Pulled over for tint!!!

**RL89LXi** · 07-19-2002, 06:45 PM

Well, tonight, on my way home from McDonalds, I see the flashing lights behind me and think, oh crap. So, the cop walks up to my car and gets my license and registration. He then tells me that he will be writing me a ticket for having illegal window tinting. I was just like, ok, but I was kind of thinking that tinting isn't illegal. The tinting on my windows is the stick on kind or whatever it's called. It has a bunch of scratches and other crap all over it. I have a coupe, so the rear, 2 rear sides, and both driver and passenger side have the tint as well. It was already on before I bought the car and has a blueish tint to it. I am not sure what percent tint the front driver and passenger side are, but they really dont look very bad at all. They are much lighter ting than my dad's Mercedes S500, and that has legal tint I believe. Does anyone know the laws in Illinois for window tinting? I have a court date in mid August about it, so maybe I"ll be able to fight it. This is really a pretty crappy ticket. I could understand it if I had tint, but I really almost have none. If anyone has had this happen to them before, I would love to hear what happened. Oh yeah, how do I get the stuff off if it is illegal? Thanks.

-Rob

**My 89 Accord Lxi** · 07-19-2002, 08:02 PM

OMG that is so stupid fight it . i think the max tint u can have is 25 or 35% thats is some bs man

how dark is your tint is it like solid black where u cant see trough it at all or is it kinda dark??

***Jareds 89 LX-i*** · 07-19-2002, 08:41 PM

In Illinois you cannot have ANY tint on the front side windows. Only the rear window and rear sides can be tinted.

Seems kinda stupid to me. If it was that bad then other states wouldn't allow it....grrr. He could have at least just given you a warning instead of a ticket...that blows. Definitely fight it!

Did you just recently move to Chicago? I always thought you lived somewhere else

**pric** · 07-19-2002, 08:59 PM

If it was dark and he didn't check it with a meter if I were you I would take off the tint on the front windows and fight it. Tell the judge you have no tint on your windows. Some cops are so stupid some times.

**87accordlxi** · 07-19-2002, 09:31 PM

if he didnt check it with a meter, then fight it. in court, there will be no way for him to prove that you actually have tint on your windows

**3_GENCYCO** · 07-20-2002, 08:47 AM

where do you live? north, or south side. 'cause my windows are tinted, but the cops haven't said a thing to me at all. and i've been pulled over a couple of times this year...by the way i'm a southsider, go soxs

**RL89LXi** · 07-20-2002, 09:24 AM

I've lived here for 17 years and have had this car for 3 years, never any trouble at all with cops. This was totally random, and my tint is really not dark at all. It barely even blocks the sun from getting in. I guess I'll just have to get out my razor blade and take off the tint, kinda sucks though. I checked online and I think that the law makes it illegal to have any tint that is a stick on kind. So if you have a car like a Mercedes or something that comes with stock tinted windows, then that's fine. The cop never did take any pictures or anything, but he told me that I should bring in pictures of it with tint and without tint when I go to court. I live on the north side of Chicago, so I'm thinking that the cop just wanted to pull me over and see if he could find something bigger to write me up for, but couldn't, so he just wrote me the ticket for the tint. I'm pretty sure I'll end up doing something in court to protest it because it's really pretty bogus that he would actually write me a ticket with the weak shade of tint that I have. I'll try to use my digital camera to take a picture so you guys can see how the tint looks. Thanks for the replies.

-Rob

PS - Sox rule

**Einstein** · 07-20-2002, 07:44 PM

Cops who ticket for tint need to get a life

I appreciate the job most cops do, but when they pull this crap I'l like to drop kick them and shove the ticket book up their ass.

SUV's are allowed to have it, but not cars. But cars have to put up with SUV's headlights in their eyes.

The department of transportation is making silly rules and the cops play their game. All vehicles headlights should be at the same level, for instance. Dumb rules, dumb cops, bitter society.

**kennyaccordlxi** · 07-22-2002, 02:22 PM

just don`t go to kansas, legal tint limit there is 35% if your car is registered in kansas, I`m glad I don`t live there anymore.

**hondaman87** · 07-22-2002, 03:44 PM

he was probably borred

but the legal tint are the front driver and passenger are not to exceed 36 %
and the rear you can put as dark as you want
and on the windshield it should be no taller than 6 inches

**DBMaster** · 07-22-2002, 06:35 PM

Before you scrape off the tint check the lower rear corners of both front windows. Are there any little labels stuck between the tint and the glass? Any reputable tint shop will put their logo there. Anyway, if the tint shop is in Illinois you could probably make them either remove the tin for you, or pay the fine as they are supposed to be following the laws in their own state.

