window tinting problem
#17
Intermediate
Hey guys. I had a mobile guy head to my place today to get the tinting done on my car. Upon pulling the first door panel off he rings me and says its gonna be difficult to do the tint as the rubber moulding around the window is all one piece, and does not just clip on and off. He said there is a strip of metal within the rubber moulding and its riveted to the door frame* (it was all bit vague to me as I was not at home looking at what he was talking about, but thats the best description I can give).
He made a few phone calls and several of his tinting buddies said these late model lexus's are a PITA to work on due to this exact problem. One of his buds said they did a 430 a while back and had to make a slice in the rubber to get it all smicko.
Long story - short. I still have no tinting done, and am unsure what step to take next, so I said I would ask on here and see if anyone has encountered this problem and knows a way around it.
Thanks gods.
He made a few phone calls and several of his tinting buddies said these late model lexus's are a PITA to work on due to this exact problem. One of his buds said they did a 430 a while back and had to make a slice in the rubber to get it all smicko.
Long story - short. I still have no tinting done, and am unsure what step to take next, so I said I would ask on here and see if anyone has encountered this problem and knows a way around it.
Thanks gods.
The previous owner did have it tinted interstate but they couldn't do a perfect job because of those window mouldings that BFG23 was talking about and the tint installed was very light. (the tint also has a few small particles of dust trapped in the tint because they cant do it in the right way because of the mouldings. I don't want to be drilling out the rivets, and also none of the companies are willing to remove the rear tint from the back window because they said once they use a steamer and chemicals to remove the tint and left over glue they are worried that they will get the cleaning liquid/glue on the rear felt lined pillars of the car. THey dont want to damage it and niether do I!
At the moment I will just have to live with the existing tint. What a P.I.T.A.
#18
x2. There is no cutting or removing of door panels required. They tuck the tint under the rubber at the bottom of the window. I used Formula One ceramic tint. They have a list of dealers on their website. This is what the my local lexus dealer used (when I lived in AZ). Most of the tints sold in CA are dye-based. The next level up is probably metallic (tiny particles of titanium). It rejects heat much better than dye-based tints. Some people claim that metallic tints interfere w/ cell phone reception or remote controls, but I've had Formula One metallics on three cars and was still able make calls and never had issues w/ locking/unlocking via the key fob. Top end is ceramic tints...more heat rejection, no cell phone interference. I got this since my vehicle has the smart key...didn't want to take any chance of that not working. The most difficult part of the tinting lexus vehicles is the defroster lines on the rear glass are so thick that the tint doesn't lie flat enough (you get a tiny air gap next to the defroster line. If the window is being retinted, the installer can use bronze wool and scuff the old tint adhesive off the defrosters, which also thins them a tad, making for a cleaner installation.
#19
Advanced
I got a quote yesterday of $148 from an installer that has tinted cars for me for the past 20 years. I specifically asked if tinting a Lexus was any different from any other and if they needed to remove the door panels.They told me nothing needs to be removed and it is no different than doing any other car.
They use Llumar film.
They use Llumar film.
#21
Driver School Candidate
Window Tinting and Rubber Seal
Yup, problem fixed after cutting back the rubber to the point where the "hairs" (or felt-like material) start. Rubber sliding, or not sliding well, on glass is causing the window motor to work extra hard and I believe it is what took out my driver side motor and has worn the passenger side motor as well. Hard to even see what I cut once door panel is on and don't know if I'll go to the trouble and expense of replacing the window rubber or not. The info I got from this forum was a lifesaver on how to remove the door panel. I am now an expert door panel remover! LOL.
Anyone having a slow window or motor overload happening might want to check the inside rubber. You will probably find about an eighth inch of solid rubber that makes contact with the glass before the felt-like material starts. It has worn away.
Last edited by ddmavis; 07-02-13 at 05:30 PM. Reason: Completed the task
#22
Lead Lap
iTrader: (2)
hey ddmavis. I have this issue on the driverside front window on a 2001 ls430. I was able to remedy it by sliding half a business card into the back edge of the window (closest to the rear door). Its a ghetto fix, but I am unable to see the card from the inside or outside. Hope this helps.
#23
Driver School Candidate
hey ddmavis. I have this issue on the driverside front window on a 2001 ls430. I was able to remedy it by sliding half a business card into the back edge of the window (closest to the rear door). Its a ghetto fix, but I am unable to see the card from the inside or outside. Hope this helps.
#24
Lead Lap
iTrader: (2)
fyi, its 15's all around
Last edited by tcr101; 06-28-13 at 03:18 PM.
#25
美少女戦士セーラームーン
iTrader: (24)
Recently had windows tinted ("Auto Gear" Edmond OK - highly recommend) and window now grabs inner rubber seal, folds it in and binds window. Dealer no help. Tinter going to redo to drop tint edge below rubber; however, that will not solve problem as it grabs rubber seal even after it is on the tint. After cleaning, conditioning and even tried silicon, which made it worse, I discovered the fine little hairs in the rubber are worn off about 1/8 inch down and no matter what I tried it grabs the window. Rear windows have this hairlike material all the way to the top edge of rubber. It was problematic before and probably is what burned out my window motor, I just didn't discover it until the tint was applied. Tint appears to slightly less slick than glass. I will update this post when fix is done to confirm my diagnosis.
#26
Driver School Candidate
hey ddmavis. I have this issue on the driverside front window on a 2001 ls430. I was able to remedy it by sliding half a business card into the back edge of the window (closest to the rear door). Its a ghetto fix, but I am unable to see the card from the inside or outside. Hope this helps.
#27
Driver School Candidate
I don't know what type tint it is, but they do a lot of work for Eskridge Lexus. I will ask about the Lumar type, though. Thanks for the info.
#29
Lead Lap
iTrader: (2)
The rubber starts folding in from the front as soon as the window starts coming down so I don't think the credit card trick would have worked, but a darn good idea though. The rear windows have that felt-like material right up to the top edge of the rubber and they don't bind. The passenger front doesn't have as much wear as the driver and the problem isn't as severe. I took drastic steps as I figured I'll be replacing the seal anyway and cut the rubber edge back until it didn't catch and fold in. It now doesn't bind.
#30
Lexus Test Driver
iTrader: (3)
Just had mine tinted.
Didnt have any issues with the tint. But we did remove the felt/rubber seal to get the tint all the way down the class. It was a little tight on some edges as we tried to get the tint as far to all the edges as possible.
Didnt have any issues with the tint. But we did remove the felt/rubber seal to get the tint all the way down the class. It was a little tight on some edges as we tried to get the tint as far to all the edges as possible.
Last edited by HiloDB1; 07-01-13 at 01:37 PM.
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05ls430518
LS - 3rd Gen (2001-2006)
14
08-26-18 04:33 AM
15, australia, bmw, cars, encountered, lexus, ls430, m5, problems, specialist, tint, tinted, tinting, windows, windowtinting