cmaustin

I just ordered an E500 and I asked the salesman about tinting the windows. He replied that "nobody tints windows on a Mercedes". I usally put some type of tint (not super dark) on my car windows. I'm getting the Sport version and I know the windows are blue tinted already. Will that affect the look of the tint? Have other's tinted their windows, and if so, how does it look?

OB_330CiC

I'm thinking of doing the same to my wifes E500...my dealer does do this quite a bit on MBs and BMWs...he recommended Formula One Automotive tint..supposed to be top of the line... went to the shop today and they quoted me $300 for all windows except front... transferable lifetime warranty using Ultimate series film... this is the best film they make..it's a neutral tone(non-reflective)..my wifes does not like the "dark" look... you can check them out at www.formulaone.com

hpilot

I guess I must be "nobody" because I tinted my 2000 E at the MB dealer. I'm not sure what they used, but it looks fantastic with the white paint job, and it has held up very well for the last two years. I was against it at first, but my wife insisted, and I am glad she did (her car!).

karl k

I used MB dealership's sub, who performs tinting on the premises. This is the only way to go, because of possible warranty issues.

PS:
MBUSA advises against tinting, because of water getting into the computers located in the doors.

marksatex

I am considering tinting our car when it arrives. Salesman said it affects nothing. I wanted the rear to match the panorama roof and slightly lighter on front two. All within legal limits of course. I think Sides are 35% transparency and rear is ok to be darker with rt side mirror. In Texas that is.

We like dark tint ( My Suburban is LIMO black) for security reasons. Got to say it looks cool too. Actually I have the rear sides on the Suburban darker than allowed but never been checked.

I see a lot of issues of MB's scratching. Is this a constant problem? Should I try to get the dealer to sub this out, or save the markup and do it at my other guy's place?

akmal31

I saw a silver E with the sport package/avantgarde that had black tints and it was looking WiCkEd I would definaltely recommend it

schvetkaaks

What about the blue tint - does it affect the tint already existing on the car?

Too bad I'm in S. Cal - very limiting as to what tinting one can have on a car. Fines have increased as well...

schvetkaaks

another thing - anyone know how much the blue tint is that is standard with the E500? 20%? 30?

ctouhey

Well, no, I don't know, why else would I be answering?

I hope a little humor is not out of line. I seem to remember 5% as the figure, but I wouldn't wager on that. Back when Sykmast picked up his (with E3 Sport), he said the tint was either non-existent or was unnoticeable.

ElDiabloJoe

I have the E500 Sport with blue tint.

Can hardly tell it's blue, that much is for sure. Maybe in direct sun, standing at just the right angle....

I would prefer a darker black because the blue is not impressive, IMHO.

EDJ

jposhea3

the blue in the e-sport is in the glass, it's tinted glass material rather than a tint applied after the glass is poured.

its very hard to see, unless you open the door and sit inside, looking out at the world both thru the door window and at the unfiltered world around the door

I wouldnt really call it tinting, its more "blue-ish" glass than blue tinted. You could tell the difference if a sport and non-sport E sat next to each other, but beyond that the perception of the coloring effect would be unconscious.

marksatex

I could not tell the tint on several vehicles at the dealer. Regardless, dark tint looks way cool IMHO. The Sport window tint is coloration in the glass as mentioned. The information I got was that it does block only 5% of light but 95% of UV rays. That's all fine, but in South Texas with a dark car- the cooler you can keep it the better. Hunting for shade is a need not a sport.
One other reason is security- the less prying eyes can peer into the car, the better.

My main concern is the film scratching as it moves up and down. Anyone have direct information or experience on this? The Chevy people warned of the same issue on my Sub, but it has never been an issue.

Incidentally, sorta off topic, we researched the affect color has on the heat build up in a car. Actually was a big surprise and is why we went ahead to black... Study we found shows:

"Another comparison was made between a dark sedan and a white mini-van on a mild day with an ambient temperature of 73 degrees (see Figure 3). The dark sedan reached 100 degrees, a 27-degree rise after 15 minutes and 110 degrees at 30 minutes, while the white mini-van took 35 minutes to reach 100 degrees and over an hour to get to 110 degrees. At a little over 2 hours both vehicles stabilized at over 120 degrees, or about 50 degrees above ambient conditions"

Since our car tends to get driven to work, parked in an open lot and sits for 8 hrs , or is on the road, the color does not seem to be a factor.

UNC Nick

I've got 20% black tint all the way around (except windshield) on my blk/charcoal '03 E320. I can post pics in you like. Tint was done by and local shop that does all the cars for the local dealer, who actually sent me there to have it done. Looks great. Very dark, but still able to see in a little bit. I love it!

Nick

TBMpilot

There are fines now? It used to be you just had to show proof of correction.

marksatex

NickI've got 20% black tint all the way around (except windshield) on my blk/charcoal '03 E320. I can post pics in you like. Tint was done by and local shop that does all the cars for the local dealer, who actually sent me there to have it done. Looks great. Very dark, but still able to see in a little bit. I love it!

LOVE to See it !

Mark

UNC Nick

I'm putting a final coat of Platinum UPP on today. I'll take a pic right afterwards and will post it this afternoon.

Nick

UNC Nick

Alright, first time posting pics...

Everything I try to attach is too big. Someone tell me a way around this.

Thanks!

Nick

jposhea3

resize em down til the file is just under 200k ..that should do it..you can try save-asing as jpeg if you use photoshop, it'll show you what quality factor yields what filesize when you get to the szave-as dialog box, type the filename then you get the 'quality' box....like an 8 or 9 should be fine...

UNC Nick

Let's see if this works....

Daytime

UNC Nick

Night Time

UNC Nick

Daytime view from inside the car

UNC Nick

View from inside car at night

etenn

Nice job. I like the night shot.

Ed

marksatex

PuRELY AWESOME! Really makes the car look wIcKeD

cmaustin

That tint looks great. It's pretty dark. Is 20% the most you can do in most states? I live in Texas.