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I feel like I'm reading a thread where everything is written in Chinese! I don't get this at all....you couldn't give me a free tint...nothing attractive about it in my book....and I live in Southwest Florida which has been steaming lately.
I also really like the asthetics of no tint, but I finally had the windows tinted.
I ended up getting Llumar ceramic 35% all around. Sort of wishing I went a little lighter, but the heat rejection is amazing. At the end of the day, my most joyful experience is from inside the car and not having my left arm burnt and awkwardly tanned is worth it.
I'm thinking of going with same tint brand and %. Are you happy with the color and quality?
^^^ this is why I got it only. However, with 70+ it looks clear in most situations.
IDK where there is a spot but I came to comment because companies like 3M and Llumar certify shops, so if you go on their site, there is probably a list of guaranteed/waranteed shops in your area for using 3M and Llumar. I am not sure but I assume Xpel and stuff like Huper Optik are similar. These companies make people get certified to do their tints and wraps.
I'm a fan of no tint on any of my cars, but being sunburned on several roadtrips I had to get it done as well as to protect the interior. I ended up tinting all the windows on my 997.1 with Suntek CIR film: 80 for the front windshield and 70 for the front/side windows and rear windshield. Like @jamesinger , I set my climate control to AUTO 20°C/68°F and it's a very comfortable drive.
Attached below is a cloudy pic for illustrative purposes.
And here's an overhead pic with my brother's car(no tint) in bright sunlight.
Last edited by Johnny.Boy; 09-03-2023 at 03:20 AM.
I feel like I'm reading a thread where everything is written in Chinese! I don't get this at all....you couldn't give me a free tint...nothing attractive about it in my book....and I live in Southwest Florida which has been steaming lately.
Hi Tom. I think this is the first time I have disagreed with you on anything but first time for everything as we're told. We live some 125 miles away from each other so same outside heat issue. I find the tint a huge relief from stark Florida sunshine through untinted windows. That said, I can see or at least guess where you're coming from. "Dark" windows on a blue car sort of disrupts the overall scheme where dark windows on a black car kind of blends in while also serving a purpose.
Hi Tom. I think this is the first time I have disagreed with you on anything but first time for everything as we're told. We live some 125 miles away from each other so same outside heat issue. I find the tint a huge relief from stark Florida sunshine through untinted windows. That said, I can see or at least guess where you're coming from. "Dark" windows on a blue car sort of disrupts the overall scheme where dark windows on a black car kind of blends in while also serving a purpose.
Hi Jonas! Good to hear from you! To each his own, right my friend!
Having been in Arizona for 20+ years, most cars here are tinted. When I first moved here, I extensively researched tint, primarily for heat reduction, and Huper Optik (Drei) was I put on my 2006 911 (and on a couple of my Lexus). They make tints for commertial buildings as well. Moving forward, went to 3M crystalline on a Ranger Rover I bought in 2011, and then went to Spectra Photosync on the last Lexus I bought for my wife.
More than anything, the key is the installer. There is high variability in the quality of install. The other problem that I realized over the years is certain installers have monopolized certain tints in the Valley. As such, you can only get it at certain places.
Most of these tints are all really good, but the tint with the best IR (heat) reduction is Spectra Photosync. The last installer I used has all the usual tints, and he has them mounted on glass, side by side, and then has a heat lamp that you can pass behind each glass and then touch, or pass your hand infront of the glass and it is extemely easy to feel the difference. Then you can pick the tint base on light transmission and color of tint (for example the Drei has a bluish tint color). The last 2 cars I bought were already tinted, and they are not as good IR reduction (including the Xpel that is on my GT3). Probably not worth removing the tint and re-installing with what I want however.
For me, clarity and heat reduction are the main priorities for tint, and as such Spectra Photosync is my current go to tint. The only negative with this tint is that it is significantly more expensive than all the other tints, but you get what you pay for.
Thanks JamesSinger for the detailed info and comparison photo of your old Audi.
Sorry but I couldn't help a slight LOL on your comment about friend that has black vinyl wrapped read windows to protect his kids from sun. That is indeed extreme. Helicopter parent extraordinaire? Maybe the lack of safety of having no visibility (i.e., blind spots) out of rear portion of the vehicle should be a larger concern for the safety of his kids. Aka missing forest for the trees. Not judging. Any parent is always trying to protect their kids is as best as possible, but there is a point of conflicting goals based on probabilistic results.
You've basically confirmed what I already suspected. Whatever tint VLT level I choose, I had already decided on Stratos due to the performance specs and YT videos comparing heat rejection etc of Stratos vs. others. At this point it's down to the aesthetics of the 50 vs. 70 (i.e., darker tint or virtually "clear" tint). With the incoming GTS 4.0 being Gentian Blue with all black interior I've reached analysis paralysis with the potentially slightly higher light/heat/glare rejection with 50 vs. the aesthetics of the virtually clear windows with slightly lower light/heat/glare rejection of 70. The TSER difference on Stratos 50 vs. 70 is 10% or less. The largest differences are obviously VLT at 20% reduction in 50 vs. 70 ( VLT 56 vs. VLT 69) and glare reduction at approximately 75% (37 vs. 21).
Anyone that has a Genetian blue (or similar blue) with or without a black interior have photos comparing a 50 tint and/or a 70 tinted car?
Thanks in advance all!
Totally irrelevant at this point but I teased my friend about this and he said it is euro "privacy glass" that he also put tint on for more thermal/UV rejection. We all have OCD and should create a support group, lol. ...So NOT vinyl as I thought when I saw it. It is just blacked out windows completely though. Assumptions were made.
not his but looks like this
Last edited by jamesinger; 09-04-2023 at 05:25 PM.
I’ve never paid for tint. 3 cars I’ve owned have come with it (including the cpo 911). 2 were pretty dark and probably ‘illegal’. The one on the 911 I like just don’t know what percentage it is.
If you don’t know the % it’s too dark.. part of me doesnt like dark windows on a 911… like I said above I tinted mine and it’s too dark…
If I understand it right, the % number reefers to the amount of light the tint allows through the windows. So its confusing to many (including me) since it's easy to assume that the higher the percentage of the tint the darker it gets when it's actually the exact opposite. For example, 30% tint allows 30% light through the window while 50% brings 50% light through the window. At least this is how it was explained to me by the shop that dis my last tint.
If I understand it right, the % number reefers to the amount of light the tint allows through the windows. So its confusing to many (including me) since it's easy to assume that the higher the percentage of the tint the darker it gets when it's actually the exact opposite. For example, 30% tint allows 30% light through the window while 50% brings 50% light through the window. At least this is how it was explained to me by the shop that dis my last tint.
your correct… 5% would be like looking into the black hole. I think mine is 15%. I might go 30% on the sides and leave the back
Last edited by GT3twenty10; 09-05-2023 at 08:07 AM.
08-28-2023, 01:19 PM
