Changes to Tint Inspections

TARider

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2011
Location
Concord
Tint, not taint for you degenerates.
Was talking to a tint installer and he asked if I wanted legal or illegal window tint. Said starting this month NC inspections no longer include tint checks so only worry would be if a cop was feeling picky.
Tried the Google but couldn't find that. Does anyone happen to know for sure if inspections no longer include looking at tint? I'd prefer my front windows match the back and am willing to take my chances on a ticket but don't want to deal with annual inspection issues.
 
Just talked to an installer last week who was still citing the limit - 32 or 35%, can’t recall. They may just be out of the loop tho. Interested to hear the official answer.
 
I bought my TJ with some crazy dark tint on the doors. It sucked trying to drive at night. Impossible to see your mirrors. The dash lights even reflected into the cab. Felt like driving in a shell. I pulled that crap off pretty quick.
 
Wes said:
I bought my TJ with some crazy dark tint on the doors. It sucked trying to drive at night. Impossible to see your mirrors. The dash lights even reflected into the cab. Felt like driving in a shell. I pulled that crap off pretty quick.
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Same with my truck, could see the gauges better than the outside world. Pulled the aftermarket tint off and it is so much better!
 
I'm gonna use the Fuller rule and ignore all advice and experiences pending an answer on if inspection stations are going to be looking for it.
It won't be the first time I'm wrong but I have no trouble seeing out the back windows at night so if the front match the back I'm not too worried (though interior reflection could be annoying).
 
I'm a licensed inspector. As of now the rule has not changed. We actually had a message come through from DMV saying that there was a rumor of potential law change coming, but nothing has been put into law yet. Your guy may have heard the same thing, that it was going into effect Dec 1, but that is not the case yet.
 
BLarkin said:
I'm a licensed inspector. As of now the rule has not changed. We actually had a message come through from DMV saying that there was a rumor of potential law change coming, but nothing has been put into law yet. Your guy may have heard the same thing, that it was going into effect Dec 1, but that is not the case yet.
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Thank you!!! Would you mind posting up here if/when that changes?
 
Tint has been a $10 check for a while now on inspections. For the most part it’s a non issue unless the inspector is a by the book stickler. I got one of those this year. Once they fail you, you cannot go to another inspection station. It has to be passed by the station that fails you.

I’m a dark tint person. 5% on the front sides and 5 over factory on the back. Dim the dash lights and there’s no glare and the light pollution in the cab is almost none. Much better vision at night looking forward. Side markers on the trailers can still be seen and if I need to back up I’ll just roll down the windows.

In my experience, it’s always been kind of an unwritten rule among inspectors that if you’re a tint nazi you politely let the person know you might fail. Then before you’re hooked up, you go elsewhere. I was denied this courtesy by Adolf Tintler this fall and got a pretty snarky response when I asked about it after receiving my nice little failure paperwork. Being the natural smartass that I am, I politely asked for an available outlet as I pulled a heat gun and extension cord out of the toolbox. They didn’t find this as funny as I did so I ran back to the house and was back about 30 min later with clean front windows. The guy saw me at Napa a few days later and gave me the stink eye as I climbed out with fresh 5% tint back on the front sides. 🤣
 
My last inspection on my truck I was hit with the $10 tint fee. I have owned it for 17 years now which has dealer installed 35% tint on the driver and passenger windows. I have never been charged anymore than the basic inspection fee since I’ve owned the truck. I always watch when untrusted shops are doing anything to my vehicles to make sure they are doing what they are being paid for and not trying to up charge me on some BS they caused. So naturally when the dumb bitch told me I owed $40 instead of $30 I asked when inspections went up $10 and she said it’s because I have window tint. So my question was so the state charges anyone with tint $10 just for having tint? She responded no , the $10 is to cover the inspection station’s tint meter and time. I said that’s a nice profit for y’all since you didn’t check shit except that it has tint and added the charge so I suggest you get the light meter out really quick while I give the DMV a call. At this point the so called manager was getting involved and tried to wave the $10 but I refused because they tried to screw me out of $10 by not doing their jobs. I know I’m a sick but it was the wrong day for them to get a free $10 out of me.
 
obullfish said:
My last inspection on my truck I was hit with the $10 tint fee. I have owned it for 17 years now which has dealer installed 35% tint on the driver and passenger windows. I have never been charged anymore than the basic inspection fee since I’ve owned the truck. I always watch when untrusted shops are doing anything to my vehicles to make sure they are doing what they are being paid for and not trying to up charge me on some BS they caused. So naturally when the dumb bitch told me I owed $40 instead of $30 I asked when inspections went up $10 and she said it’s because I have window tint. So my question was so the state charges anyone with tint $10 just for having tint? She responded no , the $10 is to cover the inspection station’s tint meter and time. I said that’s a nice profit for y’all since you didn’t check shit except that it has tint and added the charge so I suggest you get the light meter out really quick while I give the DMV a call. At this point the so called manager was getting involved and tried to wave the $10 but I refused because they tried to screw me out of $10 by not doing their jobs. I know I’m a sick but it was the wrong day for them to get a free $10 out of me.
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I never included the charge unless I actually checked it, and factory tint I never checked. If I was uncertain, I'd look for the line at the top of the window. If I didn't see one, I checked with my fingernail. Factory tint never got checked as it had to be legal anyway. I didn't see the point in charging someone for something that was their wfrom the manufacturer. Now aftermarket tint, usually got checked, and almost always got charged when I checked it.

Like you said though, I gave people an option if I saw it was questionable. It seemed like the decent thing to do.
 
BLarkin said:
I'm a licensed inspector. As of now the rule has not changed. We actually had a message come through from DMV saying that there was a rumor of potential law change coming, but nothing has been put into law yet. Your guy may have heard the same thing, that it was going into effect Dec 1, but that is not the case yet.
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Got the same message from the dmv recently on our analyzer. No change in laws at this time.
 
VortecJeep said:
Roll windows down and pull the fuse. They can’t check what isn’t there.
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You probably would get told to leave without your car getting inspected at most shops. I wouldn’t take that chance if they didn’t roll up when I do an inspection.
 
5% all around except the windshield which has 35%. I have extreme light sensitivity and it makes driving at night very tolerable for me. I just roll the side windows down to back up in the dark if I have a trailer.
 
Had my inspection license goin on 16/17yrs now and just had to add a couple more years this past summer and 0 talks about tint changes. Law is 35% +/- 3% so technically you can have 32%. But these whole in the wall places prob don’t really check unless it’s the new kid going by the book
 
I only have factory tint, so no one has ever said anything to me. I didn't know about the $10 charge. We had a couple dump trucks at work, with dark tint. One, the Boss mans First & personal dump truck. About a year ago, as I drove through the Weigh station, they flagged me for an inspection. DMV man had a tint mirror, & wrote a Warning ticket on the windshield tint. All the windows are the same. Boss said tint had been on it for 15 years & he wasn't taking it off! As a Driver, I Hate the Dark tint! It's like driving on a cloudy day. And when you look to the passenger side, if it's in the shade, your looking in a mirror! The Older trucks have/had crank windows. That's a royal Pain trying to roll down & up the passenger side!
 
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