I recently bought a 2006 A3 - Moro Blue exterior and tan interior. I am thinking of getting the windows tinted to save my interiors and myself from the Texas heat.

I am currently leaning towards 35% on the sides and something darker on the rear window. I really don't want anything too dark that will affect my night visibility. All I need the tint is to reduce some heat and maybe not make the interiors so visible from the outside.

So my questions:
1) Is 35% is good compromise between looks, visibility and keeping the sun/heat out?
2) How is the visibility out of the rear view mirror for people that have really dark tint (5-15%) on the rear window?

Thanks!

p.s. Please feel free to post pictures!

 

i have 35 in the front and five in the back
the 35 is okay but its still sunny
and the 5 in the back is good enough for me but you would probably need light when you are looking in your rear view mirror
but if you live in the city it has enough lighting for you to see everything
ill take a pic and post my car asap i find a camera

ps i have the eclipse sun shade and it helps a whole lot of blocking light from the front windshield with easy install and no messy sun shade to lug around in the car!

http://store.eclipsesunshades.net/

 

I had 5% in the rear windows of a previous car. Backing into the garage was an adventure at night....couldn't see a thing!

 

Look into some of the more expensive 3M tints - there was this one 3M tint that was virtually clear yet blocks out much more UV rays than normal tint. Maybe you can find that in 35%.

 

So my colleague highly recommended this local guy in Houston Pablo Blue Window Tint, said he has been going to that shop for 10 years now and has had great experience with them. I called the shop and talked to the owner. He said it will cost me $239 (incl taxes) and will give me a 8 year warranty.

This place has pretty good reviews online too:
http://houston.citysearch.com/profil...ndow_tint.html

So is $239 expensive, or is it a small price to pay to get it done right at a reliable place?

He also said most people get 25% tint at his place which is the Texas minimum. He said I can go lighter if I want. So my follow up question is: How much darker is 25% compared to 35%? Is it very significant? Is 25% better than 35%?

 

Here are my 2ยข.

I got 35 all the way around for my A3 and paid $150 out here in So.Cal. The guy came to my house before work and took care of it in about an hour and a half. This is actually the second car I got tinted by him. I got 35 all the way around because I wanted an even look. I sorta regret not getting 25 in the back because the back get's pretty hot. But then, it looks better with an even tint all the way around in my opinion and I thought I'd be pushing it getting it too dark.

 

If you want to block heat and keep things cooler/protect the interior check out V-Kools products.

I use it here in Taipei, and on my current car the tint is clear. The tint is spectrally selective and blocks out the UV and a great deal of the heat.

 

The Texas minimum is 25% both front and back. I think I am just gonna go with 25% all around, the darkest possible legally. The even tint look is very important to me.
By the way, I have a tan leather interior and a Moro Blue exterior. Does 25% look less dark with a tan interior than let's say a black interior?

 

Id say 35%, Ive got it on my car and I love it. Ive been pulled over 2 times now and both officers said something about my 35% tint and let me go on it.

 

I've gotten pulled over once and the cop didn't say anything about the tint (though it probably had something to do with the fact that it was at night and I got pulled over for speeding). Anyways, in sunny Texas, I'd get at least 30%. The tan interior is going to make the tint look less dark because the lighter color will be a bit more visible than the black seats. My black seats look almost invisible even with 35% but you can see the grey roof liner.

Did you do a search on the net to see other A3's? Here's what I found.
http://flickr.com/photos/rickfriele/347569273/
http://flickr.com/photos/umphotography/506891016/
http://flickr.com/photos/kamidh/11084874/
http://flickr.com/photos/jennib/2624154805/