps your interior cooler and protects it from damage.



Thanks!

Absolutely, I got it tinted a week after delivery. I got F1 Pinnacle ceramic tint (35%)... looks great and keeps the car cooler...

[OhDasCrazy]

I think tinting the windows instead of the car would be better!

[Yvette]

tint on AW is always hot
do it

[Raine]

Ok thanks for the advice all.

I'm probably going w/ a ATX 30 all around.

[1seriesfan]

Good decision! I had my wife's car done a couple of months ago (50%) and decided to do mine now as well. After seeing her's and finding that her car is much noticeably cooler inside than it was without tint, I can't wait to get mine on in the next couple of weeks.

Also, my tinter mentions on his website that it reduces a ton of glare from the snow in the winter too. That makes a lot of sense to me! You guys in the "warm states" can't appreciate what I'm talking about. - Ever been "snow blind"? :-)

I'm now thinking it'll be a GREAT investment (year-round!) as I had not even thought of tint working favorably in our winter environment before. BTW, I have not experienced any problems with night time visibility or the auto-dimming mirrors. This was a topic mentioned here before, somewhere along the way.

[E92-Lighting]

yes, you should at 35% tint all around

[bkochuk]

any other brands out there worth trying?

there's a place in Raleigh that really pushes the 3M brand. anyone have experience with it?

[Drew330]

My car also have ATX 30 all around. Couldn't be happier. Dark enough for the day and still enough visibility for the night. Go for it.

[SupremePower3335]

Hi guys, where in TO can I get the tint and how much should I expect to pay?

[ronster]

Got mine done @ FX Auto near McCowan & Hwy 7 (right across from Markville Mall) for 250. It was sorta a GB price last year... Lifetime warranty... They are pretty good...

[Sidh135i]

I got mine done and I love it

[SupremePower3335]

Originally Posted by ronster

Got mine done @ FX Auto near McCowan & Hwy 7 (right across from Markville Mall) for 250. It was sorta a GB price last year... Lifetime warranty... They are pretty good...

thx Ronster..can anyone recommend shops in the West End (Oakville, Mississauga)?

[nathywin]

i just tinted mine with 5% and a really big eye brow and i love it! just make sure that the tint shop knows what they are doing.

[Raz0s]

Yup Tint away.....

But i dunno about my car... Its back with Coral Red and I must say.... it looks better IMO with no tint. Opinions??

[1seriesfan]

Originally Posted by bkochuk

any other brands out there worth trying?

there's a place in Raleigh that really pushes the 3M brand. anyone have experience with it?

3M is what we just put on our car. It's probably pretty good tint as 3M is known for having a quality line of body finishing related products in the auto parts world. I'd believe most of tinting money is made in labor and doubt the tinter would try to steer you in the wrong direction to only make a couple of extra bucks on the tint itself, if that's even possible. Usually 3M products are a bit pricey as far as my background/experience dictates. (As they say, you get what you pay for.)

3M is also what my tinter preferred to sell me vs. the Lumex, and they've been tinting for many years. I'd say there's a reason why your's and mine both recommend it. They also gave me a lifetime warranty on the 3M against color change, normal wear and tear. Of course they won't replace it if I scratch it with a key or something though. Ask your tinter about that program.

[Drew330]

Raine, around GTA there are also a number of reputatable tint shops, but I don't have experience with any tint shops around Missisagua. I'm sure that you can find some other recommendations from internet search.

I had tried FX Auto but I cannot recommend them. Both cars (Mini Cooper and E46 coupe) that they've done for me had issues. Because they did not remove the door panel while tinting, the film's bottom edge meets the weatherstrip, not going below it, and this caused the tint to peel off easily. Both of my car's tint peeled from the side window corner after 3-4 years. Also there was a large dust particles in one windows and they refused to fix.. (they said it will go away but it never did) While they offer lifetime warranty, for they price I would expect better workmanship.

For my new 128i I took it to another reputable shop in GTA, but I cannot recommend them (yet) until they resolved some issue they caused during the tinting process.... it is just so hard to find the perfect tint shop.

A few advice for your search. You want to look for a good tint shop that does computer cut film (no knife on your brand new window), and removal of door panel in most case is necessary to ensure that the film goes below the weatherstrip to avoid peeling. Don't hesistate to ask questions to the shop owner to make sure they have the attention to quality. Good luck.