Tint Removal

[Melville]

I need to get the dark tint removed from all my windows, including windshield, so that it can pass DC inspection. I think the rear defogger is inside the glass so the tint removal shouldn't mess with the elements. Is there anything I need to be aware of (or more accurately anything I need to warn the shop about that will do the work)? It's pretty dark tint all around but it looks like it's in good shape. Not bubbling etc.

 

[gsxr]

Shame you have to remove it. I add dark tint to all my cars, not remove it! Must have tint restrictive laws in DC. It may cost a small bundle to have it removed... takes a couple hours of steaming / scraping.

 

[Melville]

Shame you have to remove it. I add dark tint to all my cars, not remove it! Must have tint restrictive laws in DC. It may cost a small bundle to have it removed... takes a couple hours of steaming / scraping.

I only called one place so I'm not sure if this is market price around here, but I was quoted $165 which includes the front windshield. That is if it's a "normal" job. They warned that if the tint has been on for a long time or other issues arise, they could start charging by the hour.

In DC, no tint is allowed on the windshield except along the top. The front side windows must let in at least 70% light, and the rear windows must let in at least 50% of the light. This is much less than Florida where the front side windows must let in 28% light and 15% for the rear windows.

 

[samiam44]

I've been stopped a few times here..

I always nicely explain that the tinting was done prior to Texas having a tint law- so I am grandfathered. Never been pushed on it..



Michael

 

[gsxr]

I only called one place so I'm not sure if this is market price around here, but I was quoted $165 which includes the front windshield. That is if it's a "normal" job. They warned that if the tint has been on for a long time or other issues arise, they could start charging by the hour.

In DC, no tint is allowed on the windshield except along the top. The front side windows must let in at least 70% light, and the rear windows must let in at least 50% of the light. This is much less than Florida where the front side windows must let in 28% light and 15% for the rear windows.

That price quote sound about right. I've also had places tell me they charge by the hour because it's such a PITA.

NY and CA have similar stupid laws, 50-70% up front. DC is worse than most if they only allow 15% in the rear. Most states allow zero on the rear, i.e. you could paint the glass black if you wanted. Think about it, some cargo vans have no rear windows at all, so why can't you have less than 15% behind the driver in a sedan? Sheesh. If your eyes are light sensitive you may be able to get a medical exemption but that's a lot of effort. I had LASIK about 10 years ago any my eyes are more light sensitive than they used to be. We put 20% (or darker) on the front windows and 5% on the rears, on all our cars; 3M ColorStable. Great stuff. Can't do the windshield though. I didn't know FL allowed anything on the windshield.

 

[Bogeyman]

I had old tint on my 87 300TDT when I bought it. It was old - had been on there most of 20 years.
I just peeled it off myself. It split up in a few places, but overall no big deal. Have some adhesive remover handy for leftover glue spots.
The back window with the heat strips on the inside was the trickiest part, but I got it off without damaging the strips.

 

[gsxr]

Correct - the film peels right off. But it usually leaves behind the adhesive layer, which may or may not be easy to remove. Generally need to go over every part of the glass with a single-edge razor blade. Thankfully the 500E comes with the embedded wires in the rear glass, so no worries about damaging them. All other 124's, be really careful back there.

 

[nocfn]

Get a wallpaper steamer, some towels and that makes quick work of it. Slow&Rusty posted a thread on it. He gets credit, piece of cake. When I did it in a laminated back glass, I actually got improvement on the delam using steam.YRMV

 

[Melville]

So I thought the windshield had very light tint but I checked it when I got back from work and it looks tint-free. Not sure why I was so convinced it had a light tint. Maybe the other heavily tinted windows made the inside of the car look so dark when looking at it from the outside through the windshield. Or maybe I'm stupid. Or both.

This is a job I would like to do myself, but I have time constraints right now and I want this done so I can go through the inspection. The DMV does the inspections in DC so there is no way to get a "nice" shop to sign off on the car with tint.

 

[nocfn]

The wallpaper steamer takes longer to heat up than it does to remove 30 year old purple tint from 2 doors

 

[Gatorblue92]

I used a handheld clothes steamer to remove the tint in an old W123 a few years back and it worked well.

 

[jeff0093]

Remove.the tint by hand if you can heat it (sun or heat gun) the sheets will come off in bigger section , then spray on 3m adhesive removal (spray can) the spray can seems to adhere better then the other can they market the same product in, let it sit for 3 mins, remove the glue with razor blades. I've done this job a couple times.very messy and takes time time, if someone is willing to do it for $165 and you trust them let them.do it. Just.make sure they have done it before and won't make a mess of your interior.

 

[frm1484]

When i got mine, it had very dark tint on the back window only, in the old dealer FS ad at euroclassic motors, there was tint all over the whole car but a PO had to remove all but rear window for his state inspection.

