Tinting the prius 2010..good idea or bad?

[FreakinToddles]

Originally Posted by hadleyfarm

I too am in ther markert for a MA tinter and was told to go to Sonny's in Saugus MA. I plan on going wioth a cermaic-based product 35%

Did some price comparing around the area and read some reviews online. Sonny's was priced well @ $185 but After reading several positive reviews I will probably be going with The Tint Guy in Lawrence. I plan to go slightly darker than legal, probably about 28%, and from what I read he can do any level you want. Thanks for the info though, it was good to have several shops to compare.

Just for info, I also called Tint King in Billerica, they use Llumar tint and charge $250. Then Car-Risma in Lowell charges 179.99 and uses SunTek Hi Performance. All of the above offer lifetime warranty.

[wyatt_donnelly]

Originally Posted by seadub

Great info there, Kel. Thanks!

I'm in LA (Westside) and I just had my windows done today. I went with the Greystone 15% rear windows and 30% front. At first I was thinking about getting the front windows tinted darker. But it looks fine with the Winter Grey paint. And I really don't want to attract too much attention (fix-it tickets are a drag).

What shop did you go to in LA? I too live on the westside and just got a winter grey. Wondering also if theres any green hue to the johnson tint you put on?

[wyatt_donnelly]

Originally Posted by rstark18

Here are a few quick pics. (sorry for the quality):

wow that tint has a very green hue.

[PldBruns]

Originally Posted by priuslaw

Hello All.. i just purchased my new Blue Ribbon Metallic Blue Prius IV a few days ago and thinking about tinting the windows. What do you guys think? Good idea or bad? If it is a good idea and you know of reputable tinting shop in Los Angeles let me know ASAP.

I would like to tint windows before i take pictures.

Thanks all in advance!

Here is a picture of mine with tint.

[PldBruns]

Here is a picture of mine with tint.

[fcgc]

Not trying to sell anything here but if anyone needs any advise about window tint you can send us an email and I will be glad to answer any questions you have. I've been tinting windows for over 15 years so I have a lot of knowledge I can share about tinting your vehicle and maybe save you from making a bad purchase.
We also have all the laws and a lot of information on our web site. Please feel free to visit if you like.

firstcoastglasscoatings.com

I will also answer any questions anyone asks here on this forum as long as I see the post.

James Cox

[SDM44]

I'll say this from my personal experience on the 2010 Prius, as I've had lots of my other (or previous) cars tinted.

On the 2010 Prius, if you go with something like a 35% all the way around (no windshield), then it comes out looking like another car with possibly 40-ish % tint. Since there's a lot of light coming into the car, I think the Prius can get away with a darker tint, even if you have the dark gray leather interior. I originally had 35% on my car but it was too light looking for my tastes (too much light coming in, as you could also see directly into the car and read a magazine that's sitting on the seat from the outside). So I decided to go with a double layer and I put 50% over the existing 35% tint. In the end, the 2 tints are a hair lighter than the 23% tint that's offered at the shop I had it done at (I'd say around 24% after some rough calculations). That being said, sure I could've pulled off the 35% and went with 20% but I figured I'd save myself some extra work and use the extra layer for more heat rejection.... I'll test this when I drive it out in the sun later and see how it feels with the sun beating on my face. But even on a black car and with dark gray interior, the 24% still isn't that dark but it looks good IMO. You can still see the person inside the car, but you can't make out who it is from a distance, like driving on the freeway (which is what I was going for). If standing you're next to the car, then you can easily see the person inside. The same with the back as you can see items in the back seat if you're next to the window, but to the average person just walking by it's harder to see in for privacy. I'll take some pictures of it this weekend after I wash my car.

With the 2010 Prius windshield, I actually had a 50% tint on there but I immediately took it off. Since the windshield is so slanted, any tint on the windshield will look darker than it really is. On my Land Cruiser, the windshield is very vertical so the 50% that I have on the windshield in that truck doesn't effect any driving at night (that's also with 20% on the rest of the windows). I'll probably keep the tint off my Prius windshield since I like the 24% look that I have and don't want to have it too dark inside. But if I do decide to tint the windshield again for the summer, I'll just do 70% as anything lower will be too dark. And yes, having some tint on the windshield, as 'unsafe' or 'illegal' as it is, does make a noticable difference in sunlight glare, and heat rejection when parked outside in the sun. If you apply any tint to the windshield, just do it smartly so it doesn't effect your night time driving, and so that it doesn't stand out from the rest of the car.

Just my $.02 on that matter.

[F8L]

35% (on front windows) is way to dark on a California car if you don't want to get risk being hassled by the police. Even with ivory interior I got pulled over twice before finally removing it and going to 70%.

[32kcolors]

Originally Posted by SDM44

On the 2010 Prius, if you go with something like a 35% all the way around (no windshield), then it comes out looking like another car with possibly 40-ish % tint.

Interesting, considering the Prius is already tinted ~75% in the factory glass. I haven't gotten around to tinting my Prius, but I had assumed it'd be darker because of the tinted factory glass.

[yamisoshi]

Originally Posted by 32kcolors

Interesting, considering the Prius is already tinted ~75% in the factory glass. I haven't gotten around to tinting my Prius, but I had assumed it'd be darker because of the tinted factory glass.

Interesting. Of all of the Prius' I've looked at the dealerships before I bought mine, I didn't see one that came tinted from the manufacturer. I'm about to drop $219 (w/windshield banner) for my window using the 3M lifetime guarantee 20% window tint all the way around, except the little window below the taillight.

Will post before and after pics.