Increasing privacy so installed 5% (Limo) window tint. North Wales.

[MarkVw2017]

The beauty of the cali is the ability to pull up anywhere and have a chillout and a cup of tea. I had normal tint but knew people could see me when working on a laptop, having a cuppa etc so decided to treat myself and cali to the darkest available window tint 5% (limo) to maximise privacy.

With the lighter tint, if i wanted privacy in a busy place, i was shutting the blinds, but that seemed a shame as some of the places i was set up were stunning so wanted to still be able to enjoy the view whilst maximising privacy

You just cannot see in, its definitely darker looking out but still extremely visible considering you just cannot see in.

Thought I would share some images incase anyone is planning to have it done in North Wales.

I got it done in Mochdre in North Wales at Autovision. The owner, Steve is a really true professional, very friendly and talked me through every step, option and every film available. I couldn't be happier with the finished product.

 

[willwander]

Looks great with the white

 

[Gary&Heather]

Looks nice I think I could do with mine being a bit more darker.

 

[LemonDrop]

I love the black/white combo, looks great. Will you get the alloys coated black next? That would look super cool

 

[motacyclist]

Now you need the B pillar black out decals from the shop

https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/shop/product/vw-california-b-pillar-black-out-decals

 

[DrJuanKerr]

@MarkVw2017 if you don't mind my asking what did it cost please and how long was the job. It looks awesome
Thanks

 

[Bellcrew]

The beauty of the cali is the ability to pull up anywhere and have a chillout and a cup of tea. I had normal tint but knew people could see me when working on a laptop, having a cuppa etc so decided to treat myself and cali to the darkest available window tint 5% (limo) to maximise privacy.

With the lighter tint, if i wanted privacy in a busy place, i was shutting the blinds, but that seemed a shame as some of the places i was set up were stunning so wanted to still be able to enjoy the view whilst maximising privacy

You just cannot see in, its definitely darker looking out but still extremely visible considering you just cannot see in.

Thought I would share some images incase anyone is planning to have it done in North Wales.

I got it done in Mochdre in North Wales at Autovision. The owner, Steve is a really true professional, very friendly and talked me through every step, option and every film available. I couldn't be happier with the finished product.
View attachment 41506


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I would be tempted to go for Limo tint if I lived in California, in grey old UK it would be far too dark for me, I love the spread of opinion on this site though and the options available.

 

[MarkVw2017]

@MarkVw2017 if you don't mind my asking what did it cost please and how long was the job. It looks awesome
Thanks

Domt mind at all. It cost me £300, £250 for the tint and £50 to remove old lighter tint as he had to be so delicate around rear window heater lines when taking old film off, it took him all day, from 8.30am and he was still going at 6pm. I phoned a good few companies and they all seem to be around the £250 but autovision (steve) explained in massive detail how it all works etc so went with them and so pleased i did. He also does tinting for vw and landrover so hes used to working with Calis and top end vehicles. I got some prices off other companies but some just said, put some more tint on the existing tint to go darker which worried me as Autovision (Steve) explained indeoth why this would not be good as its designed to be moulded to glass, not film. Hope this helps.

 

[Legin]

Did you wait while it was fitted. Not so far from me but far enough that two trips ...

 

[kave]

So you removed factory tint? I never realized that was film also.

 

[MarkVw2017]

Did you wait while it was fitted. Not so far from me but far enough that two trips ...

I dropped cali off at 8.30am wife picked me up, went to work and wife took me back for 6pm.

 

[MarkVw2017]

So you removed factory tint? I never realized that was film also.

The vw installed tint in in the glass, not film, i had a cali which had lighter aftermarket film fitted, so needed it removed (which is a right job in the rear glass because of the heater lines as removing film can damage them).

 

[MarkVw2017]

Now you need the B pillar black out decals from the shop

https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/shop/product/vw-california-b-pillar-black-out-decals

Didnt even know them did them Colin

 

[Adamvanman]

Agreed, with the white Cali you need the b pillar blackouts as it will transform the look. Easy to fit if you take your time doing them .

 

[gonezrfing]

Forgive the dumb question but do they put it on the inside or outside? And doesn't it scratch easily?

 

[Legin]

Goes inside. Doesnt scratch easily but attack it with something sharp like knife or scissors and its toast. Only damaged one section in 15yrs of film tints and then it was minor.

 

[Aca_chap]

Domt mind at all. It cost me £300, £250 for the tint and £50 to remove old lighter tint as he had to be so delicate around rear window heater lines when taking old film off, it took him all day, from 8.30am and he was still going at 6pm. I phoned a good few companies and they all seem to be around the £250 but autovision (steve) explained in massive detail how it all works etc so went with them and so pleased i did. He also does tinting for vw and landrover so hes used to working with Calis and top end vehicles. I got some prices off other companies but some just said, put some more tint on the existing tint to go darker which worried me as Autovision (Steve) explained indeoth why this would not be good as its designed to be moulded to glass, not film. Hope this helps.

Hi, I know I am resurrecting an old thread here but this is very useful information. I wasn’t aware that a secondary tint would be better applied to non-tinted glass.

I have a 6.1 Ocean on order to replace my 6 and was never happy with the factory privacy glass. From reading this thead I’m now tempted to remove privacy option and get after market.

For anyone that has gone this route, are there any long term views or considerations that I’m not thinking about?

Cheers and all the best.

 

[andyinluton]

Hi, I know I am resurrecting an old thread here but this is very useful information. I wasn’t aware that a secondary tint would be better applied to non-tinted glass.

