03 Accord Coupe

[TintDude]

03 Accord Coupe

Aug 6 2004, 01:17 PM

Jun 26 2003, 02:49 PM

I was just wondering if anyone has tinted an 03 Accord Coupe yet. I went to get a quote from a very good shop in Southern California (found out about it by referral). I'm not too sure of how dark I want to go. I was wondering if anyone can give me suggestions. My main concern are the front sides. Tint on the front side windows in CA is not legal, however many people do it. I have heard that CHP don't mind as long as they can see inside, though I do realize that all depends. I was originally thinking 15% on the rear and rear sides, and 35% on the front sides. Will 35% look too dark on the front sides, or should I go with something lighter? I am worried that with 15% on the back, the 35% on the front will look darker than if I had 35% all around. My main concern is privacy and comfort in the rear seats, so I don't think I want to go lighter than 15%. It's the front I'm worried about. Also, what should I expect to pay for this? The shop uses Llumar tint. I was quoted $200 for all four windows, which sounds reasonable. I haven't gotten quotes elsewhere because this place was recommended to me and I have seen that they do excellent work.

Mike

35% can look pretty dark especially if the backs are dark, and you have a dark interior, also it depends what city you are in, in S.B. they will ticket you for it, but in L.A. they wont, so it's a roll of the dice for sure, i'd go with 50% if you absolutely need it, but it is against the law.

I do tinting for San Leandro Honda and have done quite a few 03 Accord coupes. The hard part is still the dot matrix on the rear window. If the tint shop will do the entire car for $200, that is a very good price. Kind of on the low side but that is what most people get in L.A. Llumar is a good film as long as it is their hybrid lifetime warranty films. Make sure the shop writes down the type of film and the roll numbers so you will have a valid warranty. Ask them what they do on the dot matrix. I usually tint them but if the customer complains about it, I would use vinyl on it and charge an extra $25. If I were you, I would use 15% on the rear, step it down to 35% on the rear sides and use 50% for the fronts. This way the tint will blend better and won't make the car look like it is cut in half when you view it from the side. Hope this info helps you decide. Good luck!

I got the windows tinted yesterday and it looks nice. I got 5% on the rear window and 35% on all the sides. I think the 35% looks good on the front sides - not too light, not too dark. I would like the rear sides a bit darker for privacy, but I guess at night someone standing 50 feet away won't be able to see through the sides (35%) anyway. Everything looks excellent except for the rear matrix - don't know why Honda needed to put a 3-4" wide strip of ceramic dots across the top of the windshield. I had my brother take the car in since I had to work, and he told me the tint shop said to bring the car back in 3 days to pull up the dust seals. Is it also possible for the shop to make the tint over the matrix look any better, possibly by smoothing it out after some moisture dries up, or hitting it with a heat gun? If there's not way to fix it like that, how easy would it be to cut the existing tint over the matrix and apply vinyl or paint? How nice does the vinyl look?

I've only titnted one or 2 o3 accords. dont rember how the matrix was . but when you take it back ask the shop. what can be done . about the matrix. but im curios . are the dust seals he is talking about on the doors. if so they should come back up when you roll the window down.

The matrix on those looks fine if you sand and glue them. And those dust seals as you call them probably should have been lined with felt. But hey, what do I know?

You can't sand the matrix on those, the antenna is in there, also check your a.m. radio reception, if they installed metallized film your reception will be almost GONE......some FM dropout too.....maybe they can do vinyl up there, just ask and see....also on the 'dust seals'....if they're folded down (which it sounds like they are) they're most likely 'ruined' 'cuz they develop a 'memory' and those are really close to the glass anyway, they won't just pop up when you roll the window down and back up, ANND like OT said they need to be lined with felt because they have a tendency to be known to scratch some films after some dirt contamination has taken effect....once they get dirty, or dusty it can be trapped on the seals and scratch film. so ask the shop to line them with felt.....i've tinted a WHILE BUNCH of all types of new hondas, i have a loval dealer that sent me 12 cars last month, and already this month i have 3 to do monday and they're putting together another list for me as well.....i know 12 cars isn't a whole bunch, but over the last 8 months, it adds up quick, and it's 'bread and butter' for the winter time....hope this helps. let us know how it goes.

Do you charge for the felt? we do, $39 per door.

OK, this is gonna sound REALLY arrogant so i apologize ahead of time....the film i use is EXTREMELY scratch resistant, and i haven't had one come back at all for scratched film, so i don't personally install felt. i've just read all about it so i'm offering my knowledge to the consumer free of charge. p.s. i use a 'well known film company's" 'charcool' 35 up front, 20 on the rest on every car. and it's very durable...i use a white hard card to apply the film and don't scratch it so i know a little crappy piece of rubber won't scratch it ( at least not yet anyways)

39 a door huh? I'll offer that to my customers. How long does it take you t put it on, and do you need to remove the panels to get it on right?

Most cars you have to take the pannels off to do it, some S class mercedes, you can get the rail out without taking the whole pannel off, just pull the top of it back and pull the rail out. I takes about a minute to stick the felt on once you have it out.

I NORMALLY use onyx, metallized....i've always used charcool on the new hondas due to the radio problem, well i am not the biggest fan of charcool so i cut a small piece of onyx and just 'quick stuck' it to the upper part of the window and before i counted 15 station on the AM band.....with the onyx i got 2....'neff said for me...i guess it goes to say that you're fortunate for not experiencing those problems.

Well, i tint the new hondas BRAND NEW with plastic still on the seats and doors, and the damn power locks not working.....after i tint them, the service dept preps tham, and part of a new car prep procedure is RADIO RECEPTION....i know this 'cuz i had to retint the first few i had done due to the metallized film, they told me that if i didnt use film that woldn't interfere they'd find another tinter......i've adapted. i like bread and butter in the winter time.

