Tinting Rear Window -- Half or Full?

[Mperezkr]

Half tinted, half clear

 

[nealh]

I agree! I had never heard of such a thing until the Model 3. Inferior glass maybe? I tinted windows and half of rear in February, no issues so far. I'll probably do the windshield and roof with clear 3M later. I'm in Lakeland so same temps as you have.

So I assume it’s the heat absorption by the tint???
I usually get a ceramic tint supposedly has better heat rejection but not as dark

 

[Bucfan11]

So I assume it’s the heat absorption by the tint???
I usually get a ceramic tint supposedly has better heat rejection but not as dark

You might want 3M Crystalline for heat. Both installers I looked at said it was the best for blocking heat. It is expensive but lifetime warranty.

 

[upkerry14]

I heard the same re: 3M Crystalline tint. For all four windows and half the roof I get quotes from 250-350 USD all the way to 1000 USD. I'm about to do a full tint though I have to see the different levels of tint in person. I'll post a pic as well.

 

[sf87]

Not the best photos, the reflection was really bad. But you can see from the interior shot how light it still appears to be, so I added the exterior photo to show you how dark it actually is on the outside.

View attachment 522458 View attachment 522459 View attachment 522460

Hey there! I'm a new Tesla Model 3 owner. I recently had all 4 windows done, with hesitation that doing a tint on the ceiling/windshield would take away from the cool panoramic view from passengers . So it looks like you did a full 30% piece on the rear windshield and it seems like it didn't really kill the view. Did you happen to do the front as well? If not, I'm curious what it looks like having the rear be darker than the front. Would appreciate hearing back from you! Thanks!

 

[Lashlee]

I just had mine done, 50% on the front windshield, 20% on the side windows, 30% on the top section and 20% on the bottom section of the rear window. I thought at first the seam where the two come together would bother me but I've yet to notice it. Be happy with whatever you choose!

 

[GoldenGate3]

Definitely full. Half looks unfinished.

 

[Waiting4Hyori]

I've done a lot of reading, and there are two camps:

- Full: worth the extra money, cleaner look, separation of doing half looks tacky, etc

- Half: noticeably lower cost, cannot tell from the outside, can see the difference from inside, but when looking through rearview, bottom part of rear window is mainly visible and not that bothersome

What I am trying to confirm is how each version looks. For those of you in the know, can you please confirm if the top image shows the half method, and the bottom image is the full method?

What is confusing to me is the bottom part of the window that is originally not tinted, appears not tinted in the 'full' method.

Thanks!

So just last night picked up my Model 3 with all side windows and rear at 25% and they made it clear in the beginning to me that they would only go up to where the factory tint ends and yes there is a definite separation between the two tints from inside but looks seamless from the outside. Doesn't bother me as the whole tint job was perfect and I also like the idea that they didn't do a full roof tint because of the idea that Tesla and its factory tint and heat blocking internals was already serving their purpose. Didn't want another tint overlay in case that would defeat the whole purpose.

 

[Bobby08]

No picture but went with full back, 20% xpel xr as recommended by many installers in my area, much better looking and no annoying line when looking at rearview mirror
Combined with 50% front sides and 35% rear sides I believe it’s the best combination of usefulness and look

I was thinking of doing the exact same as you with the 50% front sides. My fear is night driving or if it is pouring rain that I wouldn't be able to see out the front side windows if 35%. Any chance you could post a picture of the side windows? Thanks

 

[greenbottle123]

I was thinking of doing the exact same as you with the 50% front sides. My fear is night driving or if it is pouring rain that I wouldn't be able to see out the front side windows if 35%. Any chance you could post a picture of the side windows? Thanks

Revival of thread, any possibility of the picture?

 

[m3team]

I have similar dilemma. I want a 15-20% tiny for the back windows but if I use full sheet, the top of the back window will be difficult to see thru especially at night. Defeats the Panasonic view fir back passengers.

I also heard that tinting entire cback makes it more prone to cracking. The theory ( don’t know if this actually happens in true life experience) goes as follows: tint itself reflects heat but since it’s on the inside of the glass causes a mismatch in thermal expansion between the 2 sides of the glass giving extra stress on a very large piece of glass. On a roof glass, the suns incident angle is much higher than a side window or back window so the thermal mismatch is greater on roof. The Tesla 1 sheet glass is a very large piece of glass which also makes it susceptible to stress. This makes sense in theory but if anyone knows how often this occurs me exists, please chime in. I have heard that tesla will not Warrantee the glass when tinted.

 

[sakumaxp]

i did full roof and rear windows 5%, 20% on passenger and driver side, and 70% on front windshield, all Xpel Prime XR plus ceramic.

 

[m3team]

i did full roof and rear windows 5%, 20% on passenger and driver side, and 70% on front windshield, all Xpel Prime XR plus ceramic.

I’ve had rocks from road hit me windshield twice in last 2 yrs. Glass insurance won’t pay for tint.

 

[Colex]

This makes sense in theory but if anyone knows how often this occurs me exists, please chime in. I have heard that tesla will not Warrantee the glass when tinted

If you have a window problem and the tint is believed to be the problem, they absolutely will deny a warranty claim. The same way if you have an electrical problem and installed aftermarket speakers that tap into the wiring.

 

[Dysan911]

I know this thread is a bit old and recently revived but just wanted to mention I did Half on the rear because I use one of those heat-reflective blackout shades. I live in Florida and don't care for the glass roof. I can feel some of the heat up there so the blackout shade has a silver reflective on one side that faces up and black facing down into the car. When I got my windows tinted I thought I'd save a lot of money just having them do the very back half since I knew the rest of it would be under that cover.
I totally get it for those who don't use a sun-blocking shade and would prefer to have the entire window tinted so you don't see what looks like an incomplete tint from inside the car.

 

[ay221]

I did half as well and I can't tell because I have the Tesla sun shields on.