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  #1  
Old 05-02-2004, 09:26 PM
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Window Tinting Question

Okay kids, this is a long one and has nothing to do with the SVX per se, but should apply to all cars in general.

Yesterday I took my Audi to a shop in Maryland to get the windows tinted. They did the SVX about four years ago and it has held up well, usually getting compliments at Reading and a few other meets. N E Ways, I took the Audi to them for a 45% tint all around. Weather was sunny when I dropped it off. When I came back to pick up the car, it was raining. They were still working on it and I saw a guy tracing the outer edges of the rear window with a heat gun. 15 minutes later the car was pulled out of the garage. I looked it over (looked absolutely gorgeous), paid the guys and headed out.

About three hours later when I go to the garage to drive the car somewhere and look everything over again, there is a six inch crack in the back window! There were no impact marks whatsoever, and as I drag my fingernail across the crack, I can feel a slight elevation. Today it turned and grew another 7 inches or so.

So then, having said all that, here are my questions: Has this ever happened to any of you? What I am trying to figure out is basically how shops that tint windows handle things like this. I am thinking that they will try to say it was my fault somehow and that it basically sucks to be me. When I picked the car up, they said that there is a lifetime warranty on the work, but there was nothing mentioned (and nothing on the receipt) about dealing with a cracked window. This can end up costing close to 1K to replace, so when I take the car to them tomorrow morning, I am bracing myself for all sorts of 'it wadn't me's', but I just wanted to try to be prepared before walking in there. Any of you encountered this before? Thanks in advance for any help!
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"Flossie" - 92 black over pearl LS-L (sold)
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"Gorgeous Genny" - 02 Audi S8 (sold)
"Green Giant" - 00 Land Rover Disco II
"Grey Wülf" - 05 Volvo S60 R
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  #2  
Old 05-02-2004, 10:00 PM
Shadow248 Shadow248 is offline
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Do they remove the rear window to tint it? Sounds like that's what they might have done...seems like overkill to me, but that would explain the heatgunning you saw. Plus, if the adhesive used was cooled too quickly, it could definetly crack the window. I'd think if this were a routine procedure, they'd know that.

Just a thought, but it sounds very fishy to me.
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Old 05-02-2004, 10:28 PM
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Quote:
Originally posted by Shadow248
Do they remove the rear window to tint it? Sounds like that's what they might have done...seems like overkill to me, but that would explain the heatgunning you saw. Plus, if the adhesive used was cooled too quickly, it could definetly crack the window. I'd think if this were a routine procedure, they'd know that.

Just a thought, but it sounds very fishy to me.
Well, when I arrived, I noticed that the covering for the third brakelight was removed and the guy was running the heat gun around the outside edge of the rear window. I may be still in the stone ages on this one, but I'd always thought that a hair drier or something of that nature were used on the inside, so I did find it kind of an odd sight. It also seemed like there were very thin slivers of window trim hanging loose, but I have heard that typically the film is laid on the outside and cut to shape before applying on the inside (not sure how true that is).

A friend of mine about to take the bar recommended I call around to tint shops to find out what procedures they use before going back to talk to these guys, so I wil also try that.
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"Flossie" - 92 black over pearl LS-L (sold)
"Gorgeous George" - 98 Audi A8 (traded)
"Gorgeous Genny" - 02 Audi S8 (sold)
"Green Giant" - 00 Land Rover Disco II
"Grey Wülf" - 05 Volvo S60 R
"Silver Surfer" - 92 black over liquid silver LS-L
"9 of 7" - 97 bordeaux pearl, formerly with Earl Steele
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Old 05-03-2004, 10:11 AM
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The heat gunning on the rear backlite is perfectly normal. The roll of tint is flat, your window is not. They have to shrink the tint so it contours to the windows (especially the back one) of the car.

That's some bs though .......I don't see how they could've cracked it though from window tinting. Do you have a picture? Or can explain where the crack started from?

I'd definitely be pissed off. It's obvious it had to be from them because they were the last one to touch the car.

My guesses are extreme changes of temperature or a lot of pressure applied to one specific area (the place the crack started from).

Good luck though, hopefully it all works out .......maybe insurance?
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  #5  
Old 05-03-2004, 02:23 PM
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Quote:
[i]...My guesses are extreme changes of temperature or a lot of pressure applied to one specific area (the place the crack started from).

Good luck though, hopefully it all works out .......maybe insurance? [/B]
We're going with extreme temp changes. Will be replaced by insurance tomorrow. Owner of the shop said that if the glass cracked on their property, they'd replace it, no questions asked. But they inspected it before I drove off and there was no cracking. In any event, I'll see if they can at least redo the tint once it's been replaced. If so, the car will be sitting on their lot for a day or so. Needless to say, I am not a merry man.
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SvXit

"Flossie" - 92 black over pearl LS-L (sold)
"Gorgeous George" - 98 Audi A8 (traded)
"Gorgeous Genny" - 02 Audi S8 (sold)
"Green Giant" - 00 Land Rover Disco II
"Grey Wülf" - 05 Volvo S60 R
"Silver Surfer" - 92 black over liquid silver LS-L
"9 of 7" - 97 bordeaux pearl, formerly with Earl Steele
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