what's going on with my "factory" tint???
 

I purchased a brand new GS300 a month ago. It has no after-market mods at all. I noticed a little area on the rear passenger window that had a small bubble, as if the tint didn't adhere to the window. I brought it up to the service manager - the DAY I BOUGHT THE CAR - and he asked me how long ago I'd had the tinting done? I said, "What? This is the WAY THE CAR CAME." He told me to keep an eye on it. Well, NOW that same window has little pin-prick sized holes all over the top of the tinting and another bubble aread on the small stationary window behind. What is going on? I thought that the tinting that came standard on our cars was built INTO the glass. How can I be getting areas where the tinting is bubbling off? And it's only happening on that one window and the one behind it. The others look fabulous. Does anyone else have something odd going on with the tint, and should I take it in right away? Lexus has to give me acceptable tint on the factory window, don't they???? I'm getting upset now. :(
Amy
:cat:

On the GS, there is no such thing as "factory" tint. Only the SUVs have tinted factory windows.For the GS, the tint would have been applied by the dealership and thus would not be covered by the manufacturer's warranty.

This sounds kind of strange... As Toyemp mentioned there is no "factory" tint
for this car. It sounds like the dealer may have done the tinting (badly) at
perhaps another customer's request and that deal fell through??? :confused:

what to do now?
 

This car came to me NEW....only 26 miles on it. All the other GS's I've seen have the same tinting on the rear windows. Even if the dealership DID do it (it was shipped to my San Diego dealer from an Arizona dealer), why wouldn't my warranty cover the car the WAY it came to me? I bought it new off the showroom floor. I could understand their grumbling about fixing it if I HAD done it aftermarket, but this is the way the car came to me, AND I mentioned it the day I bought it. You really don't think Lexus has an obligation to make it right for me? That does not seem right AT ALL. :mad:
Amy
:cat:

IMHO, the dealer who sold you the car is responsible for the tint and should be
forced to take care of it. Especially if they sold the car to you as new.

It's pretty common for dealerships to add aftermarket parts to brand new cars. Just as you can get aftermarket rims from the dealer, tinting the windows is not unheard of. Lexus only warrantees the parts that are genuine Lexus parts (from the factory or port installed options). Any aftermarket parts that a dealer adds would have to be covered by the dealership itself. To my knowledge, tint is not an available option on the GS.

From what you described, even though you bought the car new from the dealership, the tint is aftermarket and thus not elgible for coverage under the warranty. Also, bubbling of tint is not uncommon and usually repairable by a good tint man. Even the best installer gets an occasional bubble in the film. It just takes a heat gun and a squeegee to get the bubbles out.

You have to remember that dealerships are independent businesses and are not owned by the car companies (in fact, in the US, it is illegal for a car company to own a dealership). Dealers buy cars from the car distributors, and then turn it around and sell it to you. There is no law preventing them from modifying the car before they sell it to you.

hmmm....got pics??

I hope youre not talking about the dot matrix??

Take it back to Lexus and tell them to make it right. If they did in fact put an aftermarket tint on it they will fix it for you, they should with no resistance. Just make it clear you had nothing to do with it and they are responsible.

I'm takin' it in
 

I'm going to make an appt. at Lexus for Tuesday morning. I'll post how it goes that day. Hopefully they'll take care of it. I'll try to go take some photos of what's going on with it so you can see. It's definitely getting worse. It's embarassing to drive a sweet car like this with an amateur tint job falling apart. :cry:
Thanks for your posts
Amy
:cat:

If you never requested tint, and indeed there is this defective tint, why don't you demand that they have it removed?

In her first post, she described the right rear door as having the problem.

Sorry, I didn't realize it was the rear side window. In that case, if one window was done improperly, wouldn't you suspect the possibility or even probability of the other windows being affected down the line from an inproper installation? I would think that you need to ascertain that it indeed is an aftermarket installation and then take the proper actions. If it were me, if it was not factory and I didn't want it from the onset, I would have it all removed.

factory tint = B.S.
Dealer Tint = Cheap Job

Lose-Lose situation.....
I believe in you get what you pay for on tint installs...

yeah, if it was a dealer option that you basically paid for, then the dealer should take responsiblity. i had an 01 GS430 that i got tinted by the dealer. i know the shop they take it to, and later on i thought it was too dark and the dealer had the shop do it again at no cost to me. i am not sure if you paperwork states that it includes a tint (or anything other dealer option, for that matter, like chrome, clear bra, etc), but that's the place you should start. there is no factory tint on the GS.

btw, if you are in San Diego, i would recommend Alvin O's or Tint Devil if you want to have it retinted outside the dealer. they are both pretty good and stand behind their installations. tint jobs are never 100% perfect, so you have to make sure you go with a reputable shop that will take care of you if the initial bubbling or install do not meet your satisfaction later on.

what my paperwork says
 

Okay, I got the window sticker out for my car, and under "Luxury and Convenience Features," it says "Infrared and UV Reduction Glass." Since the car I test drove had a tinting on the windows AND the car I bought had what seemed like the same tint, I assumed that our cars came that way standard.
Under "Installed Options," there's no listing for tinted glass, and I did NOT order the car to come with tint, NOR was I ever told the windows would be tinted, NOR was I ever charged (as far as I know) for tinting.
I definitely like the way it looks (on the passenger side rear window anyway) and I don't want it removed altogether. I'm hoping, like someone previously posted, that maybe a heat gun and some expertise can fix the problem. I am in San Diego, so if Lexus denies me, I'll go somewhere that's tried and true. How much are we talking about, do you think, for one side rear window and the small fixed one behind?