Window tint issues... Normal?
 

This is the first car I've gotten windows tinted on and I can't say it's been an overly pleasant experience thus far. My first question: do most tint shops leave a little gap at the top edge of the roll-up windows and also the rear edge? Mine did and I think it looks terrible. Also they were hand cut and the edges were pretty jagged around the corner. And for the back window, on the top edge from the inside there is a lot of the glass that is not covered by the interior roof panel but is painted black on the inside so you can't see through it. The tint shop just eyed it up from the outside by what he could see from a light shining through it and there is about 2 inches of glass exposed above the tint film visible from inside the cabin. He doesn't want to redo it because he says "contaminants will get in under the edge if we go any further onto the painted glass." I think this is bullshit and I want him to re-do it so you can't see the edge of the film. Is this too much to ask or am I getting pushed around here?

I'll post pics in the morning when it's light out.

I've had many cars tinted and I've never had more than an 1/8" between the tint and the top of the window, never had a gap at the back edge either - lines should be clean! And my tint guy never leaves more than 2-3 tiny bubbles if any and they go away within the first week or he redoes it, not because I bitch&moan, but because he takes pride in his work!

wow sounds like they did a dyi type tint job was this at a professional shop? My windows are tinted right up to the edge of the glass there might be a 1mm gap but thats it. I'd request a refund and go somewhere else. there should never be any jagged edges. The shop I used had cut everything too so there shouldn't be any excuses

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That's really crappy work. I would ask for a redo. I'll take pics of mine.. if you want. so you can show the place you want how you want it done.

Yes, very sloppy, and I would complain.

Demand a refund and go somewhere else. If they redo it I bet it will turn out just the same. There are even tutorials on youtube that say, "For frameless windows there should be no more than a 1/16" gap all along, and conform to the edge of the window." Shame on that shop... looks like a DIY job that was rushed. How much did you pay? I hope it wasn't much!

mine doesn't look that way at all. Get a redo.

that is horrible get refund...

I have been told by a Toyota dealership that the 86/Brz is very difficult to tint. seems like your tint guy ran into some issues. do like other have suggested and get him to redo it or get your money back. Took a guy over at my Toyota dealership three times to get a customer's 86 right. Maybe he's bad too. lol

I've got an appointment Tuesday to have it redone. I'm pretty pissed to tell you the truth. I even took out the rear deck panel to get the third brake light out of the way for them. But the real kicker was today I found a small (1/4") dent in my roof.... I'm going to raise hell over that. It looks like the guy may have dropped something or had something in his hand while pushing down on the roof near the driver's door. Didn't hurt the paint (thank God) but it's definitely noticeable.

:barf: WTF?!?!?! Now that's just wrong... and if anything I BET that shop WILL say something along the lines of, "Well, I don't think it was us, and it probably wasn't. Sod off because you can't prove anything." I feel for you... this is why I like to learn and try DIY style.

That sucks. I'd taken a car in to a supposedly reputable tint shop where a lot of friends had their vehicles done, only to have to take it back twice because I wasn't satisfied (stretched tint, bubbles, etc.)

I do know that the dot matrix is supposedly a pain and doesn't allow the tint to stick, but there are some shops out there that know how to do it.

But yeah, by all means, get that redone if you're not happy with it. If they can't do it to satisfaction, get a refund.

I'd kick them in the effen nuts for that work. I had mine done yesterday...Sun Tek Carbon and CXP for the front windshield...entire thing covered with 70% and all other windows at 18% and not a bubble or issue in sight...including those areas where the window meets the black painted area. Not sure what you paid, but without windshield my work was 200 for perfection. I can take pics as well and I have no gaps at the top...maybe 1mm.

saw my back window and it has small little open area's like that but you cant even tell....I didnt do my front windows cause how the law is over here in Cali :/

All my windows are solid tint. No edge... 20% all around.

Yeah guys, any pics if you could post them here that would be great. I'll show the guy what it's supposed to look like when I see him.

Sucks about your tint.
Installers generally leave the small gap on roll up windows so that it is less likely to catch on the window frames when rolling up or down. If it went right to the edge and caught it would rip and bubble in no time and look a lot worse.

The dot matrix in your pictures is a common issue on Japanese cars, since the tint doesn't have enough surface area on the glass to stick to it ends up looking like a bubble. Some shops choose to sand these lightly and tint over them making this not visible, or stop just before this and paint it out. My civic Si had about a 2" gap at the top of dot matrix that my tint guys just painted out with a flat black paint, couldn't see it from the outside nor the inside.