I'm curious about this adding felt thing you guys do. Ive never done this and have no idea how to even do it and what to do it with. I havent had problems with scratches in the new 03 Accords, just with the defroster lines and air pockets forming in them from the shrinking. Where can I read up on it or learn about it? I'm using Llumar film. I just started using their "Llumastar" film a few weeks back and have yet to do one of these since. But I have one Sat morning and I hate these cars. I Have turned to dry shrinking with powder lately. No more wet shrinking for me, cause Ive seen the light. Heh. I just dread these back windows. I recently got the "side wiper" and the "big foot" squeegees to help me out on these cars so hopefully I wont freak out with the car. And hopefully the powder shrinking will help to reduce the chances for puckers on the defroster.

Yeah, go check out my tip of the week...also check out my modified side swiper in the tint tools section, i posted a pic there....also you should use a slammer instead of the big foot for the bottom of those windows. i agree, they're tricky to reach all the way down there, but it can be done.

Hey can someone give me some advice? i got my coupe tinted and we all know about the huge the dot matrix strip on the back window is. the guy tells me that after a month i can run my finger up it and it should stick better. i did so the other day thinking it would look better even though it really looked alright to begin with with the exception of a few spots. now, the whole dot matrix strip looks almost white b/c it got worse instead of better. the guy who did it was a real A hole and when i called him asking his advice... said he was too busy to talk and automatically assumed i wanted it redone or something when i really am satisfied but just want to know how i can make that top part stick again so it doesnt look white in a way compared to the rest of the window. thank you in advance.

It's not the tinterrs fault you have dot matrix problems everyone has the same problen with the Hona Accord.You should call another pro shop and ask for vinyl treatment..If they are any good they will know how to do it and charge about 30-40 dollars..The dots will never look good so live with it or vinyl it.

Pretty much all film manufacturers make a dyed/non-metallized film that will not affect your AM radio reception. The problem with these films is that they WILL turn purple within a couple years. And even faster if you're in the desert.

But if you use an extruded film you can still get am reception and have a color stable film that will not turn purple.

Does a vinyl strip on the dots work on an 03 accord or not? we dropped my car off last night and the guy who took the car agreed with every issue we showed him and said he would take care of it. now today the owner calls and says there is nothing wrong with the tint job and that vinyl won't stick on an 03 honda. (something to do with the antenna wire) also, another question: on my last vehicle and my husband's truck, the tint on the roll down windows goes all the way to the top. when these guys did my honda they left a gap. they are saying they have to leave a gap cuz on honda's it will start to peel. sooo do you leave a noticeable gap at the top of the windows or do you make it go to the very edge? thanx

Never had a problem with the vinyl sticking?

This guy is smart. he's figured out how @nal you are and doesn't want to mess with it. cause he knows you'll be in there complaining about his work sooner or later. there's no problem with the vinyl. he's just avoiding having problems with you.

Since he won't do vinyl and i am not happy with how crappy the dots look.. they are peeling the tint and returning my money.

I don't have a problem paying extra for vinyl. i really should have taken pictures to show you just how icky it looked. and they should have told me before they tinted to give me the option of tinting it or not. they didn't mention it at all. and that is just the major issue on top of the other 5 or six issues i had (that the guy agreed with me last night when we dropped the car off) i don't understand why there has to be all this sarcasm on this board. why can't you just answer the questions without all the additional garbage. i'm no a tinter.. i have questions.. if you don't want to answer them.. ignore it and go onto the next post.

I'd think at this stage of the game, the shop is probably looking forward to stripping and returning your money. As to the top edge gap, there are numerous ways of tinting, no one way is right or wrong. You should have done a little home work on that before you took the dealer's recommendation. Some may not know this, but dealers aren't always the most reputable or have the most knowledge. Our shop uses vinyl on dots and we take the film to the top, doesn't make us better or worse, just different. Up to the consumer to figure it out before making the choice. There are two other shops in my town that don't vinyl or take film to the top edge, their work is quality too. Different styles for different tinters. If I was going to have my carpets cleaned, I wouldn't take the recomendation of the carpet seller, I'd ask a few questions first from some other carpet cleaners before I made a decision. Good luck! By the way, make sure you tell the new tinter what your experience has been before they even give you a price, much less touch your car, so they know what to expect and charge accordingly. Actually, come to think of it, didn't you say your husband's truck was tinted to the top? Did you have it done or was it done before your purchase? If you had it done, why didn't you go back to the same company as before?

Iagree that i should have researched first.. however who woulda thought that tint could go so wrong.. i sure didn't considering my last two experiences were positive.. i have learned my lesson. as far as asking/researching about the tint going all the way to the top of the window. that is actually the 2nd question i asked the first time i called. so who woulda thought i had to reiterate it? also.. the 6 other shops i called today and asked.. all take the tint to the top (none do vinyl.. is it new? one shop is very interested in finding out about it.. they currently paint if the tint doesn't stick..) i did tell each of the other shops what i went through without ratting out the company. i got price quotes from 139 all they way up to 250. before today.. i would have asked the installer who they recommended.. i have learned something new there, too. i do have one last question.. any comments from anyone or with experience with paint on the dots since i can't find anyone in the area that does vinyl? thanx

The guy that did his is no longer in business.. nor does it appear the place that did my last car is either.. as i attempted to call them today to ask about vinyl and got a "no longer in service" at both their number. i didn't attempt to call them in the first place cuz they were 2 hours from us and i wanted someplace closer.

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