Great window tint shop in Austin, TX?

[BrewRifle]

Thanks for the heads up about the new 90 law. It still looks like it is better than having 0 protection.

[whats77inaname]

Originally Posted by jphughan

There's a bit more to this story. Sunbusters USED to use Llumar Air 80 for this purpose, which had a bluish tint to it but that honestly wasn't noticeable from inside or out after it was installed. The windshield ended up looking very much like stock AMG windshields. The only way people knew I had something on my car was when they looked at the bottom corners where I'd asked Sunbusters to leave exposed areas for registration stickers and other stuff and not to cut it to the EXACT dimensions of those stickers because I didn't want to have to bullseye the registration sticker each year and have no room to scrape it off without risk of cutting the windshield film. But I never noticed those corners when I wasn't actively looking at them. People who use TxTags will want to get a cutout there too, btw.

But recently TxDPS passed some law that windshield tints with any color at all cannot be used because they're worried about drivers not being able to identify emergency vehicle lights properly. There is absolutely no way Air 80 would have done that, but whatever. So NOW they use Air 90, which is what I have on my GT4. The heat rejection isn't as good by the numbers, but it is absolutely clear, to the point that even when I'm looking right where I know the cutout lines are, I have difficulty seeing them.

Actually, that isn't entirely correct. Texas law has never allowed a front windshield tint on passenger vehicles w/out there being a medical exemption. Since there were so many films that were coming out that touted UV protection, they made an adjustment in 9/2009, which, to my knowledge, is the last time tint laws were changed in Tx.

That change http://dps.texas.gov/rsd/vi/consumerinfo/windowTint.htm allowed a clear film to be used on the front windshield. The revision also made it illegal to have windows tinted with any films that changed the color of the window, which you kinda mentioned above, but for a different reason.

The way it was explained to me is that they talked to some folks over on DPS and they were told that officially, nothing non-clear on the front, but off the record, 5% usually wouldn't garner attention and that since it really isn't discernible, most shouldn't have an issue. I was instructed to advise anyone that asked that it is a UV film.

5% also happens to be the percentage allowed by the medical exception.

Part of the information given to consumers is conflicting because if you go here DPS explicitly states:

"Medical Exemption Application

Note: The medical exemption allows motorists to place a darker tint on the front side windows and the upper portion of the front windshield (top 5 inches or above the AS-1 line, whichever is less). The exemption does not, however, allow a motorist to place a sun screening device on the rest of the front windshield."

However, if you go here the Texas administrative code says the opposite:

"(e) Medical exceptions.

(1) Not withstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, a motor vehicle operated by or regularly used to transport any person with a medical condition which renders the person susceptible to harm or injury from exposure to sunlight or bright artificial light may be equipped, on all the windows except the windshield, with sunscreening devices that reduces the light transmission values of less than 25%. An untinted film or glaze may be applied to the area below the AS-1 line of the windshield of a motor vehicle provided the total visible light transmission is not reduced by a value of 5%. Vehicles equipped with sunscreening devices under this medical exception shall not be operated on any highway unless, while being so operated, the driver or an occupant of the vehicle possesses a certificate issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety. "

But, tbhwy, what I suspect happened is they got caught applying UV "film" that had a tint to front windshield and they were asked to stop....or else. And they had to justify this to their patrons....but tint laws haven't changed since '09, and I can assure you that I had my windshield done *well* after those changes

[jphughan]

Interesting, the way Sunbusters explained Air 80 to me in early 2012 when I got the M3 done when was that the law allowed windshield film as long as the transmittance rate was at least 70%, but they did say there was some confusion about color, so who knows. But that was already way after the 2009 change you mentioned, so obviously something changed again between early 2012 and late 2015 when I got the GT4 done.

[whats77inaname]

Originally Posted by jphughan

Interesting, the way Sunbusters explained Air 80 to me in early 2012 when I got the M3 done when was that the law allowed windshield film as long as the transmittance rate was at least 70%, but they did say there was some confusion about color, so who knows. But that was already way after the 2009 change you mentioned, so obviously something changed again between early 2012 and late 2015 when I got the GT4 done.

I'd imagine what changed was someone in law enforcement got wind of what they were doing *lol* and they had to change course. Since the 80 couldn't really be used b/c what they were doing was technically illegal and they would be subjected to $1k fine for each instance, they had to switch to the 90. Occam's Razor and what not.