I have a 6.1 Ocean on order to replace my 6 and was never happy with the factory privacy glass. From reading this thead I’m now tempted to remove privacy option and get after market.

For anyone that has gone this route, are there any long term views or considerations that I’m not thinking about?

Cheers and all the best.

You don't have the option on an Ocean of not having the privacy glass.

The vw privacy is actually tinted glass not a film. The post above was someone removing an aftermarket film before applying a new darker film.

As the ocean has double glazed units, you do end up with a different look on some units - have a search of previous posts to find some photos, I think this difference is less if you start with tinted glass.

To end up with a 5% transmission on already tinted windows you probably only need a 10% tint on top of what's there already.

 

[B J G]

You don't have the option on an Ocean of not having the privacy glass.

The vw privacy is actually tinted glass not a film. The post above was someone removing an aftermarket film before applying a new darker film.

As the ocean has double glazed units, you do end up with a different look on some units - have a search of previous posts to find some photos, I think this difference is less if you start with tinted glass.

To end up with a 5% transmission on already tinted windows you probably only need a 10% tint on top of what's there already.

As the wardrobe section is done by the factory this window will show up the effect that you are referring to which is due to the double glazing having the inner glass with the film applied and single glazing direct to the outer.
Doesn't show on all light conditions. Photo below clearly shows this visual effect. Not visible from the inside looking out.

mine was done with a Ceramic Solar Film that reduces heat coming in from direct sunlight. The front doors are also done with a lighter tint to keep it legal.

 

[66tim99]

Hi, I know I am resurrecting an old thread here but this is very useful information. I wasn’t aware that a secondary tint would be better applied to non-tinted glass.

I have a 6.1 Ocean on order to replace my 6 and was never happy with the factory privacy glass. From reading this thead I’m now tempted to remove privacy option and get after market.

For anyone that has gone this route, are there any long term views or considerations that I’m not thinking about?

Cheers and all the best.

The Sports Pack includes a darker factory tint

 

[be1t0n]

Has anyone had any issue with the tint film sitting properly around the bumps on the inside of the windows?

 

[Aca_chap]

As the wardrobe section is done by the factory this window will show up the effect that you are referring to which is due to the double glazing having the inner glass with the film applied and single glazing direct to the outer.
Doesn't show on all light conditions. Photo below clearly shows this visual effect. Not visible from the inside looking out.

mine was done with a Ceramic Solar Film that reduces heat coming in from direct sunlight. The front doors are also done with a lighter tint to keep it legal.

View attachment 73851

Thank you for sharing this. Could I ask some questions which are befitting of a complete novice?

- how durable are tints on top of the privacy glass?
- how does the ceramic option differ here?
- are there any other unsightly effects?

Thanks for reading and answering to any of you who made it this far down!!

Cheers and all the best

 

[JunglieD]

Thank you for sharing this. Could I ask some questions which are befitting of a complete novice?

- how durable are tints on top of the privacy glass?
- how does the ceramic option differ here?
- are there any other unsightly effects?

Thanks for reading and answering to any of you who made it this far down!!

Cheers and all the best

I had mine done last week with 5% limo tint to the sides and 20% on the rear window. I’m happy with the overall effect. My fitter tintinit (near Thruxton) uses film/tints from the USA as it’s his opinion that their stuff is best (can’t comment personally).
it gives complete privacy inside the van now and imo looks pretty sharp. For the gloomy winter days it’s a little darker inside the cabin than I’d ideally like - but lots of natural light comes in unobstructed via the front windows so it’s not as dark as you might think. I think the real benefit will come in the summer months though with thermal protection too. I had him do the B-pillars too because... why not?! It’s only film and can be removed very easily.

 

[GrannyJen]

I had mine done last week with 5% limo tint to the sides and 20% on the rear window. I’m happy with the overall effect. My fitter tintinit (near Thruxton) uses film/tints from the USA as it’s his opinion that their stuff is best (can’t comment personally).
it gives complete privacy inside the van now and imo looks pretty sharp. For the gloomy winter days it’s a little darker inside the cabin than I’d ideally like - but lots of natural light comes in unobstructed via the front windows so it’s not as dark as you might think. I think the real benefit will come in the summer months though with thermal protection too. I had him do the B-pillars too because... why not?! It’s only film and can be removed very easily.
View attachment 73888

You also get a lot of light in once the roof is up and the windows unzipped.

 

[Aca_chap]

I had mine done last week with 5% limo tint to the sides and 20% on the rear window. I’m happy with the overall effect. My fitter tintinit (near Thruxton) uses film/tints from the USA as it’s his opinion that their stuff is best (can’t comment personally).
it gives complete privacy inside the van now and imo looks pretty sharp. For the gloomy winter days it’s a little darker inside the cabin than I’d ideally like - but lots of natural light comes in unobstructed via the front windows so it’s not as dark as you might think. I think the real benefit will come in the summer months though with thermal protection too. I had him do the B-pillars too because... why not?! It’s only film and can be removed very easily.
View attachment 73888

Thanks for much for sharing this it looks brilliant. Could I just ask two things?

1. what’s the quality of the tint like close up?does it still look OEM as if it was done at the factory or are there tell tale signs like bubbling or any edges that don’t match up e.g in the sliding windows

2. Do you know what the longevity for something like this is? What is it goes wrong - can it be peeled of in a couple of years?

Sorry for my formulaic questions format. I’m kinder than this suggests I promise.

thanks and all the best