No aftermarket front window tint in California.

[Rest]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(BethlehemPrius @ Jun 27 2007, 07:46 PM) [snapback]469173[/snapback]</div>

the cops issue is that they are afraid that they can't see you when they walk up....

In my opinion it depends on what kinda car you drive, but i guess not in CA, sounds like the cops out there need to get something better to do and get real criminals, not folks driving a hybrid! LOL (carrying a 38 or something just doesn't go with the Prius..lmao)[/b]

For your information, a large percentage of routine traffic stops end up being felony arrests. Criminals that don't care about felony crimes also don't care about traffic laws. This attitude ends up getting them stopped initially for minor traffic issues, which then end up in the discovery of major felony violations.

Front window tinting has been illegal in California for well over 15 years and with good reason. During a routine traffic stop if a cop can't see inside a vehicle due to the tinting, his/her life may very well be in jeopardy. Past law enforcement deaths are proof of that. With this in mind I have no problem following the tinting laws in my state.

[rpiereck]

Originally Posted by BethlehemPrius

With all the huge suvs on the road, I could not handle the lights from behind blinding you at night, the tint helps so much and keeps your eyes focused on the road ahead with no tint on the windshield......the cops issue is that they are afraid that they can't see you when they walk up....

In California you can tint the rear windows (past the B pillar) as much as you'd like to, I used to have a Toyota Tercel with limo tints on all windows (not on the windshield!) when I lived in FL, as soon as I moved to CA I was told by a local cop that I had to remove the tint from my driver and passenger doors, but the rear tints could stay.

BTW, I'm living in Korea right now and I am not entirely sure if they have tint laws here as the Korean law code is confusing even to native speakers of the language, let alone for an Yangnom like me, but I have seen cars here with limo tint ALL around the car, even the front windshield, I sat in a car like that once and you could barely see anything inside the car during the day; at night it's a cave in there! Crazy to drive like that at night...!

[LeVautRien]

I've had all my windows except the windscreen tinted to 30%, I believe, and I've driven about 45,000 of my 60,000 miles on California highways without being pulled over for it.

That said, I'm quite aware that it's an illegal amount of tint, I'm just saying nobody's pulled me over for it, for what it's worth .

[KandyRedCoi]

Originally Posted by F8L

I got a ticket for my front window tint yesterday by a CHP officer in Lincoln, CA.

Only about 4" of my passenger side window was even showing but it was enough to get me pulled over. Apparently I was missinformed about the actual law. There is absolutely no aftermarket tint allowed on front windows period. I called my buddy who is CHP in LA and he confirmed that the officer was correct.

I was given a fix-it ticket and a few months to get it corrected but according to both sources the officer has the discression to chose to make it a violation even on the first offence but generally upon your 3rd ticket for the front window tint you will then be charged with a real violation. IE don't cop an attitude or you may get the violation on your first stop. lol

that sux bro, im not a bog fan of TINT, but some car, including the prius with all the huge windows really do need it

i live in SoCal and i am planning on tinting the windows, very very light on the 2 front ones

and something like 30%-40% on the rears and hatch

[Steamboatsig]

The place where I got my previous car tinted would charge $10 to remove the tint after you got the ticket, and charge another $10 to re-install after the inspection. I thought that was a pretty clever deal.

[F8L]

Some people get lucky others do not.

One of my friends at the shop has never been pulle dover for tint in his sports cars (89 GTA, 2007 C6 Vette) but he recently had tint put on his 2006 Civic hybrid and he got a ticket 3 weeks later for the front windows with 50% tint. 50% is pretty light yet they nailed him anyway. I'm starting to believe my law enforcement friends when they say we are getting pulle dover because most CHP/PD are pretty conservative and hate hippies (only hippies drive hybrids you know).

5% tint looks great on the back portion of the Prius and is not too dark in most cases. 70% on the front would likely pass for stock tint but it may still be noticible if an officer really wants to tag you for something.

[F8L]

Originally Posted by Steamboatsig

The place where I got my previous car tinted would charge $10 to remove the tint after you got the ticket, and charge another $10 to re-install after the inspection. I thought that was a pretty clever deal.

That's a great deal!

Problem is you would not want to make this a habit due to the penalties of repeated "fix-it tickets". My friend with the Civic was pretty heated over the ticket so I think it may have been more than a fix-it ticket but I'll get the details before I assume it he was hit with a violation (IE a real ticket).

[dogfriend]

Tinting the front side windows has been illegal for over 20 years because I got a fix it ticket for it in 1985 in Citrus Heights. I had to remove the tint and show it at a CHP station plus I had to forfeit $50 or appear in Sac Co Court (I lived in the Bay area at the time, so I sent the check).

The tint was so light that I didn't even realize it wasn't factory until the CHP officer pointed it out to me. I had only bought the Toyota truck a few weeks before.

I agree with others that there is probably some selective enforcement on this; in my case I was in an area where there was a lot of cruising activity, and the officer might have thought I was drinking (I wasn't). So I got a fix it ticket instead of a DUI.

[F8L]

Originally Posted by dogfriend

Tinting the front side windows has been illegal for over 20 years because I got a fix it ticket for it in 1985 in Citrus Heights. I had to remove the tint and show it at a CHP station plus I had to forfeit $50 or appear in Sac Co Court (I lived in the Bay area at the time, so I sent the check).

The tint was so light that I didn't even realize it wasn't factory until the CHP officer pointed it out to me. I had only bought the Toyota truck a few weeks before.

I agree with others that there is probably some selective enforcement on this; in my case I was in an area where there was a lot of cruising activity, and the officer might have thought I was drinking (I wasn't). So I got a fix it ticket instead of a DUI.

I knew it was illegal to a degree but I was told over and over by people that a certain percentage was legal. Now that I've seen what is considered legal I could honestly say it is almost like not having tint at all. lol

My roomate is an officer with Citrus Heights PD

[rpiereck]

I posted this on a different thread, but I'll repost it here, as there is such thing as CA-legal front window tinting, it's just not that dark:

For North California drivers, I got a quote for tinting the Prius for $210 using Suntek Carbon, which never fades and does not interfere with GPS or cell phones. The quote includes 35% tint on the rear windows and hatch, plus CA-legal tint on the front windows. The film used on the front windows is 90%, therefore CA legal and they will provide a certificate which can be shown if ever harassed by the law (this is legal according to CA vehicle code). They gave me a quote for $159 without tinting the front windows. These prices include taxes and lifetime guarantee. You can see them at Window Tinting Plus: The Professional Touch. They are located in Fremont and Oakland.