I would say it was probably done by a frustrated installer, this is probably the first of these cars he's done and ran into some problems that show in his work. I would take it back in (without raging like a moron) and ask if they can fix it, if not have it removed and refunded and go somewhere else.

My solution would be no tint, but thats just me.

The tint is almost a necessity here in Arkansas. It's over 110° today, going to be pushing triple digits for the next 2-3 months... With the black interior, it gets toasty quick! Window tint and the windshield sunshade make a huge difference. I'm going in tomorrow morning, going to have him do the side windows and see if he'll redo the back window as well on another day. I'll be showing him this thread if he tries pulling the "all window tinting is done this way" card.

This coming from a shop who does Window Tinting ourselves... Im surprised someone could let that kind of work leave there shop. Looks like they ran through it as quick as possible. We hand cut everything also but its not complicated to get straight edges and nice curves if you know what your doing. The dot matrix like stated before is something you cant avoid sometimes unless you go to a place who will do extras such as sand. We warn customers prior to install that the possibility exists so they arent surprised afterward. I'd just ask for your money back and take it somewhere else unless he is willing to make it right. I understand you cant always get something perfect and maybe he was frustrated but in the end your customer service speaks for itself. Personally if anyone ever has a complaint around here we fix it and take care of the customer regardless so they leave happy once again.

What he said.

The shop that did mine uses a plotter to cut the tint so everything lines up perfectly, but the dot matrix issue is an issue regardless.. There are multiple ways around it but it sucks that they put that crap on windows.

20% all around for ours (minus front of course)... Doors tinted right to the edge... they used a small file and it came out perfect... You can't even tell it's not factory. I did pay a lil extra for that otherwise I would have gotten an 1/8" too. I didn't roll down my windows for 4 days. I have no bubbles or imperfections... Tint guy was awesome... took about 3 hours while I waited and just under $200.

Didn't have to do too much arguing, after I told him all that I wanted done he said he'd rather just give me my money back. Going to get it redone later this week at the place I should have gone in the first place.

Good to hear, now you can go into the new shop loaded with information and questions. Nothing like being an educated consumer :D The guys at the new shop will probably treat you a lot better when you walk in there knowing what you're talking about and asking the right questions.

Good luck at the new shop, and make sure you post some updated pics.

haha, I like how he doesn't even want to try it again.

My car came with polarized windows (not sure if this is stock, pretty sure this isn't tints), is this supposed to be the case or did the dealers just give me extra love?

I'm not sure, but now that you mention it I think at least the side windows are on mine, must be a factory thing.

Well if it's a factory thing then I'm plenty satisfied, it doesn't look too bad at all.
I was thinking about spending more money on it before I even got the car but in this case looks like I'll be fine without spending any for tinting :thumbup:

Get a redo bud. Thats utter bullshit. I had NO bubbles on mine when my tint shop did it. As far as the little gap where the windows roll up, yea mine is like that too.

I finally got pics of my tint as I spoke about in my previous post. Tint is the hardest thing to take pics of...because it's clear! Camera wants to focus on everything else. You should get the idea from these regarding quality you should be seeking. For the 1st pic inside looking out the "gap" is just the angle cut at the top where the glass is frosted and can't be tinted...mine actually goes all the way up. And the reason for the windshield pics is my entire windshield is tinted...top to bottom. All tint is Suntek Carbon 18% except for windshield which is CXP 70%.

Thanks guys. I got mine redone at a different shop. Cheaper, better work. Not perfect but for the price I can't complain.

Just realized you are in Arkansas...I graduated High School there...Bentonville.

Yes... :offtopic:

How hard is getting past that 3rd brake light during the tinting process? Did you have it tinted around the 3rd brake light or get it removed to tint the entire rear window? I don't know how I'm gonna get the rear window tinted, and I don't want the deck to get torn apart just to get the rear window tinted. Any suggestions or experience from those who have gotten tint done?

F the law. I did mine. :party0030:

To quote one of my favorite lines from this forum, "That makes me wanna punch a baby". Just had mine done, no gaps to be found even looking up very, very close. $200

For those that have their windows tinted. Do you guys notice that the rear windshield is kind of blurry or distorted ? When you look to the back, it looks unclear ? I'm assuming it's from the heated lines for the rear windshield.

It should get better after a few days of installation. But yeah, the defogger lines become more visible and it creates a distortion on the film.

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