Latest & Greatest Window Tint Thread

Yes. Llumar makes Pinnacle F1 which is probably one of the best films on the market right now. Like huper optik, it's a ceramic film so there's no interference with cell phones, and it has superior heat rejection. But.. It doesn't carry the same expense as huper.

When people mention 35%, they are talking about the aggregate of 26%. Law does take into account the aggregate. So getting 50% would be legal but 35% is not legal. But I don't think most people are actually caught with this technicality.

Metallic will still interfere with your cell phone. Radio not so much since the antenna is outside the car.

 

A 50% film will add double the heat rejection and has nearly 99.9% UVA and UVB rejection.

However, I would get the darker tint. Unless tints are rare where you live (in CA they are very common) a cop is highly unlikely to pull you aside for 35% tints, even if they have an illegal aggregate of 26%. It's just too difficult for cops to discern. Now, if you're speeding and they have their tint gun to measure VLT and they're in a bad mood, you could be in trouble...

When most people buy 35% they are not even considering the aggregate, and they usually never get caught for it either.

"Metallic" was just a buzzword tinting companies used to market their products, as opposed to a dyed-tint, which has the potential to breakdown and age under sunlight. Today "ceramic" is the buzzword. These are just labels companies slap on their products to sell them for more money. You don't need ceramic or metallic in order to have a great tint.

I've never heard of Johnson Marathon, but from my quick searches online, it doesn't sound too great.

Not knowing which Suntek he sells is a HUGE red flag to me. It means he won't be able to stand by his product. And, he might be spread too thin. You want someone who's knowledgeable and know's exactly what's going on.

My tint specialist installed Suntek Carbon XP 18% on my hatch and rear windows. It is a great tint and has a lifetime guarantee against fading, bubbling, purpling, etc. IMO, it has the truest black color. It's also non metal so you don't have to worry about interference.

Within all brands, there are cheaper products and then there are better products. (Just like how Shimano slaps bicycle gears on bikes from Toys R Us and the bikes in the Tour de France) Ok, I'll use Suntek as an example:

I stand by Suntek's Carbon XP, fervently. That's the best I can recommend and speak for since it's all I've ever used. Be careful, however. Suntek also makes a cheaper film -- Suntek HP (High Performance), which IMO, looks a little more purplish because they call it "Charcoal" (CXP is called "Black") and it is not guaranteed for life...hmmm, I wonder why...

...And this is why you need to go to someone who knows their products! They can explain all this stuff to you

You can see Suntek's full lineup here: SunTek Window Films - Automotive Window Films and Window Tinting

More importantly than the tint you choose (b/c they're all decent) is finding a friendly and experienced tint specialist/installer -- someone who will stand by their work and their product and help you out (for free) anytime. Window tinting is not a pre-packaged item you can buy from store to store. It's a highly trained skill that takes years to perfect. I paid a little more money for mine, but the guy has been in the business for over 20 years and loves talking about tints. I used to call him just to ask him one question and he'd talk to me for 30 minutes. There are good people out there. Trust Yelp.

 

Got mine done 15% in the back and love it

 

I'll second the Formula One Pinnacle recommendation. I had it in my Tundra, then BMW, and now Prius, all with nav, Bluetooth, etc. Never a problem with calls or location on gps.

 

I'm actually getting my Prius done with F1 Pinnacle Plus 30% front and back right now. I'll post pics later. Also, ceramic really is different than non-ceramic. They aren't just marketing terms. You can look up the specifications of any film you're interested in and determine how much heat rejection it will provide. You'll notice that ceramic compared to its non-ceramic counterpart rejects much more heat.

LLumar's regular and premium non ceramics are 26% and 34% heat rejection for the 50% tint... For the ceramic it's 49% heat rejection.

 

Bham...I can highly recommend Prestige Tinting in Lynnwood. He does all the high dollar vehicle tinting for the local Lexus, Benz, Acura, Jag etc...dealers and is usually $50 to $100 cheaper than anyone else. Andy does a phenomenal job and is super anal about your tint. He'll let you hand out and watch the install if you wish. He also uses Suntek.

Last time I was in he was tinting a $100k+ AMG Benz for the local dealer...absolutely professional.

I won't go anywhere else.

Tell him Bill the cop sent you.

Good luck.

 

Be careful going too dark on the front. I went with 20% (I think) on the front and wish I'd gone lighter. Makes night driving a bit more difficult, and I've often found myself putting the driver window down sometimes to see/read information off the road. You may want to go 50% on the front, but that's just from my personal preference. I went with 5% on the back, and have no gripes about that, other than trying to judge distance at night from headlights. Again, to each his own, though.

On the positive side, it makes a HUGE difference in the summer months with regards to the sun/heat getting into the car. If I had to do it again, I'd definitely go lighter on front, and debate whether to go a notch lighter on the back.

I've got the darker gray (I guess that's Winter Grey?), but like I said, mine is darker than you're looking at.

I don't remember which brand they installed, but it has the lifetime warranty. I'd have to find the paperwork again to know for sure (I think I put it in the glove box, but who knows what I did with it).

 

Just got back from the tint shop! He put on pinnacle plus 30% from what I believe to be all the windows.. The fronts look lighter but that might be just because there's more light coming from the windshield. I'll have to check to make sure.

Update: Looks like 30% all around. And I got it done for 350$ so 300$ for you is a good price. I just had mine installed by the person who installs for Llumar, the actual company. The headquarters is located next to the shop where I had mine tinted.

Some Pictures:



This is what it looks like from inside, the windshield is not tinted:



And picture compared to Audi with no tints:

 

how did you get clear corner headlights?

 

I didn't. I think that's just glare ha ha

 

I'd sure like to see that as well. Just what I have and was thinking about !

REV