Date:         Thu, 01 May 97 09:19:48 CDT
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         Joel Walker <JWALKER@ua1vm.ua.edu>
Subject:      Re: Window Tinting

On Thu, 1 May 1997 06:07:47 -0500 Seastoner said:
>I'm thinking of having my windows tinted in my 85 Westie and was
>wondering if anyone has experience with this. I'm going for the 50%
>tint for the back and sides and 35% for the front driver and
>passenger  windows. This is not completely legal {the 35% for the
>front}here in Virginia, but this is what new factory vans have so I think

i've tinted five vw buses so far, and my recommendations are:
- do NOT put any tint on the driver/passenger front door windows. this
  upsets the cops a lot. if these windows are left UNtinted, you are
  perfectly legal (otherwise, how can the UPS trucks drive around with no
  side windows and no rear windows!?? :)
- get the most heat-reflective tint you can. k-mart and wal-mart sell a
  "kit" of tint made by Gila which is very good. you get to choose the
  percentage. i picked 70 percent on my last bus. it's not limo-dark, but
  dark enough to help keep the heat down inside the bus. if you wish to
  use a radar detector, do NOT get the 90 percent stuff ... it has a metal
  foil that will block the radar signals. it's better for blocking heat,
  though.
- when you start putting it on, follow the directions. especially the part
  about: don't cut with scissors (use only single-edged razor blades); and
  squeegee the water out. then squeegee it again. then again. then again.
  and again. really. all those cars running around with bubbles in their
  tint are because they failed to get all the water out.
- do the side middle and side rear windows first. they're easiest. on the
  sliding windows, be careful about cutting the hole out for the sliding
  knob-thingie. you might want to just cut a slot (from the bottom) instead
  of a "hole" in the tint.
- i do recommend doing the rear hatch window, even though it has a defroster
  grid. the tint does NOT seem to affect the functioning of the defroster,
  but if you ever want to take the tint off, it'll be a bitch. and you MUST
  squeegee this window more and more and more ... cause the water wants to
  stay on the little grid lines. there will be SOME gap right at the little
  defroster wires, but with enough squeegeeing, it's not noticeable from
  more than a foot or so away. the one biggest reason to tint the rear hatch
  window is to cut down on the glare from tailgating idiots in pickup trucks
  with their high beams on at night. :)  but it will make backing up at
  night more difficult (so you'll need to put a fog light on the rear bumper
  with a switch on the dash!! works great!! especially in the woods)
- i also recommend putting a strip of tint across the top of the windshield
  ... about 7 or 8 inches tall. this helps a LOT when you are driving into
  the sun. this one strip might be done in a darker tint to help even more.
  one problem you'll have is that the windshield is curved from side to
  side, so you'll need to do this in TWO pieces. i split it in the middle,
  right behind the rearview mirror, so you can hardly see the gap.

and that's about it. buses are easily tinted, even by yourself, because most
of the window glass is flat. but take your time, and squeegee the water out,
then do it again, and again and again. seriously, this is VERY important and
should be done at least five times on each window.

>double standard. The reason I'm doing this is for, of course,
>privacy, but mainly because I have no AC and I'm hoping this will cut down on

for privacy, the best thing is a set of curtains.
for coolness, the best thing is to paint the roof of your van/camper a nice
white color (like the old breadloaf buses were painted). it REALLY helps in
the summer.

joel