Stckman

Ok. I gotta ask some questions here. I’m thinking about tinting my windows. Not a big surprise lots of people do it and some look good some look bad but most often they look good. Well there’s a slight problem, ITS AGAINST THE LAW.

I’m sick of looking up all of these site and researching information on how much tint i can put on and how visible my face has to be and worrying about some officer pulling me over and giving me a fixit ticket or a fine cause its too dark. I toss and turn at night thinking about it wondering am i just giving myself more reason (besides being in a sports car) for a cop to pull me over? I drift into worry on my commute home wondering... am i just a decision away from having to pull my tint off and show it to a court THEN pay my fine?

And just as I’m at the peak of my paranoia... I see it.... a god damned mini Van or corolla or even a Magnum or charger with what looks like 100% tint.

Not only can i NOT recognize the face I cant even see a silhouette... heck, i cant even see the other side of the car. and eventhough they don’t tint the windshield its so dark inside you can make anyone out. Its at this time im thinking.. why do THEY get to drive around with SUPER dark windows? isnt it against the law here (in california) to have it past a certain level on the drivers and passenger front windows? arent we supposed to be pulled over and fined? yet people STILL have the tint super dark. ALL over the place. which leads me to believe it UP to the officer whether or not they wanna pull them over. I think this is crap. cause id like to have dark windows myself but i just dont know if its against the law anymore... but chances are if i do it imma be in hot water in five seconds.

So really asking anyone out there in cali or any state with tint laws (which i think is all of them) have tinted windows that are over the legal visibility limit? Can we or should we push for legislature ENDING the window tint law since cops dot really enforce it. if they did you NEVER see them (californians think about that under chassis neon ricer crap. you rarely see it cause you know cops dont joke with that)

Either give me my dark tint or DONT GIVE ANYONE tint.. but lets get some consistency here. I dont know what to do. Anybody get pulled over for it? Anybody know how highway patrol officers prioritize?

cryptic26djp

I just tinted the windows extremely dark "illegal" on the windows that they cannot put that tester on. Which means, use the legal stuff on the driver and passenger doors. They cannot prove it to be illegal on the other windows. I wouldnt be putting the limo tint on there or anything.... but, its just a risk we run.

But now that you mention it..... my Mustang is the only vehicle I ever got a tint ticket for. HMMM!? Isnt that profiling or something? LOL

P Zero

Here in MI. the tint law is basically this - the windows behind you can be as dark as you want, so the back glass and the 1/4 windows can be limo tint if you want them. As for the driver and passenger window they can only be tinted 4" from the top, basically the same thing as the tinted strip on your windsheild.
-P.

BigDave

When I moved from TX to NC the inspection station said that the tint was too dark (28% max) on my 2001 Mustang.
I had to get it all removed and retinted. That sucked, especially cause the workmanship isn't as good now.

Sonic Boom NH

Tint Laws

In California you must have 70% VLT (Visible Light Transmission) on the driver and passenger windows. You can have any tint you wish, including limo tint on your rear windows and back window. Every state is a little different so if your thinking about moving go with the state that allows the least amount of tint or the most amount of VLT.

Now if your driving in another state that has different laws and only visiting they can't do a damn thing about it as long as you have your California plates on.

If your really worried don't tint the front windows and only the back. Police don't necessarily pull people over just for the tint itself but may use it to pull you over for other reasons or if they pull you over for other reasons write you an additional ticket for the tint. It's life not everything is fair, never has been and never will be. Some people will get away with things while others don't so don't worry just live life and worry about the important things...

Tres Wright

It's a risk, a lot of people get their windows tinted much darker than the legal limit and never get bothered. But a lot of police do carry meters in their cars now, so it's not a risk I am willing to take. The legal limit here in TX is 25% and I had 30% put on my car. Don't forget to factor in the factory tint when determining your tint percentage, 30% tint actually tests at around 27% since the factory glass is slightly tinted.

P Zero

Like it or not tint will get you pulled over. Reason being is that the police are nosey. And if they cant look inside your car while youre driving, that makes them nervous. It makes them wonder what you are hiding, and they WILL pull you over. They WILL find a reason to pull you over. Your best bet is to get something like 40/45% all the way around. Its dark enough to keep the hot sun out and light enough for them to see in and not get you pulled over.
-P.

BlackGTCoupe

ok, based on the other responses im reading, its obvious just ONE person in this thread who has left comments is ACTUALLY from california. As a california native, and someone who has put window tint on 9 different cars in 5 years, including my stang, here is my 2 cents. First off, yes, you can have as dark of tint as you want on any window behind the drivers head, meaning rear, quarter and back windows. No front windows. However, it really depends on where you are in california, how much they bug you. I am from south orange county, the land of excess apparently, where everyone is driving nice cars, and has tint due to the heat, and just because it looks badass. I have front tint on my windows, as dark as the rest of the car, (i think a uniform look is much better for tint than varying the windows.) anyway yes, i have been pulled over once for tint in 5 years, (it was on my jaguar S type R) however he told me he pulled me over due to not having a license plate on, (duh, it was a week old) anyway he gave me the window tint ticket because he had me pulled over for the other reason. But no initially a chp officer wasnt going to waste his time for a window tint ticket in early morning rush hour. however yes the danger is there. So long story short i took it off, paid the ten dollar ticket, and as soon as i had the ticket signed off, (i went to the nearest sherrif station) had it put back on again. the moral of this story is, yes its illegal. but so is just about everything behind the wheel.....changing lanes without signalling, braking without signalling, speeding (which we all do as minor or major as it is) rolling through stop signs, etc. Its the luck of not having a cop want to cite you for it. I say, risk the ten freakin bucks and make your stang look as cool as possible. Tint is about the least expensive and easiest way to make a car look a lot better. im done now....and good luck buddy

-C
06' black gt coupe

DaBoss

I live in south Orange County as well and have been pulled over twice for window tint. Once in my lifted F-150 and once in a friend's Ranger. CHP officer told me no tint what so ever on the Driver and front passenger windows and what ever you want on anything behind that. On the new Mustang, I went with a lighter tint on the front. I haven't been pulled over yet.

GDZILLA95

P Zero, I disagree with your reason on why police stop cars with dark tint.
It is not a matter of being nosey, it is an officer safety issue. When an officer
stops a vehicle, he has no idea who he is stopping. It is nice to see the
occupants of a vehicle and what they are doing as you are approaching it.
Being able to see what a person is doing gives the officer a chance if
something bad does happen.
Bottom line on window tint is to know what the laws are in your state,
and keep the tint legal. Then you won't have to worry about the police
stopping you for it.


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