Oppo-inions needed (hah)

"AM3R" (AM3R) 01/09/2014 at 16:44 • Filed to: bmw

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35% tint
30% tint
20% tint

I can't pick which one I like best, they all look good IMO. Even 35% will get the job done with keeping the interior nice and cool during the summer. Please comment which one you like best, thanks! EDIT: local tint law is 35% but disregard. I'm willing to go darker as most locals also choose to do. I also have the medical exemption form because my lovely mother :)

ddavidn > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:45

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20%

HammerheadFistpunch > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:45

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What do your local laws state?

Textured Soy Protein > HammerheadFistpunch 01/09/2014 at 16:47

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This. Exactly. No reason to give the cops a free pass to pull you over.

(Says the guy with no front plate on his all-black BMW. But cops where I live pretty much give you a pass for no front plate.)

Audi-os, amigos > HammerheadFistpunch 01/09/2014 at 16:47

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What do your state laws lo-.....nevermind,

Laird Andrew Neby Bradleigh > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:47

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I'd say less is more.

Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:49

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I'd say 30%, but as Hammerhead says, figure out what's legal first.

CKeffer > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:49

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Look up your state laws on tinting, go as dark as they will let you and call it done. Any darker is just asking to get harassed by the police.

AM3R > Textured Soy Protein 01/09/2014 at 16:49

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Haha state law is 35% but my brother, many of my friends, and local enthusiasts regularly get away with 15% tints. The one thing NoVa cops are somewhat lenient about.

thedevilinside > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:50

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I have this same dilemma. I want 25, but can't get it. Last car I went with 30%.

ColoradoTaco > HammerheadFistpunch 01/09/2014 at 16:51

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This. Although, we can't have darker than 27% or something here a lot of folks do. If cops cared they would probably spend their entire day doing nothing else but stopping for tint violations. Asses the risk for getting pulled in your area and live with consequences if you do get stopped.

That being said I had 15% on my old A4 and have 20% on the Subaru now and haven't had any issues. I like the 20% more, still kinda hard to see un-lit left turns but not quite as bad. Only have to roll my window down to see once in a while.

RacecaR > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:52

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20%. But be ready to be screwed when trying to see out the rear window at night.

We have 20% on our Sienna. It is DARK. Hard to see out the rear at night. I will sometimes roll down my window and use the side mirror to look behind me. Still worth it though.

Actually, now that I think about it, they may have put 20% over the factory tint, which was probably 35%...so...yeah.

Textured Soy Protein > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:52

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Ah yes, I grew up in MoCo. Cops there and in NoVa are too busy breaking up high school house parties to bother with illegal tint.

BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:54

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On a luxury car, less is more. Otherwise, you just have another Bro-MW.

AM3R > Textured Soy Protein 01/09/2014 at 16:55

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Hahaha you hit the nail right in the head. Cops went around centreville high school about a month ago writing tickets during class for expired tags and other BS.

jariten1781 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:55

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If you're older with a spotless driving record no one will give you crap even if you're pulled over for something else. If you're younger and have a few tickets you'll get a tint ticket added on every time you're pulled over again. You're right though, NOVA cops usually have better things to do so you probably won't be targeted for it.

AM3R > BugEyedBimmer - back in the Saddle Dakota Leather 01/09/2014 at 16:57

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Well put, I have a black interior so the one benefit of going darker is that the interior will be much cooler during the summer. A con of the black interior is that it makes tints look much darker than they actually are.

Stupidru > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:58

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50%. People still won't be able to definitively tell who you are during the day, and you'll still be able to back up at night.

oldirtybootz > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 16:59

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I'm going 25% when I get around to doing the Dart. I had 35% on the Focus and it was too transparent.

TheBaron2112 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 17:00

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I guess I don't get the fascination of window tinting.

Why have any tint at all?

AM3R > TheBaron2112 01/09/2014 at 17:02

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First reason I want to tint is to keep the interior cool during the summer as it's parked outdoors most of the time. Second reason is cosmetic/privacy. I'd rather not drive a fish bowl and have the world observing me.

thedevilinside > TheBaron2112 01/09/2014 at 17:02

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It helps keep cars cooler in the heat and sun. My favorite part is keeping a lot of sun off the interior to prevent drying out, cracking, and seam splitting.

AM3R > oldirtybootz 01/09/2014 at 17:03

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Cool, how was backing out at night with 35%?

oldirtybootz > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 17:09

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Not terrible. The bigger issue I had was with the front windows, espcially by the A-pillar with my rain guards. With the Dart I have a backup camera so I'm less concerned about rearward visibility now.

gator8 > jariten1781 01/09/2014 at 17:26

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My experiences are different. I have 20% tints and I've been pulled over 3 times in a year already in NoVa on 495 N. I do have tinted taillights too and the car is white, which makes it seem really, illegally dark. Same cop each time too.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 17:27

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Get those extra bright reverse light bulbs.

The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 17:28

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This cop's waiting for him to leave the driveway.

