Window Tinting Precaution!

[PolarWhite]

For those who are going to have your windows tinted. Beware!! They use a soap and water mixture to get the tint on the window correctly. Make sure they place something over the door panel to catch the run off from this mixture. Mine was already tinted when I bought it from the dealer. I had no say in the matter. My plastic door panels have streaks in them from the mixture of soap and water running down them. I have tried Sprayway and a mixture of vinegar and water to get it off with no luck. Just watch out when having them tinted.

[staticorex]

Thanks for the heads up. Try some ivory soap and water. The old stuff if you can find some. My painter swears by it and it's too mild to make things worse. :)

[PetersRedYaris]

Mine has those same streaks on the plastic and I also cannot get them off. The wierd thing is that they were there before I had my windows tinted. Perhaps it's like that from the factory or from the dealer cleaning the car before it is placed on the lot. Just a thought.

[cute_lil_yaris]

Originally Posted by PolarWhite

For those who are going to have your windows tinted. Beware!! They use a soap and water mixture to get the tint on the window correctly. Make sure they place something over the door panel to catch the run off from this mixture. Mine was already tinted when I bought it from the dealer. I had no say in the matter. My plastic door panels have streaks in them from the mixture of soap and water running down them. I have tried Sprayway and a mixture of vinegar and water to get it off with no luck. Just watch out when having them tinted.

Definitely thanx for the heads up!! I plan on getting my windows tinted this weekend. Ill will be sure to let them know to cover my panels!

[cm07yaris]

I have the EXACT same problem...althought I didn't notice if it was there before the tint...is it on the inside of the hatch also?

[PolarWhite]

Maybe it isn't from the tint. Maybe there is a problem from the factory. I just figured it was from the tinting process. I know how they do it. Maybe it isn't.

[jamal1984]

that is absolutely not from the tint soap and water, soap and water won't kill the dash board, there is no way, if there are streaks, you can use any Dashboard Protectant to clean it and it's will shine up real good.

[Ferret_san]

PolarWhite, any chance you could throw up a picture of how bad the damage is ???

[PolarWhite]

It might be hard to capture even on a digital camera. It isn't that bad, and I am very particular about my car. It is something that I can get over, just curious as to how it got there.

[wiley1330]

Its the cheap plastic they use for the car. I tapped mine off like painting a wall and it worked well. No marks and Blue tape comes off quick

[swidd]

Would it be advisable to remove the interior door panels before tinting?

[staticorex]

Wow. Bringing back and old thread huh?

You shouldn't have to. If you have a bad place doing your windows just bring a towel to wipe off the soap that gets on your trim. But I never had a problem after having mine tinted.

The guy who started this may have had the soap water left on his trim for hours or days which can cause the problem he had. As long as it doesn't sit and dry you should be fine.

[Klumzyee]

It's not just soapy water.. some tinters use some weird stuff like alcohol, baby lotion, etc.. So I'd recommend bringing a microfiber with some quick detail to clean up the plastic door panels asap.. if you have a black a black door panel and have streaks try using detailing product called "BACK TO BLACK" work that into the plastic and let it cure. Should be like new..

[staticorex]

Well that would explain it. Alcohol wouldn't be a good thing to leave on the door panels. If my tinters were using stuff like that I would go someplace else.

[Klumzyee]

Originally Posted by staticorex

Well that would explain it. Alcohol wouldn't be a good thing to leave on the door panels. If my tinters were using stuff like that I would go someplace else.

All tinters use something different or similar.. Example Alcohol dries quicker so for some cars with dot matrix's that are difficult to tint a solution that dries faster would look so much better and dry time of bubbles are reduced..

Seriously if I just clean your windows with soapy water and a razor blade and cut and paste some tint on you wouldn't be paying +$100 to tint your car

Don't go around asking tinters what they use either.. lol it's like asking Lawry's chef how they make their cream corn..

[staticorex]

I would. Have you ever tried putting that stuff up yourself? It's a pain in the ass. I'd gladly pay a professional a couple hundred dollars to have it done well in half an hour opposed to me spending all day on it and having bubbles and uneven lines.

[Klumzyee]

Originally Posted by staticorex

I would. Have you ever tried putting that stuff up yourself? It's a pain in the ass. I'd gladly pay a professional a couple hundred dollars to have it done well in half an hour opposed to me spending all day on it and having bubbles and uneven lines.

haha yeah u needa be delicate with it =]

[IsLNdbOi]

Another warning: Don't let them cut the film on your window / glass.

On my very first car, the tinting place would put a piece of film over the glass and cut it to the right shape and size right on the glass. They ended up scratching some of my windows.

The place I go to now has a machine and computers that cut the film the proper shape and size for whatever car they're going to tint.