Aftermarket tinting on laminated glass

[SandyChamois]

I went to an Xpel certified tint shop to get non ceramic tint installed. The installer said the laminated windows in the cargo area will definitely bubble if you tint them. Anyone who had aftermarket tint added also told this or noticed any bubbling and a few months?

 

[Norb-TX]

What do you mean, laminated rear window?

 

[SandyChamois]

What do you mean, laminated rear window?

The side windows in the cargo area are laminated

the other windows are Toughened

 

[Jeffrey]

I thought all 'safety glass' in cars was laminated?

 

[Norb-TX]

And its not on the surface, so why would it bubble?

 

[SandyChamois]

According to the Xpel tech, the tint will bubble on the laminated windows due to the release of gas. The non laminated windows would be fine

 

[Jimxyz]

Interesting. We had tint applied about two weeks ago and so far it looks great. No mention of potential bubbles from the shop. Total job was around $500 if anyone wants to compare. (SoCal)

 

[SandyChamois]

Interesting. We had tint applied about two weeks ago and so far it looks great. No mention of potential bubbles from the shop. Total job was around $500 if anyone wants to compare. (SoCal)

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Is this Xpel tint? Why they told me this, I held off on getting the tint for now, but they also said the two rear door windows also felt laminated when you knock on them. They are labeled Toughened, the same as the other door windows though. They also said that the glass of the rear defroster windows can be damaged by the tint when removing it if it bubbles. They even called Xpel corporate about it. I am still suspicious of what they were telling me.

 

[anand]

They also said that the glass of the rear defroster windows can be damaged by the tint when removing it if it bubbles.

This is true of any tint on any window with defroster lines

 

[Jimxyz]

Is this Xpel tint? Why they told me this, I held off on getting the tint for now, but they also said the two rear door windows also felt laminated when you knock on them. They are labeled Toughened, the same as the other door windows though. They also said that the glass of the rear defroster windows can be damaged by the tint when removing it if it bubbles. They even called Xpel corporate about it. I am still suspicious of what they were telling me.

I believe it is Llumar CTX ceramic film.

 

[Jeffrey]

Interesting. We had tint applied about two weeks ago and so far it looks great. No mention of potential bubbles from the shop. Total job was around $500 if anyone wants to compare. (SoCal)

View attachment 7840861

It appears that your vehicle is now illegal in CA.

 

[anand]

Based on a long Reddit thread, the pano roofs on the Teslas (and perhaps some front windows?) are laminated, and the only issue chatted about in there is that the film can only dissipate the heat it captures to the innermost pane of glass (instead of the full thickness of the glass), which means it ends up dumping some of the heat into the interior (minimizing the heat blocking properties of the film).

I've had many vehicles tinted, but I'm not a tint professional in any stretch of the definition.

 

[Rab]

Mine have been tinted from June, no signs of bubbles or other defects to date.

 

[Jimxyz]

It appears that your vehicle is now illegal in CA.

I got the $50 remove/reapply after I get a ticket insurance

 

[Ovrland Bill]

It appears that your vehicle is now illegal in CA.

Yup

 

[Krabby]

I got the $50 remove/reapply after I get a ticket insurance

I'm sure the police are too busy with other issues to track you down. Unless, of course, they've solved all the actual crime in California.

 

[Jiman01]

I went to an Xpel certified tint shop to get non ceramic tint installed. The installer said the laminated windows in the cargo area will definitely bubble if you tint them. Anyone who had aftermarket tint added also told this or noticed any bubbling and a few months?

That’s interesting. I had a light ceramic tint (IIRC Expel) on my Raptor windshield in 2017. Sold it Dec2022 and never had any issues. I didn’t even realize that was a thing with laminated glass

People get their windshields done often and they’re all laminated

 

[anand]

People get their windshields done often and they’re all laminated

That's a great point I didn't even think of, we've had every windshield in the past 8-9 years tinted (Llumar Air Blue 80) without any problems (even with double sided stuff stuck to it like a dash cam or toll tag). Never once had an installer bat an eye at it

 

[SandyChamois]

Mine have been tinted from June, no signs of bubbles or other defects to date.

That’s interesting. I had a light ceramic tint (IIRC Expel) on my Raptor windshield in 2017. Sold it Dec2022 and never had any issues. I didn’t even realize that was a thing with laminated glass

People get their windshields done often and they’re all laminated

The Gren windshield is Toughened, not Laminated, just like the other windows on all the doors. The only Laminated ones are the cargo area side windows. The etchings in the corners of the windows for the Manufacturer Pilkington, that is their brand names for those two different types of glass.

 

[AMD66]

No bubbles on any of the tinted windows, and heated rear windows none either.