I recently got my windows tinted and when I went to the shop to get it done, I questioned the shop owner about the dot matrix on the rear window. I know that the tint does not usually stick well to the matrix, so to prevent a crappy looking tint job, I asked him what he suggested.

He stated that his tint will stick to anything and that there will be no problems making it stick to the matrix, so I told him to go ahead and put it on. Well, just as I had figured, once he was done, it did not stick to the matrix hardly at all, and looks like crap. I went back to the shop and questioned him about it, and he said that he never told me it would stick to it.

I know that some poeple have gotten a piece of black vinyl on the outside of the rear window to cover it up. I went to a shop to see what they would charge to put a piece on and they gave me a quote of $120 plus the cost of however much vinyl they will use, and I am not sure how this will look.

I was wondering what you all have done to make the tint look good where the matrix is.

Does anyone have the vinyl strip across the outside of the window?

 

**** that for 120. cheap ass bastard. Some how my dot matrix looks half decent but i really havent seen one that 100% good

 

I have no experience with vinyl, but $120 seemed a little steep to me.

I havent looked at a ton of Cobalts with tint on the matrix, but I know that Bfaulk on the forum has his tinted and its perfect. I guess it helps that he has his own tint shop.

 

elmers school glue.... you know the blue stuff that the one goofy kid in school would eat. in the past with my cavy i talked a shop into doing it where the dot matrix was and they agreed. When its wet its like a gel but once its dry it will clear up. leaving a smooth appearance

 

hey i got my windows tinted and they look great . i bought the car used with no tint when i took the car there , he stated they were tinted before . but mine turned out awesome . good luck

 

http://www.tintdude.com/matrix-glue.html

heres proof of what im talkin about

 

Looks like that would have worked well while the tint was being installed. I guess I am looking for some advice as to what can be done now that the tint has already been installed.

 

120 for a vinyl strip is BS

 

It was going to more then $120. $120 was the just cutting and install of the vinyl,, that didnt include the actual cost of the vinyl.

 

Might want to shop around

 

Yea, I wish I knew about the vinyl. My stuck on quite a bit but definately not 100%.

 

The tint shop that did mine warned me it may not look right, then it came out nearly perfect - he did a realy good job for $150.

If you dont want to have the tint removed, the only choice is vinyl - but get another shop to do that. $150 for a simple strip is OUTRAGEOUS. Thats how much it cost to tint my whole car with a lifetime warranty!

 

The vinyl shouldn't cost you more then $60. Especially for just a strip across the back. I got 4 strips for fender stripes made up and are going to be put on for a total of $20.

 

most places told me the dots could be covered up with vinyl for $20
my whole tint cost me $120 haha

seriously though, you can either try to sand the black dots off and try to get the tint to stick, or use the glue

 

That really sucks man, and I'm with all of you, there's no way it should cost that much. I do have a vinyl strip on mine but it was like that when I bought it. I was told it was all factory tint but don't know if the vinyl is from the factory or not. It doesn't look too bad but my car is black anyways. If you want, I can snap a pic of it tomorrow and post it up for you? Just let me know and I hope you can come up with a solution.

 

So after some searching, I have found a shop that is going to cut out my tint where the dots are and they are going to put a strip of vinyl on the inside of the window, all for $50.

I will probably be getting that done this weekend or next.

 

Moved to Appearance.

Hold it, vinyl on the INSIDE of the window???

F that, put it on the outside, $120 for that is insane, drive here to NE Ohio and I'll get yours done for like $20-30, like mine is.

 

Do you have any pictures of it on the outside?

 

My guy put the strip of vinyl on the inside of my malibu when it got tinted... But he didn't do it with my balt, and it came out fine...

 

uno momento

 

Oh and lowrd and erod.... I think your guys cars should probably be in a showcase at lordstown.... Too clean for the road...

 

mine has a black vinyl strip on the inside where the like 6 inches of dot matrix is. so you cant see it and it is perfect. the black vinyl covers it up, and you cant see it out the rear view mirror so its not in my way at all. now where the matrix is around the outside of the window around the whole glass, they put a 1/2 inch strip of black vinyl over that too so it looks amazing. i am so impressed with the tint shop i took it to. yours should include this.

heres a tip, try running your finger over the dot matrix and it should go down once it has dried

let me kno if you want pics, you can show the tint company what they should have done

 

Hows this for fast? Just for you. Took camera out to garage, took picts, downloaded, resized, uploaded to server:

(cars=dirty. garage=messy. eat=me.)

Cobalt







Bigger ones on Cavalier







lol, no way. Not clean enough by a long shot.

 

That is quick superman lol... I kinda like that look of vinyl on the outside

 

looks rice to me....i'll go get some pics for you...better ones, lol