*damn it Kinja, that's not what I clicked*

AM3R > The Opponaut formerly known as MattP123 01/09/2014 at 17:40

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HAHA! Didn't even catch that at first.

jariten1781 > gator8 01/09/2014 at 17:55

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Once you get one you're pretty much toast... Especially if they remember your vehicle.

KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs > TheBaron2112 01/09/2014 at 20:50

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I like to be able to see out of my car at night.

The Mini and the Z4 have no tinting and the truck has factory tinted glass on the SuperCab and rear window.

I should get a sunshade for it, since it's normally parked outside under a tree.

BKRM3 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 20:53

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If you're planning on tracking that puppy I'd reconsider the tint, although I was able to get them to approve my e92 that had 40%. Some organizations are stricter than others. Of course I realize that relatively few E9X owners track their cars so sorry if this was a waste of time!

AM3R > BKRM3 01/09/2014 at 21:06

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No I do plan on MANY track days/autocross events this year. I'm all set to go to a high performance/defensive driving school in a few weeks. I didn't think tint was a big deal, whenever I autocross I roll all my windows down anyways. Thanks for the info!

BKRM3 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 21:26

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Yeah tint is no bueno for the track. The concern is that car behind you won't be able to see into or through your car. Some BMW CCA chapters in particular are known for being a real pain in the ass about even moderate tint. My friend had some tense moments during tech inspection with his E92 that has 35%, which was just insane because you can see through it fine. That was the NJ chapter. Anyway, my E90 doesn't have tint and I do miss it keeping things cooler in the summer. Still, I'm glad I don't have to deal with it at every tech inspection. It doesn't take much to get the good effects of eliminating UV, keeping things cooler and getting rid of the fishbowl feel. If you decide to do it I'd recommend staying pretty light. I loved my 40% and I think that would minimize track headaches if you're dead set on tint.

AM3R > BKRM3 01/09/2014 at 21:38

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Ahh thanks for all the info. Probably saved me from some trouble at tech inspection. My interior is black so tints look darker, maybe a 40% wouldn't be TOO bad. Idk, I might just end up with a 35% anyways. This gave me a lot more to think about, as I really want to track this car as often as possible.

BKRM3 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 21:46

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For reference here is a pic of my 335 with 40% (saddle brown interior).

AM3R > BKRM3 01/09/2014 at 21:58

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Ah thank you. 40% looks much better than I thought! Nice E92 btw, clean and not overdone. Do you plan on blacking out the window trim?

BKRM3 > AM3R 01/09/2014 at 22:05

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Thanks! I sold the 335 back in April. This here's my current ride. Please excuse the wheel gap, I just swapped the wheels on before taking the pic so the suspension wasn't settled.

AM3R > BKRM3 01/09/2014 at 22:09

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WOW! I want more pics! That's awesome, hoping to trade up to one eventually. I'm one of the few that prefer E90 M3's over E92 M3's. Nothing is sexier than an LCI E90 M3.

BKRM3 > AM3R 01/10/2014 at 09:46

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Lol thanks again. The LCI is fantastic - mine is an 09. I knew I was going to be keeping this car for a while (although anymore I think I might keep it forever because I love it so much) so I had to have the LED tails and updated idrive. More pictures eh? All right...

Here is the fox red against the carbon leather trim:

Here's an exterior pic with the normal summer rims (style 220M, which are forged and, interestingly, made by Fuchs):

Here's one of me getting a point-by while slicing through the beginner run group (before I got moved up):

AM3R > BKRM3 01/10/2014 at 15:34

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Awesome color combo! Very desirable in the used market. Love your car, the oppo sticker really sets if off haha! I could look at pictures of it all day, can't wait until I can pick up an M3. It's gotta be the perfect M3 before I buy it as I also plan on keeping it a while, and I haven't found any with all the options I want in my budget yet :( I don't want to settle on another car, especially when it comes to transmission choice.

BKRM3 > AM3R 01/10/2014 at 15:39

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It took me 6 months of looking every single day to find this one with the right combination of options, mileage, price, etc. In fact, when this popped up I was actually making arrangements to buy a 997 Carrera S but it was taking a while because the car was 500 miles away. I'm glad it worked out and I ended up with the M. Believe it or not I actually bought it from a guy from m3post (which is e90post's M3 section).

...if you were wondering, my car is a 6MT. =)

AM3R > BKRM3 01/10/2014 at 15:45

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I was just about to ask haha :). And yeah I spend a fair bit of time on the regional section of M3post shopping around haha.

Every once and while I look at other cars instead of the M3. Tons of local B8 S4's, C63's, I've even test driven a a CPO cayman and almost bought it. Glad I didn't, I'm even closer to the M3 now haha.

BKRM3 > AM3R 01/10/2014 at 16:19

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Can't do this with a Cayman:

That's a 10x10 pop-up canopy, a set of four Apex Arc-8s (18x10!!!) and what you can't see is that in the trunk is a portable jack, a big tupperware container with all my other tools and track stuff...and a camping chair.

AM3R > BKRM3 01/10/2014 at 16:24

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That's gonna come in handy! Another reason I'm glad I went E90 over E92. I regularly have my Lacrosse stick in the car and I play defense, and the sticks around 65", so this definitely makes me glad I didn't get the cayman haha.