Just an idea. Here in Texas the maximum amount of tint you are allowed to have chnaged a few years ago, but you can still go pretty dark on the back and rear side windows. If the cops want to get REALLY picky "legal" tint can still fail the light meter test. You see, if you combine even a light factory tinted glass with aftermarket tint you get something that slightly exceeds the legal limits.

Fight the good fight!

**88mirror** · 01-16-2003, 10:37 PM

Actually... I live in kansas and have mirror tint all reflective tint is illegal in kansas... but get this... the other day i was driving back to school and a cop pulled me over because of my car club logo in my back window. He said "mmmkay yeah i can't see through it and mmm yeah, thats illegal" Yeah so fuck that, it was a $30 ticket.

**88mirror** · 01-16-2003, 10:38 PM

he didn't say anything about the tint though!

**jigga225** · 01-16-2003, 11:01 PM

man I hate that shyt. why cant people tint their windows.
I remember I had to remove my 20% tint just to get an inspection sticker.
Bitches
Now I have metallic and it reflects. But on some angles the haters can still look in and see which broad I have in the passenger seat.
hate that

**Mike89Accordcom** · 01-17-2003, 12:36 AM

I have 15% on my TL, very illegal and 20% on my Accord, also illegal. I have not been pulled over for it, but when pulled over for something else they sometimes notice how dark it is. I've never been ticketed for it yet. I've been warned, but never changed it lol. I had one cop put a fuckin tint meter on my window of my accord once, it read like 9%, I was like wtf no such thing. Funny I drive by cops all the time and most never even pay attention to my dark tint, but you get the wrong cop who does care and your screwed. That's the thing all cops are diff and some are the same. They have so much power so some can either bust you or not bust you. Sucks its all up to them and how they feel that day.

**maka_RTH** · 01-17-2003, 01:28 AM

Utah tinting laws: "Window tinting is allowed in Utah as long as it complies with the law (Title 41-6-149 UCA). Windshields may have tinting on the top four inches of glass. That tinting must be transparent. The remaining glass on the windshield must have a minimum of 70 percent light transmittance. Driver and front seat passenger side windows must have a minimum of 43 percent light transmittance. Rear side and back windows on passenger cars must have a minimum of 28 percent light transmittance. Windows behind the front seat on federally designated multipurpose vehicles may be tinted to federal AS-1 standards (no minimum light transmittance mandated). If the windows behind the driver’s seat are tinted, the vehicle must have outside rear-view mirrors on the left and right side of the vehicle. If you have additional questions on this subject, please contact the Safety Inspection Section at (801) 284-5540" wierd numbers, lol, but i wish i could go darker. i'll prolly find a place that will pass off illegal window tinting..., then get it done darker.

**njpeter** · 01-17-2003, 05:31 AM

from noticing if you have a handgun pointed at them when they walk up to the window on a traffic stop, maybe the cop needed to fill up the rest of his court day..maybe he had a close call the week before. Maybe the cop noticed you doing something stupid a few weeks before..one of the problems having a nboticeable car
anytime I get pulled over at night, I put down the drivers window and i leave my hands on the wheel and move very slowly until; the cop gets into the comfort zone ( if you can ever be in a comfort zone with a bullseye on your chest )

some good advice on the thread..if you didn't tint it yourself, and it was tinited in state, name the glass shop. Might help to get some polariods of the cars rolling out of the shop too.

if the ticket has no points with it, might be cheaper time wise just to pay it.

I got a summons a few years ago for "improper use of high beams", I was flashing a slowpoke doing 30 in the left lane ( limit was 50) cops grabbed me claiming I was warning drivers in the oncoming lanes to a radar trap ( which I didn't see and consdering I hate speeding by my house ( I live on that 50mph road..and enjoy seeing the radar traps out there ). As there were no points, it wasn't worth three hours of my time for court...I just paid the friggin ticket and got on with life. I could have made a deal out of it, living on that road, why would I want to warn any speeder?..but I said f it paid up and took the wife to the movies instead of sitting in court.

**Neuspeed87lx** · 01-17-2003, 06:15 AM

that is def a ticket you could fight and have dropped .... you say the tint was on the car when you bought it ? and you have had it for 3 years ? so you have been getting it inspected right ? and im assuming its been passing ? just tell that to the judge ... unless your one of the luckey ones that dosent have to deal with inspections ...