ard

Received a fix-it ticket in the 993 today for no front license plate and tinted windows today while at a STOP sign in Placer county. Oncoming LEO made a U-turn and proceeded to pull me over and cite me for said items.

I am willing to rig up a license plate frame but I am very reluctant to pull the tint off. I understand and respect the opinions of RL'ers who don't like tinted windows, but I happen to like it and find it useful in hot California summers.

I am away from home at the moment so I can't check what % tint I have. It had been my (possibly mistaken) understanding that a certain amount of tint was allowed and I asked the officer about it. He stated that technically speaking no film was allowed on the driver and passenger side windows, but that it was at the officer's discretion and in his opinion the tint was too dark.

Has anyone successfully challenged a fix-it ticket for window tint in California without actually having to remove the tint? If so please let me know (PMs okay if you prefer). I searched the site and didn't find a similar situation discussed.

Many thanks in advance.

goofballdeluxe

I got the same exact ticket for the exact same things last year.

As far as the tint goes, here in Los Angeles, I was able to keep it as long as I paid the fine. Actually, since it's a revenue deal, they want you to keep the tint so they can cite you again.

As for the front plate, you may want to mount it, as you'll get pulled over again since they want your money.

Welcome to California in 2012.

ard

Thanks for the reply. How were you able to get the ticket signed off without removing the tint? Didn't you have to bring your car to a CHP station and prove compliance?

goofballdeluxe

No, when the LAPD pulled me over he said I had two choices: fix it, and take it to the station to prove compliance, or pay the $175 and I could keep it. I then realized they really don't care if you have the tint, since they let you keep it if you pay the fine. At least that's how it works here in L.A.

As far as the front plate goes, I got tired of getting pulled over or getting the $25 parking tickets, so I finally mounted it. This was the solution I went with:

Leander

$25? I got one in Seal Beach the other day. It was $43, but can be reduced to $10 if I show compliance. As to the tint issue; I ride a bike a lot. I hate tinted windows because if I can't see the driver's eyes I'm unable to tell if he or she has seen me and I have no clue if I'm about to be side-swiped.

IXLR8

+1

windydog

I guess the cities need money. Thats a shame because I think there are so many other things the police could be doing rather than bothering hard working folks like us.

@leander: Sorry to hear the SB pulled you over. They are usually cool to me.

Chuck W.

I just dealt with this when my wife got a tinted window ticket in her Mini Cooper. Not that I did this..... but.... Don't remove the tint, go to the local Sheriff's station on a sunny day at noon time and park in the sun, ask the desk officer to sign off the ticket. When you park your car in the lot open the sunroof and the passenger window. This will make the tinted window appear untinted. You can test this in your driveway, it works.

Also, if you ever get stopped for a tinted window ticket in California be sure the officer checks the box that states "Correctable". If he checks "Not Correctable" you will get hit with a larger fine.

Edit: I should add, that by the letter of the law, tinted windows are not correctable. A burnt out tail light is correctable. A modified muffler or some other equipment that you altered yourself causing it to be illegal (re: tinted windows) does not fall under the correctable category. However, like anything else, the officer can check the correctable box and most do. The CHP and motor officers are more strict and tend to adhere to the letter of the law than the spirit.

Good luck.

600RR

Good advice from Chuck. I paid the fine rather than remove the tinting. So far in the last 15 years I have received two license plate fix-its and one tint cite. License plate is easy - not much activity in my area. San Francisco is a whole different story though. And, it seems, some small towns. FWIW, the license plate fix-it gave a CHP officer the choice to not cite speeding (80 mph on highway) and simply give me a warning and fix-it.

chaoscreature

I got the front license plate ticket about 10 years ago in an old jeep which never had a front plate. When I went to the local PD to argue/pay the fine one of the cars parked out front did not have a front license plate. I pointed the car out to the clerk and it was her car! She took the ticket from me and told me she would handle it

Chuck W.

I'll take that deal any day!

I have to agree with goofballdeluxe (again....ugh), it is a revenue thing. If they tell you it is a $25 fine to remove it or $195 to leave it, it is a revenue gathering ploy. In Los Angeles, I would estimate that over 50 per cent of the cars have illegal tint.

None of my four cars have front license plates and all are tinted illegally. This was our first citation. Not bad & I accept the consequences. I was upset because the officer correctly checked the "Not Correctable" box. The fine was set at $195 whether I removed it or not. So, I had my wife plead not guilty and take it to court. My reasoning was she could tell the judge it had be removed and the citation was signed off & it should be a a fix it ticket & we could save $170. As luck would have it, the officer failed to appear.
I was

ca993twin

Rufus got pulled over for window tint last year. As the date for showing compliance rolled closer, and still no letter describing the procedures for correction arrived (way understaffed, they said at the courthouse), I went ahead and pulled the tint, had it signed off, and paid my $25 fine. When the letter finally DID arrive, it explained that I could have kept the tint, and paid a higher fine (I think it was $110). Damn. Damn. Damn.

pirahna

Did you have someone in Santa Cruz do the tint? My back window has some bubbles and I would like to get it redone.

ca993twin

I paid a shop a small amount to remove the tint... still not replaced. The shop over on Water Street, across from 24-hour fitness talks a good story.

goofballdeluxe

It used to be $25, when I was getting tickets for it. Guess they've raised it. Imagine that

I ride a bicycle a lot as well and feel the same way about tint as I do about texting: they both are here to stay and so I just deal with it. Hating something that will never change makes less sense to me than just adapting my style to deal with it