thebishman

The only thing that I would change, so far, on the GLK is the roller blind mechanism that covers up the twin sunroofs. This will be much more prone to failure than a simple sliding cover, ala the GL, and due to their very nature, are much thinner. Hence they allow far more ambient light and heat into the cabin. This is enhanced by the fact that the roller blinds are the same colour as the rest of the interior trim, i.e. a light beige.

When driving back from Westminster, CO I had plenty of time to decide how to decrease the amount of light/heat coming in, and came up with this. I was going to have the front windows tinted to match the factory rear privacy glass anyway, and therefore had my tinting guy use a charcoal film in 20%; this provides a perfect match to the factory rear glass, and looks great imho. At the same time, I had him cover the sunroofs, (both), in a charcoal 5%. This has worked fantastically in reducing the heat transmitted into the cabin, and resulted in the A/C having to work less. It still lets in plenty of light should you be wanting to look at the stars, btw.

A highly recommended modification.

Bish

oknish

Thanks, Bish. That is a good one to know. Hopefully, in CA, it is not illegal to tint your sunroof

Baby G

Bish, appreciate the insight. Can you post pics, since i'm planning on doing the same mod.

Manback

yes with the pics. I will prob do the same

thebishman

I will post pix as soon as I can get my son to wash the bloody thing!! lol

BTW, I also had a 3M clear bra package installed that covers the front end up to about 1/3 of the way back on the hood, as well as the wing mirrors. The lights were also covered. This is good insurance because replacing the light covers can be expensive if you crack one. White is probably the worst colour to have the 'clear bra' products installed on as it is the easiest to notice, although you still have to be very close. Silver and Gray cars are the 'best' imho in that the film is almost impossible to see if installed correctly. Another highly recommended modification.

Bish

yualfred

Bish, where did you get it done? I found a diy kit you can order, but don't know if its good or not.

http://www.invisiblemask.com/cgi-bin...edes&model=GLK

thebishman

I would never attempt to install a 'clear bra' package myself, and I've seen it done lots of times. You really need to find a good installer in your area. That way you will also have warranty coverage from the seller of the film. In fact, my '06 M5 had a 3M film on it that began to yellow, as the film was defective. My installer asked 3M to cover the warranty repair, and all of the old film was removed, and new film installed at no cost to me.

My cost on the GLK for the coverage I chose was $650 including the headlights. Worth every penny when installed professionally as it will absolutely save the front end of the car from stone damage, etc.

Bish

EnigmaAW

i just had my driver and passanger windows tinted and they put 30% on, telling me it would match the back windows(factory darkness)when completely cured. well it's a little lighter. so i am thinking of having them remove the 30% and put 20% on. i kinda had a feeling it would not match completely. GRRRRRRRRR!

thebishman

The 20% in charcoal is a perfect match.

Bish