tpick23

They are not ceramic.

yxc145

what's so special about ceramic? who makes them?
Also, does anyone know if 35% tint ok in Illinois?

Azn_C300

There's nothing really that special about ceramic. Supposedly the metallic interferes with RF signals (very minor if at all) and won't rust (since it's on the inside anyways, not an issue unless you live on the beach and always keep the inside exposed to the sea air). I'd challenge any everyman to tell the difference between the looks of ceramic and metallic of the same grade quality. If they're both high quality grades, they'll both look equally good. Ceramic is much more expensive and the benefits don't justify the cost difference in my mind. It's like buying an expensive smartphone and all you do is make phone calls....

yxc145

well, i think the Suntek Carbon series isn't ceramic anyway....
AZN, how much did you pay to have yours done? wait.. you got the Brother in law that hooked u up! nevermind....
is $200 expensive for the Carbon series for suntek film?

darstar

I think $200.00 for Suntek carbon is alot since I was quoted $125 for carbon and $150 for the HP series. HP 35% has a solar rejection of 49% and carbon 35% has a rejection of 42%. Compare this to F1 Pinnacle 35% with a solar rejection of 50%. I have Pinnacle F1 on my M3, I think the solar heat rejection on the M3 is very comparo to the C300.I paid $250 for F1 on the M3 and only paid $150 for the C300. The best solar rejection is HO ceramic that I have on my X5. I only paid $200 since it was only the 2 front windows.

yxc145

yeah, i thought $200 is a lot, too. I used to live in LA and i had my E320 tinted for only $125 and he did an excellent job. But... here in Illinois, it seems like a decent tint job will cost at least $200. Maybe less competition........
Oh, i am going to Carbon instead of HP because there is metal layer in the HP.

peet

I too would love to hear about Illinois (chicago area specifically) ceramic installers.

As far as metallic...

it won't "rust" because it's aluminum. It will block some signal - that's a given, it's minute though. Agreed.

Ceramic works better on heat rejection because ceramics are an insulator whereas aluminum is a fantastic conductor of heat. So the only thing the metallic films do is block IR which if you recall in physics 101 converts to heat once it passes through glass.

I would love some ceramic in the western burbs - if you have someone worthy of a recommend - holler. BTW: if you want metallic, Riggs Brothers did a fanstastic job on my S4 two years ago.

P

Ron Jr

I had ceramic (50% front 35% rear) it cost 200.00 and I gave the tinter a 20.00 tip since he drove me home and picked me up in his car.

cmoguy

Wow, after spending some time one wikipedia i realized how lucky I am to live in Florida which is a non "inspections" state. Yeah, the only thing I have to worry about is getting a window tinting violation ($75) added on top of a speeding ticket.

As for metalic tint... I had an Audi A4 3.0 and got the windows tinted 20% metalic; my AM/FM radio stopped working, period. I'm not saying that there was a little interference, I mean I got 10% reception at best. Maybe Audi is different, but at least for me, if I even wanted to think about listening to any AM/FM radio with an antena built into the back windshield, i would never consider metalic tint.

Finally, I know I said I'd post pictures yesterday of the 15% ceramic tint, but my car has gotten quite dirty over the last few days and I don't trust my car was shop not to roll down the windows when washing it, so it'll be at least Monday until I can post.

who8888

I had mine done yesterday in Ceramic Pinnacle Formula one 35% all around and it ran $350 not including tax.

mr inkredibul

Where did you get it done?

Phillip G

I was searching on google about ceramic tint and found this thread.

I saw this post and remembered this:

NASA: Japan Earthquake May Have Moved Axis

and thought it was pretty 'funny'

that is all.

Stevedotmil

I got 3M carbon film at 35% and can't be happier. Heat is cut by a lot and I have a lifetime installation and defects warranty at any 3M dealer. I paid 215 for the whole car.

300c4

paid $40 for precut matlc 2ply film.
and DIY took me 1 hr
looks perfect works perfect.

Glyn M Ruck

Metallic tints are known to interfere with RF signals via the rear window antenna on a Benz. Radio reception is adversely affected as are RF key signals to unlock/lock the car etc.

One search on the W203 or other popular forums will soon illustrate just how many people have had issues.

Stay away from metallic tints on the rear window. It has proven time & time again to cause trouble on Benz vehicles.

300DTurbo

Can anyone give me a direction on which way to go?