My detail guy has been putting in some QT on my car for about the last week in a variety of places, and while it is with him i am having him remove the rear dark tint which looked like crap as the only tinted window on the car and he is addding a very clear LLumar film that has just the slightest hint of blue to it (called the AIR 80 Clear Ceramic Film), but basically looks like the car doesn't even have tint (looks similar to many newer factory MBs with a very subtle bluish tint). Despite how transparent it is, it still does an amazing job at blocking heat (43% solar rejection i think but with 78% visible light transmission vs on the charcoal tints that level of solar rejection only has either 18% or 38% visible light transmission depending on if you choose the base or premium film)....i did the cheesy heat lamp demo test with the different films in his office and was pretty amazed at how well it worked. FWIW my detail guy did my tint removal for free while he was installing the new tint (realize it was just one window), and I have a receipt from a prior owner getting what looked like just front interior windows tint removed by a MB dealer and he only paid $40 back in 2010, but had the car in for a number of other things at same time.

If you are interested in going route of adding tint to protect interior from heat and u/v, my detail guy (who i very deeply trust) is both a LLumar and 3M certified dealer but recommends the LLumar as a superior product (basically carries the 3M just because some guys come in determined that they want the 3m name)

 

[8899]

If you are interested in going route of adding tint to protect interior from heat and u/v, my detail guy (who i very deeply trust) is both a LLumar and 3M certified dealer but recommends the LLumar as a superior product (basically carries the 3M just because some guys come in determined that they want the 3m name)

Can your guy recommend a LLumar dealer in northern Virginia?

 

[frm1484]

Picking car up this afternoon and will ask him, think they have a dealer locator on their website too

 

[gsxr]

There are a few different mfr's of the clear/ceramic film for heat rejection, if you're interested in that. I checked into it years ago for windshield application. Neat stuff, but expensive, and difficult to install because it's thicker than normal dark tint film. Here are the three I could find now:

Llumar - http://northamerica.llumar.com/choose-a-product/automotive-window-films/clear-window-films
Huper Optik - https://huperoptikusa.com/automotive/
3M - http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/...s/Markets-Products/Automotive/Ceramic-Series/

At the time I think I was considering Huper, can't recall the difference vs the others.

 

[frm1484]

Can your guy recommend a LLumar dealer in northern Virginia?

Unfortunately he didn't know anyone specifically in NOVA / DC area. I really like the Air 80 on mine. You really don't notice that there is tint at all, they make an air 90 as well which doesn't even have the blue hint that mine has and is literally indistinguishable from clear untinted glass, but the solar rejection drops off pretty precipitously so i elected to stick to the Air 80 product

Not to hijack thread, but thinking about starting a new thread to rave about a product called opti-coat that i just had put on. Will post pics tomorrow but my paint literally looks like a sheet of glass now and this product is a protectant that effectively replaces the need for waxing for 5 years (comes with a 5 yr warranty) and puts on a surface significantly more durable than wax that is almost like another layer of clear. You wouldn't have known it from the FS pics, but my car had been waaaayyyy over "detailed" by a PO or his untrained detail guy somewhere down the line, and it looked like someone took a buffer to it with a dirty pad or just simply not knowing what they were doing and beat up the clear coat on it pretty bad. It wasn't scratches like you see from lack of wax and many washings, this was basically pervasive on the entire car and looked like i was in a back and forth motion consistent across basically every sqaure inch of the car leading me to believe it was a botched detail attempt.......luckily after a week of professional polishing and this opticoat product those problems have been eliminated and i should have a pretty nice armor for the car going forward.

 

[frm1484]

Promised pics of outcome from OptiCoat and my detail guy who knows what he is doing with the polishes... back to the topic of the post in the first place, you can see what the tint looks in the last pic (basically like its not there, have yet to have the car out on a hot day and have it sit in a parking lot to see how well the solar ultimately rejection works)

 

[7delta]

I have this on the windshield of my truck with legal tint on the rest of the windows. I have been pleased with the performance. The dash seems to stay cooler. It does however not go good with polarized sunglasses. [emoji6]

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[Melville]

I have this on the windshield of my truck with legal tint on the rest of the windows. I have been pleased with the performance. The dash seems to stay cooler. It does however not go good with polarized sunglasses. [emoji6]

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Thanks for the tip about polarized sunglasses. I was thinking about getting that but was wondering about how it works with polarized sunglasses as it might be a deal killer for me.

 

[nocfn]

Lots of bubbles I suspect?

 

[frm1484]

I have this on the windshield of my truck with legal tint on the rest of the windows. I have been pleased with the performance. The dash seems to stay cooler. It does however not go good with polarized sunglasses. [emoji6]

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

I did it on windshield too and agree with polarized sunglasses comment......driving into direct sun things can start to look a little trippy sometimes (e.g. The asphalt was purple behind my sunglasses)

 

[7delta]

Lots of bubbles I suspect?

Only just after initial installation. Absolutely none now.

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[nocfn]

I meant, my polarized glasses seem to spot ripples in other cars. But I don't see them without the glasses.

 

[7delta]

I understand now. [emoji12]

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