NC Tint Law Question

I recently moved to Morehead City from Florida, and have been trying to get my car to pass inspection here in NC. The station I took it to originally failed it because the windshield banner was too long (extended more than 5" from the top of the windshield). So I took it to a shop here and they removed the old banner and installed a new one that was only 5" ... but they used a darker film than what was on there originally (35%). Now the station is still failing my car because they say the windshield banner is legal as to its length, but the tint is only 9%.

I called the shop that replaced the banner, and they said that they've been putting on darker windshield banners for 4 years ... and only one other customer had a problem getting it to pass inspection ... at the same station I used!

So ... my question for you guys in North Carolina ... do you limit your windshield banners to 35% (or 32%)? And if not, do you have any suggestions how I can get the station to pass my car, short of removing the banner or replacing it (again) with lighter film?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions or information!

Go to another inspection place or take it off again then get it inspected. Supposed to be 35% on a banner but banner's are hardly ever enforced unless they are 10" ghetto banners. Im in New Bern if you need anything.

i would take my car somewhere else because i've never interpreted the law that way. when you pull the law up online the only spec for windshields is 5" or as1 line. the light transmission refers to all "other" windows in the car. i'm assuming this inspection station has a two piece meter so they could measure windows that don't roll down. on my windshield i would say just the factory tint is darker than 32%.

Is your banner factory tinted and then tinted over?

I can't remember for sure if there's factory tint under the banner ... but probably is ... it's a 2003 Toyota Avalon.

The ironic thing about this is ... the guy that installed the tint (in Florida) made the windshield banner too long ... and the NC station failed me for that reason to begin with. So I took the car to a local tint shop to have it removed and replaced with a 5" banner ... and without asking what I wanted put back on, they used 15% (which, presumably with the factory tint, brought the winshield down to 9%).

When I took the "now legal" car back to the inspection station, they failed me again ... this time for the tint percent!!!

So tell the guy in morehead they won't pass it and get him to put 35 on it He shouldn't have a problem with it won't take 15 minutes. Or go to a different inspection station, i have 5% 7 inch on my f. strip and never had any problems.

AS1 line, any %

NC law states 5" or to AS1 line which ever is GREATER.
NO VLT restriction on w/shield strips.
You have the choice of reporting them to the DMV and telling them why they wouldn't pass you, they will get a short lesson in the law from the inspector.

I am a NC state inspector and I fail people for !llegal tint all the time, but never for a w/shield strip, unless it's way too low.
They are busting your balls for nothing.

Report them, that will straighten them out.
Most of it is up to interpretation by the person doing the inspection and sometimes they get it wrong...

or you could install huper 40% on your entire shield like I have in my car... Maybe they wouldnt notice it at all!!

They'd probably see it when they go to install the sticker on the glass, I guess it's possible to miss it though...

you cry about what's happening to our industry and then suggest to someone who's having legal issues with their tint to do something totally illegal. jackass.

I see nothing in the wording about a VLT for the windshield strip or "banner". Heres a link to NC's law:
http://home.pcisys.net/~bpc/auto_law/tint/tint_nc.html

Note that after the legal requirements for the windshield are given, it states that any OTHER window may be tinted with the following restrictions.

The whole purpose of a "banner" or windshield strip is to reduce glare. I have NEVER put a 35% strip on a car. That is a RIP OFF.

OH CRAP! I guess I should have read a bit further to where it states that "without exception the windshield is subject to the restrictions!!! MY BAD!! Mouth is open, foot inserted!!!

Sorry guys!!

Yea ... that's what the DMV inspector that I called told me .... BUT, that assumes that when it says the "window tinting restrictions in subsection (b) of this section" ... it includes subdivisions (b)(1) and (b)(2)! The 2nd sentence in subsection © goes on to specifically exclude certain vehicles from the tinting restrictions .... "The window tinting restrictions in subdivisions (b)(1) and (b)(2) of this section do not apply to any of the following vehicle windows:"

I've sent an e-mail to my legislative representative asking for help in finding out who the author(s) of this particular statute was(were) so that I might ask him (or them) what the intent was. Probably won't get a reply, but I thought I'd at least try.

Does your vehicle fall into one of the "excluded vehicle" categories?

Afraid not

That sux. Sorry. I gotta admire your perseverance tho. At least you bothered to research and contact the folks who could answer your q, not just relying on the words you read on an internet forum!!

UPDATE: I finally got hold of an "official" of the DMV (Lt. Bradley) in Raleigh yesterday afternoon. He was very patient and listened to my agruments as to why I believed that the current law didn't restrict the light transmission percentage of the windshield banner. Then he politely disagreed with my arguments, and suggested that I should contact my legislative representative in an effort to get the statutes changed to clarify the restrictions on the windshield tint. So I thought ... OK, just another dead-end!

Then I asked him if I was the only person that had ever questioned this part of the law, and he said "yes" ... as far as he could remember. Then he said that, if I'd give him my phone number, he would "ask around the department" to see if anyone else in the DMV had been confronted with this issue ... but it would likely be Monday before he called me back. So I thought ... maybe this was just another dead-end.

Well much to my amazement, about 30 minutes later, the phone rang ... and it was Lt. Bradley. He wanted to let me know that he had contacted the NC Attorney General's office ... and they agreed with me! Then he proceeded to ask me for the name and phone number of the shop where I took my car for its failed inspection. He said he would call them and inform them of his findings ... and that I should now be able to return to the shop and get my overdue inspection sticker.

I'm going to head over to that shop this morning, hopefully to get my sticker! Stay tuned ...

SUCCESS ... I'm finally legal!

Wow. Very cool!

that's cool man

I tried to tell you that VLT does NOT matter for w/shield strips. But what do I know, I only do this sh!t everyday....

The law states, to AS-1 line or 5 inches, which ever is greater..... THAT'S ALL.... You can paint that sh!t if you want, just as long as it isn't lower than 5in. or AS-1.....

The guys inspecting it are idiots if they think otherwise.... Alot of those rules are up for interpretation, but in most cases the techs don't bother to read the material and make it up as they feel fit...

I even went as far as asking the DMV officer that comes to do periodic inspections of our station if there were any VLT restrictions for that.... She said NO, then called another officer and they said NO as well.....

Sounds like you had to go around your a$$ to get to your elbow, but at least you had them schooled after it was all said and done....

Well hose me down and call me flipper!!!!! I wanna move to NC now!!! Civil Servants who CARE? And actually go above and beyond the call of the coffee machine? Congratulations Dude. THATS a first!!! Instills ones faith in the system (Well OK, ALMOST!!!)




Shady, I read the statute entirely. It could be considered ambiguous, but the take I got was that it was subject to the 35% rule. (Generally, you have to look at it the way the Gov't would look at it. Generally NOT in your favor!!!) Dude DID skool 'em tho, didn't he?

Actually I got a ticket for having a vinyl banner with my shops name. The trooper told me it has to be transparent.

That's up to his interpretation of the law.....
He was well within his right to give you a ticket, but you could've gotten out of it....

In reality, it's NOT up to the troopers interpretation, he's only someone with a VERY rudimentary knowledge of law. What MATTERS is how the Judge interprets it!!!

How is it not up to the trooper, especially out in the field??
It's his job to "enforce" the law as he sees fit at the time, be it right or wrong...
True his knowledge may be limited, compared to a judge and in this case I'd say he was wrong, but the fact remains she got a ticket she could've gotten out of...