Thinking about doing limo tints in the back, and 20% in the front. Opinions or pics with tint percent would help. I have the steel metallic fit.

 

Check Michigan law. Looks like more than 35% reflectance is not allowed. Check with a reputable tint shop there, they'll know for sure. I have 35% front and 15% back. Texas allows 35 in front and any in back. At 20 percent it becomes harder to see out. Limo may affect your ability to see out at night.

 

Texas is 25% on the side windows

http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/rsd/vi/consumerinfo/windowTint.htm

 

Colorado allows 27% and that is what I have on all windows--I have a 10" strip on the top of the windshield called an eyebrow to help with glare. A friend of mine has a car tinted much darker and it is very hard to see out at night, plus she gets frustrated because when she waves at people--no one can see her.

 

There is no best level of tint, there is the level that works best for you. Go too dark and you'll feel like Jake and Elwood driving at night with sunglasses on!

The best way is to visit a tint shop after dark and take a look through the windows of cars with different levels of tint

Check your state laws, too. Many states allow darker (or even completely obscured) window behind the driver if you have a right hand mirror. Some states don't allow any tint at all forward of the driver or allow a lesser amount. Some, like California, require a certificate to be carried for front tint and that the tint be "colorless" so you can get away legally with a light neutral tint.

 

I swear there is a "Show us your tint" thread somewhere around here. As others have suggested, go to a tint shop and they can show you examples of what each percentage looks like. There are also different types of tint which come with different warranties. They should know what your state law minimum is, but double-check by calling your local law enforcement and ask them what the legal darkness is. Good luck!

 

Personally I prefer 20% but what the state allows is what you should go with. I have 35% in all my cars here in MD. Still have to do the fit.

 

If I didn't already know that I'd be carrying a backpack in the car with me a vast majority of the time, and that it'd be sitting in either the hatch or the backseat (with nothing valuable in it except painstakingly detailed notes - don't get any ideas! :P), I'd have gone with 30%, but since I did, I went with Llumar CTX 15% in the rear. Aesthetically, I actually prefer a lighter tint than what I have, but I didn't want anyone to be able to easily see into the back of my car, and the 15 is perfect without being limo tint (which is WAY too dark for me). In the front, I have 3m Crystalline 70% so it's hardly noticeable that they're tinted, which was perfect, since I mostly wanted the heat rejection of the film.

As others have said, there is no "best" tint percentage. Your reasons for getting tint play a big role in what will work best for you. If you want to keep out prying eyes, go darker. If you want to keep things cooler, get a brand known for having the highest heat rejection. If you want to look "gangster," limo tint! Also, the darker the tint, the higher the heat rejection, generally.

 

No such thing as "best" for any mod you do to your car, all depends on your use

As others have stated I would check your local laws

 

After a few days driving with the tint, 3m ceramic (35 front 15 back), car is noticeably cooler when parked in sun. Love the glare reduction from the Texas sun and pickups behind me with brights on. Back is dark enough to not see in at night, in the day you have to get really close and peer in to see inside. My aging eyes can see out just fine at night. I think the limo would have been too dark for me.

 

35% front 20% is pretty typical

 

We went with 55% ceramic on back and sides. My daughter did not want a dark tint, but still wanted heat reduction, and I wanted to provide protection from the cancer causing, interior finish destroying rays that only tint can give. We did do 18 on the sunroof and 4" sun strip on the windshield (gotta hate those tiny sun visors on the Fit).

As for Tennessee state law, 35% would have been the darkest tint allowed.

 

Does anyone know what happens when you drive a legal car in one state to a state where the tint is more than allowed?

 

Generally speaking, you aren't in violation of state tint (or similar) laws when you drive an out-of-state vehicle that is legal in the state it's from on a transient basis. (That is, so long as you aren't required to register the vehicle in the new state you're in—say because you've moved there and it's your new residence—you're OK if your vehicle is legal in your home state.)

That doesn't mean that every police officer will refrain from pulling you over, hassling you, or issuing you a ticket. It does mean that the ticket (probably) won't hold up in court. Similar statements can be made about many other equipment, vehicle, or driver requirements: you don't need a front plate if your state doesn't require one, even if the state you're driving in does. You don't need to get a motor vehicle inspection or smog test beyond any your home state requires.

It also doesn't mean that, should you get a ticket that's technically unenforceable, it would cost you less to travel to traffic court out-of-state and fight it than to just pay up. It's unfortunate, but all too often true.

 

Thank you, DrewE, for a well considered response to my question.

 

Here is a forum which from what I can tell, is populated with police officers. This particular thread is a discussion about Tint laws and out of state visitors. It might be worth reading, but I think the general feeling is your ok providing your legal in the state your registered, and are not living or working in the new state. This is another reason I have the invoice and certification our tint is Tennessee legal, so that in the event of a stop, we have some documentation. I doubt police are well versed in all other state laws, so I would think they would appreciate something from your home state, even if it was just a copy of your state law, downloaded from the internet. They have a device that will measure your tint, so you don't really require actual documentation from your installer, just the state law summary.

Taking my tint across state lines... [Archive] - Real Police: Law Enforcement,Police Officer,Criminal Justice,Background Checks website...

 

I have 20% all the way around the car (even the sunroof) I really like it. I can leave the sunroof cover open all the time now and the tint keeps the sun and heat from bothering me. Take a look....

 

Thank you as well, Vanguard. Looks like I'm pretty sure to be okay.

 

While I am not a fan of dark tints, I did want to mention that your video showed quite nicely one of the best safety features for shorter drivers!

You can see that the front passenger seat belt is adjusted down pretty far, while yours is almost all the way up. I do not know why every car doesn't have this!

Acter

 

Went with 10% rear and 20% front...