Ted Striker
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- May 25, 2019
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- Houston, Texas
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- 2021 Gladiator Texas Trail
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I've seen multiple threads about window tinting and plenty of them have questions. It seems there is a lot of confusion and misunderstanding when it comes to window tint as well as things that you might just not know. So I'm here to help you through it. In my over 20 years of driving, I have owned over 21 vehicles and every single one of them have had the windows tinted. It's a must here in Houston as the summer sun will absolutely beat you to death with heat inside a vehicle. I am not an installer, just an informed consumer who is here to spread some knowledge.
- First things first - PRIVACY GLASS IS NOT TINT! Say it with me now - PRIVACY GLASS IS NOT TINT! Privacy glass is what our Gladiators have on the rear windows and rear window. Privacy glass is glass that is smoked darker from the factory. It offers absolutely no heat rejection or UV rays protection (more on that later). I see a lot of people ask on every car forum I've ever been on what % tint to tint the front windows to match the rear. If this is for cosmetics and you don't care about actually making the temperature of the interior of your vehicle cooler, then by all means, match it up and go. If you're looking for something more, read on...
- Tint comes in many different forms/grades/percentages/manufacturers and they are not all the same and the quality vs. price will show that. I've had vehicles done with cheap tint ($100 whole vehicle) and I've had vehicles done with expensive tint ($800 whole vehicle) and the difference is amazing. I currently have 3M Crystalline on the Gladiator and Black Max Carbon on my wife's 4Runner. Both of these have high heat rejection values and high UV ray protection. Why does that matter? Well, the more heat rejection, the cooler it is when you get in the vehicle after it's been sitting in the sun all day or if you're driving, the less your air conditioning has to work to keep the cabin cool. In both of our vehicles, on a 95 degree day outside, I can set the climate control to Auto and 75 degrees and the A/C fan is on low to low medium. UV protection matters when it comes to protecting the materials inside the vehicle such as plastics and leathers. The less UV rays the tint lets through, the less damage these materials take over the life of the vehicle.
- We all know tint laws vary by state so I won't cover that too much but what I will say is that most tint places will tint your windows to whatever darkness you want because it ultimately lies on you to follow the laws. For instance, if you want to match the factory "privacy glass", you will need to go about 20% on the front windows. In most states, this is illegal. Most states are somewhere in the 30% to 35% range with some going into 50% and even some saying none at all. However, if you tint over the privacy glass in the rear (which you should if you want maximum protection from heat and UV rays), and you do it with 20% tint, the back is now closer to 5% and you will need to go darker on the front to match. Still further, if you decide to tint the windshield, which is illegal in most states unless you have a medical exemption, the fronts and rear will look much darker than they normally would because of how little light is actually being let in to the cab. All things to consider if you live in an area with overzealous police officers or you live in an area that requires annual vehicle inspections.
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