Thinking About Installing Window Tint on Your Car?

6 July 2020
 Categories: , Blog


It makes sense. Window tint can make it easier to see out of your car during the daylight hours, as well as keep the interior cooler by blocking some of the sun's rays. However, there are some important things to know about window tint before you go shopping.

First, there are legal limits on how tinted your windows can be. This generally varies by state, but it can also vary by municipality. It's important to do your research. There's also places where how dark a tint you can get varies based on where you're planning on doing your tinting. Meaning that you may be able to install a darker tint in your rear windows than you can on your front windows. Also, rules may vary on how far down your windshield tint is allowed to be. You also want to see if there are rules on reflective or colored tint if you're leaning towards that direction.

This level of tint is generally expressed as a percentage of visual light transmission, which is generally notated as VLT. This number indicates how much light is allowed through the window tint- simple enough, right?

While you can obtain darker tint than what is legal and install it, because the internet allows it, that's something you do at your own risk of tickets and fines. Some states allow exceptions for medical reasons. If you have a medical condition that calls for it, you may be able to apply for special permission, though you will want to have evidence of this in your vehicle. You may think nobody can tell if it's a smaller variation but your local PD and highway patrol officers will likely be able to tell.

The next big choice you may come across is whether you should you get pre-cut, or just get the film in roll form and cut it yourself. Pre-cut kits are more expensive but they can save you a lot of labor and make the installation process a lot easier. On the other hand, pre-cut kits may not fit your model of car, especially if you're driving something obscure or older. Of course, you can also have it professionally installed. Your local auto glass repair and replacement folks will likely be able to handle this for you. While it's more expensive, they're more experienced with it than you are and will be able to do a nice, clean installation of it.

You'll also want to decide on the type of tint you want to choose, but probably that's going to be dependent on the method you install it. If you have it installed, your installers will be able to help you make that choice. You could also ask around your local car clubs; they can give you their insight and opinions. 

For more information, contact companies like SML Window Tint.


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