State of NC suddenly VERY STRICT on vehicle window tint - stories inside (buyer, inspection)

[Kwikstix]

Originally Posted by 61scout80

I disagree with the safety statement, but that's a subjective view point. I've never had any problems with my 5% or darker tint in 15 years of driving with it.

But looking like a drug dealer, that's just a silly statement. With a station wagon, hatch back or SUV I don't have a trunk. So anyone that walks by can see whats stored in my vehicle. I prefer to keep prying eyes off my tools, guitars or just shopping bags from the mall when my car is parked some where unattended.

I disagree with tint restrictions. nearly all people who desire tint are law abiding citizens, the very few criminals that will assault an officer won't care about the tint laws to begin with....

When I had my first truck, It was 35% up front, and then 5 % on the extended cab windows and rear window and it was very hard to see as I was backing up anywhere at night... i usually rolled my window down to see better. But that's just how I felt.

Also, with a station wagon/hatchback you have a hatch cover that comes with a vehicle to cover your belongings. I understand this isn't happening if you have your amps back there though. And most SUV's come with rear tinted windows already that are below 35% as is. But, the fact remains, if an LEO walks up on your car and it's dark to the point that they have difficulty seeing you and what you are doing, they are not going to be happy. That's the point I was trying to get across.

[zthatzmanz28]

We bought our truck from folks who moved to NC from Florida. I knew they were dark, but didn't think anything about it a year later when I had it inspected. The tint was 7% on the cab doors but the 4% on rear window was ok. I had to peel the tint from the cab windows--it was double layered. Later I will have the tint reinstalled at NC legal limits.

[mia78]

OMG, I just had a blast from the past with Passat pic. I had a 99 Passat and that sucker parked outside my home under a tree literally felt like an getting inside an oven any time it was over 80 degrees outside. It was extremely airtight and worse than any other vehicle I owned. I used to have to let it 'air out' for about five minutes before it was safe for me and my three children (including a newborn) to even sit inside let alone close a door. I can't count how many times I still got a minor burn by the belt latchplate. A tint would've made things more bearable.

But looking like a drug dealer, that's just a silly statement. With a station wagon, hatch back or SUV I don't have a trunk. So anyone that walks by can see whats stored in my vehicle. I prefer to keep prying eyes off my tools, guitars or just shopping bags from the mall when my car is parked some where unattended.

I disagree with tint restrictions. nearly all people who desire tint are law abiding citizens, the very few criminals that will assault an officer won't care about the tint laws to begin with...

Agreed! Looking like a drug dealer is just an outdated perception back from decades ago when those tints were common for those cars in the inner cities much like them being the only ones with early pagers and cell phones.

I also have a van with tinted back windows and wouldn't have it any other way. Anyone could see anything I have of value inside my vehicle. I am a law abiding citizen who wishes not to entice non law-abiding citizens into taking my belongings.

[Kwikstix]

Originally Posted by mia78

OMG, I just had a blast from the past with Passat pic. I had a 99 Passat and that sucker parked outside my home under a tree literally felt like an getting inside an oven any time it was over 80 degrees outside. It was extremely airtight and worse than any other vehicle I owned. I used to have to let it 'air out' for about five minutes before it was safe for me and my three children (including a newborn) to even sit inside let alone close a door. I can't count how many times I still got a minor burn by the belt latchplate. A tint would've made things more bearable.

lol, i know what you mean... The tint helped, but I also added a control module to the window motor that allowed me to roll the windows up/down with my remote that helped a lot too hahaha.

[V65Ozzie]

As for the story about the DMV worker going to someone's house... I call BS on that all day long. I do know that DMV agents will dress as civilians and bring a car in that has illegal tint on it and if the inspection station does not fail it, or they accept a bribe from the agent to overlook it, then they get a hefty fine. But, I'm fairly sure it is illegal for them to go all Gestapo and hunt you down at your home. Plus... how would they know you paid a bribe? If they were running a sting on the shop, they would have pulled you over immediately as you left the store.



Actually, they do. Scary isn't it? But the vehicle would need to flag in the system for them to do a check.
Say for example shop A fails it for window tint at 1100am. The customer, understandably upset, takes it to a "friend" at shop B, who turns a blind eye to the tint and passes it at 1115am. The computer system flags it for further investigation.
After all, why would someone fail, remove their tint, then deliberately go to another station to get it reinspected? basically costing themselves an extra 23.75? When if they went back to the original station, it would cost them $6.25?
Just recently a DMV officer paid a visit to my shop asking about a vehicle that was failed for emissions controls, Apparently the customer went to another station 20 minutes later and they passed it. The amount of work needed to repair the problem would have totaled several hours of work. It flagged in the system, they investigated. The shop and the inspector that passed the vehicle were both fined. These fines can add up to several hundred dollars. I don't know about you, but if I'm charging 30 dollars to inspect a car, but it's costing me a couple of hundred, it's not long before I'll be out of business.
Admittedly, the story you heard was probably embellished, and I highly doubt anyone served any jail time, but the basic story you heard was true.
The fines levied against the inspectors and shops can keep someone in a job, and it's all about the money in the long run.

[V65Ozzie]

There are some exceptions for the window tint. You can have a doctors note for darker tint, the note will be verified by the state and you will get a letter with the amount of tint you can have, the inspector will need to see this letter and verify the tint is not darker than specified.
Government vehicles may have darker than legal tint. (ever notice that most of the DMV enforcement vehicles have very dark tint? Probably so we can't see them watching us.....)
Vehicles registered as limousines* may have darker tint, but only from the rear of the drivers door backwards.
* This is what I was led to believe after a discussion with a DMV enforcement officer, I have yet to actually see it in writing.

[V65Ozzie]

Originally Posted by evaofnc

It's interesting that the shop would offer illegal tint in the first place. I wonder if the rules had changed between when you had the tinting done and today.

Shops can install tint as dark as you like, you, as a customer, should be advised about the legalities of the tint you picked. I advise people to pick a tint around 36%, as most cars have factory tint that can be as dark as 3%, this, added to say a 30% tint, puts you below the legal requirement of 32% plus or minus 2%. Don't ask why it's plus OR minus, that makes absolutely no sense to me either. If you measured out at 34% which is legal plus 2%, you'd be legal anyway................
Now, if you measured at 30%, you'd skate through.....

[macjr82]

I used to have 5% tint on my Cadillac. LEO didn't care......as long as I kept paying thr $75 fine. That got expensive after a while and the tint had to go.

If you have out of state plates you can have your tint as dark as you want to, though.

[V65Ozzie]

Originally Posted by macjr82

I used to have 5% tint on my Cadillac. LEO didn't care......as long as I kept paying thr $75 fine. That got expensive after a while and the tint had to go.

If you have out of state plates you can have your tint as dark as you want to, though.

As far as I know, NC recognizes other states legal tint requirements if you are passing through. I have, however, heard of instances where people have been ticketed. I would fight that in court if it happened to me, as long as my vehicle was legal in the state it was registered. In NC, a tint ticket is now considered as a misdemeanor violation, not just a minor traffic infraction.
One of my younger employees actually spent the night in jail because of his dark tint. I warned him, he didn't listen.
Granted, he probably copped an attitude with the officer instead of "yes sir, no sir".

[RDUBiker]

Originally Posted by V65Ozzie

In NC, a tint ticket is now considered as a misdemeanor violation, not just a minor traffic infraction.

This is insane!