hello everyone,

i purchased a new mini s from tate last week. tomorrow i'm getting the car's windows tinted. i did some searching and learned the maximum allowed in VA is 50-percent on the front and 35-percent on the rears. but i'm worried that the factory tint will make it much darker -- and therefore illegal.

anyone have experience with this? also, do i have to have a new car purchased in MD inspected in VA before getting my registration? I've got MD 30 day plates on there now.

thanks a lot.

 

You are supposed to have a current VA inspection when you get the registration, but they don't check it. You would just have to worry about driving around on an incorrect inspection sticker. I registerd mine and then got the inspection a day later due to time.

 

Don't do anything till you get registered correctly. You never know if they will check or not. Get the tint done after everything has been registered.

 

You are correct to be worried. Although this reference is from a MD police, it holds true for VA as well when talking about 35% tint.

"Here's where the trouble begins. When you place a 35% window tint film over a vehicle window that is already blocking out 20% of the available light, you have now reduced the LTV to 28%, which is ILLEGAL! ...

(Windows that are tinted darker than 35% are very obvious to police officers.) ..."

http://www.berwynheightspd.com/tinted%20windows.htm

 

I went and got my VA safety inspection this morning and got the tint done a couple of hours later. It looks great and pretty close to legal. So hopefully I'll be okay.

 

When do we get to see pictures of your car Tarik? And have you joined DCMM yet?

 

My first 03 MCS came from VA where aftermarket tinting had been done to VA specifications. I live in PA and was worried that I would have a problem with the degree of tinting allowed here. I never was challenged by the police or my inspection station. I LOVED the extra tinting. It really kept the car and me cooler in the summer time. I'd like to do my new 06 but haven't taken the time to research a good shop here in my area. Hope this helps.

 

and post them. btw, you come very highly recommended as a mod-guru from my boys at curry's. i've spent a small fortune there (including replacing an M3 engine after a mishift) over the past six years.

 

I wouldn't say a MOD guru.. just a guy who's had some interesting mod'd cars in the past. :-)

 

Is Curry's where you had the tint done? If not, where and would you recommend them (sounds like you were happy with the results).

I'd definitely like to see pics, too! I think I'm ready to get mine done.

john

 

I got my windows tinted at Winners Tint in MD. I have 20% in the back and 35% in the front, they only charged me $165, they use a computerized laser cut system. The measurements are exact and definetly cut down on the install time. They have a life time gaurantee also.

I passed my VA state inspection with no problems. I did however arrive to the gas station with my windows down. Its probably better to ask a friend that has dark tint and find out where they've gone.

And also... I was pulled over this past weekend by a VA state trooper for speeding. He didnt mention anything to me about my tint. He just walked to the front of my car, bent down a little and looked into the car. I suspect he was checking to see how much or how far he could see thru my rear window. My front windows were down so maybe I got lucky, or maybe he just thought it was normal for Mini's to have dark glass. Makes me wonder if I can get away with 5% tint!!

 

at a place called D&L Tinting in White Marsh, Md. It's like an hour from Nova, but they did great work on my previous cars and you don't need an appointment. I wanted to take pictures yesterday evening, but if you were out between 6 and 8, you probably know why I didn't. that was some serious rain, huh?