I need to lower the inside temp on hot days. My Car: 2018 Honda Fit Sport with black dash & black interior
I realize I am asking some of you to think back to last summer. Would someone who has tinted their windows please tell me if they noticed a big difference once you had your windows tinted?
I am looking into getting 35% tint on the driver, passenger's side windows, and the rear window.
The 2 rear seat windows would be a darker tint.
I am a analytical type (some say nut) so it would be great if you could quantify the difference that you noticed(approx. temp difference). I know there's a lot of variables but an answer, as specific as you can manage, would be great.
Thanks ahead for any answers

 

I think it is definitely worth it. I can't tell you by how many degrees, but when the sun is shining through the untinted windshield at me, it's a lot hotter than when it's shining through the driver's side window that is tinted. I also have a banner strip on the windshield.

 

Definitely needed. During summer when the car is in the sun for 8 hrs you can feel the difference of before and after the tint. Mine I have 20% all around plus the banner strip on windshield.

 

Once you've had a car with window tint, you'll never go without again. I've probably had 15ish tinted vehicles to date. The heat difference is monumental, but also your skin will thank you as well. Standard auto glass offers little to no UV protection. This is also why you see faded dashes and door panels. Those UV rays are damaging to everything.

Keep in mind that not all window tint is the same. Ceramic tints offer considerably more protection than dyed films.

Right now I have one vehicle with Llumar CTX 30, one with CTX 35, one with Solar Guard metallic 20, and one with 3m dyed film 20.

The CTX 30 is by far my favorite all around.

Window Film Reduces Car Temperature | LLumar Window Film

 

it will definitely make a difference. whether it's worth it or not depends whether you like it more or less than your cash!

 

I strongly advise getting your windows tinted. I did and love it....wondered what took me so long!

 

I left my multimeter and temp probe in my car once and took measurments. The temp probe was on the front seat shaded by my 5% tint. It read 107 degrees. Moved the probe to the dash that was exposed to the sun, went to 150+. It was 84 outside with 68% humidity. Car had been in the sun since sunrise and I took the readings around 2pm.

Tint makes a huge difference!!!

 

I wonder if you could get away with leaving one window down so you could measure the difference between the sun shining on one seat and not the other. Since the dash and seats are of a different material, the comparison is not as direct. Or, perhaps the plastic trim between the seats (that is shaded) vs the plastic on the dash so you would not have to leave your window open. Just a thought. Thanks for posting your finding!

 

So long as the tint is UV blocking, it will make a world of difference. I went with suntek's carbon-xp. On hot-hot summer days I can run the A/C on low and feel crisp and cool without baking too much. To add: much vanity, many wow, so posh.

 

Some tints are better than others..

​​​​​I'm using Llumar's CTX50 all around inckuding the front windshield. The ceramic tech in these advanced films most definitely help cut down the heat without overly darkening the light transmission as you can see.

This 100+ degree days last August were unbearable, but the AC was kept at conservative 1 and was very comfortable.

 

Great points! I was planning on doing a full experiment like that but then life got busy and it slipped my mind and now the car is gone. I am sure the seat would not have gotten as hot as the dash since it is cloth. The door plastics felt about the same temperature as the seat. Tint is on my list for my current car this year.

 

I think you either want tint....or don't.
As the OP admits...there are a lot of variables. But the bottom line is tint, will help with keeping the vehicle cooler to some degree, affected by a lot of changing variables.

I know there are a lot of good aspects to having tinted windows. Including solar insulation, privacy, and just plain it can look good. I'm not really lobbying against it. I guess my opinion is, I'm older, and I drive a lot at night, and I really don't want windows that are darker at night.

I also feel I can duplicate many of the summer time benefits of tint just using available temporary or removable tools. I use a sun shade in the front window, and you can even buy temporary removable "shades" for side windows.
That and either parking in the shade and/or cracking the windows, and I feel my vehicle is as cool as possible at least upon entering. Then the tool I use to KEEP my vehicle cool...is the AC. Does my AC have to work harder than the AC in tinted windowed vehicles? Probably. But it works.

But really, I'm not anti-tint. I just don't want any possible vision reduction driving at night. So I keep my windows clear.

 

Would absolutely love to do a light UV tint on both my Fit & my Civic, mostly to make the AC work easier and to protect the interior. HOWEVER, here in Pennsylvania its illegal for cars, unless you have certificate of medical necessity. Incredibly, you are allowed to have a tint if it came from the factory. You can tint limousines, rear Windows in pickups and funeral vehicles, but not regular vehicles, incredibly stupid patchwork quilt of laws (typical of Commonwealths) If you are caught with a tint, you are given a ticket, and a fine if the tint isn't removed in a specific # of days, and its completely discretionary by the officer pulling you over, some municipalitys enforce, some don't, adding to the confusion.

 

Reviving old thread with real experience.

First, all newer vehicles have solar protection on the glass as it helps decrease interior temp which runs the AC less for improved fuel economy. Manufacturers claim UV is blocked, aftermarket tint companies claim you need their products - truth is probably somewhere between these statements.

However, darker tint dramatically reduces interior temps on a sunny day. Back in 2006 my wife and I had nearly identical vehicles both with black leather interiors (2005 Altima V6s). Hers wasn't tinted, mine was 5% all around. On a very hot day in Iowa, temps just above 100 degrees, we were in her car and the auto climate controls were running the AC at full fan speed to cool the interior and it wasn't keeping up. We switched to my car and within 10 minutes my auto climate controls dropped to very low fan speed - the tint had effectively reduced the heat from entering the vehicle. Of course 5% is illegal but the impacts of darker tint are reduced interior temps.

I like tint for the cosmetics
-Eric