Hi Guys. Recently had the windows on my xkr tinted. I went for a 35% Bolle tint. (Darkest you can go in NZ) Looks fantastic. Optics on it are so clear. Full UV protection. Will try and get some pix up. I took some before and after shots in similar lighting conditions.
Anyone else gone down the tinting route?....Cheers

 

Tinted mine in the recent past, including my windshield. I went 45 all around except windshield which I did 55. It is the ceramic/metallic stuff.

Makes a huge difference with interior heat. Also with the UV blocking it should save my dash leather and help relieve the heat stress from the interior.

I am very glad I did it.

 

I've got 30 on the sides and 20 in the rear. Good stuff!

 

whenever i get a new car, i always start considering it...and then i get a wave of people telling me how many tickets they've gotten for their tinted windows.

NY limit is 70%...which is a joke.

 

I also tinted mine at 30% all the way around, (legal limit in NC). I had my front windshield filmed with a UV 3M product that cuts down the UV rays, and preserves the dash too. I have 20% on my truck, and every year, it becomes more of a pain to get it inspected too.

 

Thanks for the post. I have an appointment to get tinting next week. I have a question about tinting the windshield, which is illegal here as I think it probably is most anywhere. If I go very light on the windshield, just enough to take the glare off but not enough to make it dangerous, do you think it will be noticeable enough to cause me problems? I don't plan on going any darker than legal on the sides (35%, I believe). I'm not looking for a pimp-mobile, just a classy, streamlined look.

2011JaguarXF: does your windshield have any tint or just UV protection? I've never tinted a car before so I'm just not so sure about the windshield, but I do want to protect the leather on those two sunny days a year we get.

 

Now i have had the sides and rear tinted. Looking through the front windscreen, from outside, looks darker. We can't tint the front screen (New Zealand).
Muddydog. Are you able to check out an xk/xkr with tints to see how the front screen looks without tint? If your interior is dark, like mine. It gives the illusion the whole thing is darker. Looks cool.
Check out the Bolle range, if you can get that there. I found that looking at the sky with a black or smoke tint changed the look of a blue sky. The bolle didn't, sky looked really blue. Looks great on the xkr. Good luck with it. Don't think you will be disappointed.

 

Muddydog, you could put a pretty high VLT on the windshield and I doubt anyone would know it was tinted at all. The brand I used goes up to 80. I have 55 on mine; 55 all around. And, as rscultho points out, the interior heat difference is dramatic.

 

Washington State says it's illegal to tint the front wind shield, and I'm fairly certain the legal limit is 30% on the sides. But getting an 80% tint would likely not be noticed at all. I've not ever been pulled over in the Seattle area for tint. But on the other hand, it's dark here often enough that too dark makes night driving a pain. <shrugs> To each their own, but I do like the 30% on the sides. There are a couple of great shops I know of on the east side that do great work if you're interested.

 

RCW 46.37.430
Rahtok is correct about full tint of the windshield... However you are allowed the top 6" or to the A-1 line, whichever is shorter. (see Sec 5e)
Also per Sec 5e, a full "clear" UV protectant is allowed.

Sec 5b describes legal tint limits for our state at 35%

Vince

 

Thx. My tint is already paid for so I'm committed as to which place. I've been looking at cars in my neighborhood, and Muncher is right, if the other windows are tinted it's really hard to assess the windshield because the interior is already darker. And I do have a charcoal colored interior as well. I didn't think about the color of the tint changing the color of the sky. I'll look into that, too.

 

My interior is dark as well, and the 45 on the sides and the back looks darker because of the dark interior.

Given you are in Seattle, and that you have a dark interior, and as has been pointed out your weather/light, I would imagine going below 45 might be too much. With a dark interior 45 will look very dark. 55 may be the thing for your given where you are...

 

The front is a 3m UV protection film and really not considered a "tint". It does however, have a slight tint to it if you compare it to a windshield that does not have the film on it. I can definitely tell the difference from the UV film keeping the sun and heat out after having it installed. Living in the south, you need it if you park your car outside much, (which I do not). As you mentioned, it is not legal here in NC to tint the front windshield. Depending on where you go to get your car inspected, some are much more strict than others because they are monitored by the state on inspections. Hope this helps!

 

Update: tinting done. Looks great from any distance. Very disappointed that the "dot matrix" around the window did not tint well giving a lighter ring around the dark window. Also the little side windows have thick rubber stripping on the inside so the tint doesn't go all the way to the edge. I may take it back and ask them to re-work that. Up close it doesn't seem perfect to me, which I'm not happy with.

 

You can definitely "tint" the windshield legally in OR, but "tint" is a misnomer. It is actually an almost clear UV shield. It is not noticeable. Basically, it's non-detect.

 

In Houston, you almost have to get your windows tinted or your seat and steering wheel will be too hot to touch after an afternoon at the mall. I am sure its the same in Hot-lanta. I get my cars tinted as dark as is legal as soon as I get them.

 

Muddydog. Definetely take it back! The rear quarter windows actually slide out. Open your door. Peel back the rubber strip on the door jam next to the rear quarter window. You will see a bolt. Undo and slide out the window. Easy 2 minute job. That's what was done with mine. The whole quarter window is tinted then put back in. Very professional.
I had bubbles on mine for about 2 weeks. They gradually go. I was told o allow up to 21 days.

 

Wow, that was incredibly easy. Thanks for that tip. I have an appointment to take it back this Saturday and fix it.

 

I had my Porsche Cayman tinted 20 in the back and 35 on the side windows and thought that the 35 looked too light. When i had the XK tinted I had them do 20 on the sides as well as the back. Here in Houston, because of the heat, the inspection shops see a lot of darker tints.

 

........just realized that the picture in my signature is before the tint!