TINT

Is Llumar film ceramic? I am getting mine done Friday, its a 17 TRD Sport DCSB, and they don't use ceramic, should I definitely go ceramic? I don't mind to pay more, but is it really worth it? I am going 20% in the front and leaving the back alone.

 

^^^Ceramic film?!?!?! I wouldn't worry about it man I have had at least 100 cars tinted and never heard of ceramic in tint. Just make sure to ask if it will fade or scratch..........Just an fyi if you go 20% in front and nothing in back your front WILL be darker. Go with 35% if you want them to match.

 

I've had metallic, ceramic and regular tints on my cars. Metallic screwed up radio signals. Saw no noticeable difference bt regular and ceramic

 

Ceramic is awesome and you can really feel the difference in Texas sun. I got my windshield done with clear ceramic as well.

 

Bubbles are normal for a few days. Park in the sun.

The tint goes on wet and as it dries it "sucks" better to the glass, eliminating the bubbles.

If you still have bubbles after a week, then there's an issue and the tint shop needs to address that. As far as "dust", if that's under the tint (?) then that's a shitty job of tinting and needs to be fixed by the shop.

 

^^^wait at least a week before you take it off. As someone already said park it in the sun and small bubbles are normal there is moisture under the film. Do not remove it yet that stuff might go away..............

 

I did my rig in Llumar ceramic film. I did 25% fronts and added a 5% in the rear window....which is a bit foolish since I got a topper. But by adding the tint to the back you can really cut down on the volume of light inside the vehicle...which is what allows others to see in....

 

Thanks for the info. The bubbles did almost go away after 3-4 days, so I'm glad I listened to the advice of this forum. There definitely IS dust under the tint, but I haven't decided if it bothers me enough to ask for it to be redone (it's not crazy noticeable).

 

no flack! but do you like the windshield tint? i got it on my wife's Tiguan... she loves it and i hate it. it messes up my sunglasses, and it's not enough to skip them.

 

I'm half and half. I also have windshield banner. Between the two I never wear sunglasses. But I can see your point. If I do have my sunglasses on (when I first got it) they don't last too long as I feel like it's too dark inside or something. Oh and driving at night in the rain kind of sucks.

 

80% on my wife's windshield and 70% on mine. Personally, I wouldn't go darker than that. At 70 I feel like I can see just fine at night in any weather but everyone's eyes are different.

 

Do you have any trouble defrosting in winter? I always wanted to do that but was unsure about it.

 

Toyota factory tint sucks, its like a 28% which almost no manufacturer of film makes. Fords, chevys, dodge, etc are almost all a 20% from the factory. By factory I mean colored glass, that's all it is, no factory tint eliminates any more UV from the sun than any normal window.

Also, don't trust pictures of tint online, they all look great.. you'll never truly see the flaws or the color difference from a picture.

Just another fun fact, ever since Toyota and Subaru hooked up the 4Runner glass is crap, blue-ish hue factory tint on the back, and super green glass on the driver and passenger doors. Terrible idea on their part.

Either way it'll be pretty hard to get a 100% match to your windows without the film turning purple eventually... that's another story though..

Been tinting windows for 8 years and my father has been for 28. I know a few things about the stuff.

 

3M is a very average film, sorry

 

@bijick Whats a good quality tint film? Planning to tint mines soon and don't have enough knowledge to differentiate what films are better than the other. Thanks.

 

Global is a good film
Llumar is a pretty good film too, we switched to global about 6 years ago because we had a lot of trouble with Llumar peeling in the winter time, they had recently been bought by another company when this was happening so they may have ironed out the adhesive problems. Either way, what'sjust as important as the film is the installing company, I hate to say it but there's a lot of pieces of shit in the industry. Make sure the company you use has a good reputation and warranties their work. I, for example, warranty my work for the life of ownership. Don't fall for the crap that people push like "normal" and "platinum" film grades, if they give a shit about their customers they'd only carry high quality films. <-- I've always really hated that.

But my greatest point is, make sure the installer comes well recommended and stands by their work, because ultimately they're the ones who will be taking care of any issues that may arise.

Edit: as for ceramic film, it just cuts out more heat. To some it's a must to others not needed. Something to keep in mind though, ceramic films always have a slightly different appearance in my experience. I personally don't put it on my vehicles but I know people who really love it, it's a very subjective thing. You should expect about $100 increase in price for it though so keep that in mind. The quality difference between ceramic and normal carbon films is non existent, both should last as long as you own your vehicle.

 

I've seen no downside to it whatsoever, with the exception of having to remove my inspection sticker and toll tag. Really helps in the summer. My commute home is straight west and it noticeably cut down on the heat.

 

You are correct sir on finding the right company for install. I'll see if any installers around me even carry Global. But thanks again for the info bijick!

 

This is the tint you want, no fading over time and no scratching. Been using it for 10+ years.............

http://www.solargard.com/