Originally Posted by oohpapi44

You don't think you're being a bit dramatic? Just a tiny bit?

As I told you previously, I don't have any problem with your complaint about the work that was done. But you don't give him a chance to satisfy your complaint and then start to bad mouth the guy and his business. That's not the proper way to handle it. You'd rather lodge a fight with Amex, have an internet war and complain to BBB than to let the guy fix whatever it is you're complaining about?

You've both presented your side of the story and I just happen to agree with Tom. Nothing personal and life will go on for the three of us. I hope you find a resolution that you can live with.

Originally Posted by cloo7

Bad tinting experience…

A few months ago, I was in the market for a tint job for my IS 250. This was my first mod, since I bought the car about 3.5 years ago. I did a lot of research about the amount of money I want to spend and the film I want to install. I went through several forums such as E90post, acurazine, etc., and the general consensus was that Huper Optik was one of the best tint films money can buy. It was said to be one of the hardest films to install due to its thickness.

I was fortunate enough to live near a reputable tint specialist who caries this type of film, so I decided to acquire a tint service for Tom Kovach, The Art of Tint in NYC. I understood that he was a busy person; he was highly recommended, so I scheduled 2 weeks in advance and detailed my car the day before the appointment in order provide a good working environment for him and to eliminate excess dust/dirt. The car was practically NEW!

So I went to NYC as scheduled to drop my car off at Auto Design and met Tom there. He was a very nice person and answered my questions. He said the tint job will take about 1.5 to 2 hours, and he had to leave at xx:xx. In my head, I thought it was a bit odd, because I did not think it was a good idea to tell a client the time he was leaving due to many unknowns in the process, but I felt very confident with the process, since he was reputable. I left to get breakfast nearby and walked around to enjoy the scene in NYC.

I went back to the shop and inspected the tint job “briefly.” The car was brought out and was under the sun. It had a lot of water bubbles. I expected that. He told me that he had to redo one of the windows and “tried his best” to get rid of the dirt/dust in the window/film. I though in this line of work, some impurities might be present. He had high profile clients, and everyone in the forum was very satisfied with his work, so I gave him the benefit of doubt. That was a big mistake!

I have found some problems with the tint job a few hours later (also a day later) in an overcast sky. There were dust or dirt particles underneath the tint film in the front passenger, 3/4 panel, and back windows. The imperfections were noticeable, since Huper Optik had a light mirror-ish tint to it. The cut for the ¾ panel windows were poorly executed. Some tints were scratched from rolling during installation. I also saw some scratches on the window rubber (front doors near the side mirrors and the window support for the rear passenger and ¾ windows). It was made by the razor from the film cutting process which was a sign of sloppy work.

I was not satisfied with Tom’s tint job at this point and wanted to resolve this problem immediately. I sent an email to Tom to schedule to remove the tint, but he suggested that I call him. I was not interested in re-tinting or anything else, because I would have easily requested him to re-tint 5 windows. I did not mind minor imperfections or re-tinting 1 or 2 windows. More importantly, I did not have much confidence in him and did not want to invest any more time and money to go back to NYC for this nonsense, so I had the tint removed the day after the installation by another reputable tint shop, because I did not want the tint to fully cure. That did not matter, because the removal of the back window tint took off some antenna and defroster lines. I was pretty upset at that point.

I paid by credit card, so I disputed the charge. I requested only for a full refund, and I am ready to take it up a notch if I am not satisfied. I just want to share my experience with fellow members as I do not like to post negativity about someone unless I really have to. I think Tom has no experience with 2IS. He tinted a lot of Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Bentleys, etc. I guess my “exotic” car did not attract much attention from him, or he let other people tint my car behind my back. Please be careful if any members decide to go to him for a tint job. I searched reviews for his work online, but none came out negative. I guess this will be the first one. I am not sure if I want to tint my car again, but I am thankful that my problem was minor compared to others. Thanks for taking the time read this, and please feel free to provide any suggestions that may be helpful.

Originally Posted by Fanurios

Honestly I worked as a Finance Manager at Lexus manhattan and Queens and we used Tommy at the Art of Tint exclusively because he did amazing work and was a trust worthy guy. I've never heard anyone complain about him before in my 10 years working with him. You really should have gone back to him to fix the issue rather than to some guy that screwed up your back window. He really should have heater up the film with a heat him before pulling it off. Give a person a chance to make amends before you blast him on a serious Lexus enthusiast forum. - chris

Originally Posted by crazee201

It's really hard to believe a person's statement if they just literally signed up on CL and make a post defending another person. How did those damage happen cloo7? Was it done by Art of Tint or was it done by the company that removed the tints?

Originally Posted by cloo7

Hey, the damage to the rubber window molding on page 2 happened during installation when cutting the film into shape with a sharp object (razor perhaps) and was done by The Art of Tint. There were marks done by squeegee... no micro-edge either. I am not talking about the bubbles. I did a lot of research about different types of tints. I just want to use the opportunity to share my experience with you guys. I will try to simplify the long OP and posts to avoid further confusion. I hope I answered your question in the simplest form.

Originally Posted by Fanurios

Your point is well taken. I would probably think the same thing if I notice a newbie join a forum and quickly jump into a thread stating their opinion- BUT ITS TRUE!!! I stated any conflict of interest (or hands on experience with Art of Tint 200+ customer vehicles) when I posted.

I was doing a Google search to find Art of Tint's new Brooklyn shop address when I honestly stumbled upon this thread. As I read the original post about of Art of Tint- it didn't sound right as I've used Tommy on a professional and private level. I send all my friends and family to him for tint work.

The original complaint in this thread would be valid if Art of Tint was given an opportunity to correct the problem but the poster seemed to exhausted to even bother going back and in the process blasting Art of Tint and having another shop mess up his back window with improper tint removal.

So I guess take it for what its worth. -chris