3M Crystalline Window Tint installed

Had 3M Crystalline 40% installed this week. happy with the look and the big reduction in interior temps, A/C is far less active.
The installer suggested Pinnacle Formula One, at half the price of the 3M it was tempting but I prefer the more brown hue and slightly better heat rejection of the 3M film.
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Good for you! I had it installed last week on all my windows, but they had a big fail on the front. When I came to pick-up the car there were big scratches on the film right at the drivers eye level, they claimed that they had tried three times to install the film on the windscreen with no success and that this was the best they could do. I had them remove it from the windscreen and from the bill.

This shop was listed on the 3M website and had excellent yelps, but still couldn't do the job. My next move is to try the other tint shop in my area that is 3M approved and see if that can do it. They claimed that the large size and compound curve of the i3's windshield was the problem.

The installer had big problems with mine as well and ended up getting a decent result by cutting the film at the point where the windshield tint at the top ended (maybe 5-6" from the top). From inside and outside, it looks like the whole thing has one continuous tint. Because the stuff is fairly thick compared to some others (it has over 200 layers of different material on it!) it is harder to install than some other stuff when used in such a large surface with the curves as the i3 has on the windshield. It doesn't look like it has that many from a casual look, but they're there. You can only stretch and shrink the stuff so much, and the i3's front windshield is a tough one.

This is the second vehicle I've had that 3M stuff put on, and it is worth it IMHO.

It must be tricky to work with, the installer said that if you use just a bit too much heat getting it to curve it will discolor and show streaks. The side and rear windows made a big change in the ability of the a/c to overcome the solar heating and I am sure tinting the front will make even more.

I've never heard of tinting the front window before reading the threads on tinting here on the i3 forum.

Does this stuff impact the clarity of the view out the front at all with wavy irregularities or other problems? I'm not sure, but I think it might be illegal to tint a front screen in Australia.

In the USA, tinting either the windshield and sometimes even the front driver/passenger windows is restricted, and sometimes illegal. In most states, the maximum light transmission is controlled, so while you can tint them, there's a limit on how dark things can be. The nice thing about the 3M crystalline film is that even with a minimal visible light transmission reduction, it still blocks far more IR and UV than many other, very much darker tints. I chose their lightest tint - 90, it transmits nearly 90% of the visible light, so you really hardly notice it is there from a visibility viewpoint, but because it has that huge number of layers of various materials, it still blocks more IR and UV than most others. ANd, being non-metallic, it doesn't affect phone or gps or radio reception. This is the only film recognized by the US Cancer Society for the reduction of UV and is used on lots of ambulances and police cars where people are in the vehicles many hours in a day.

I do not notice any optical distortion at all. In the USA, 3M does not let just anyone buy and install the stuff. Generally, the installers are pretty good. It's hard to tell it's there visually. Now, the darker ones do block more IR, but not all that much compared with the visible light differences. The advantage of a quality product installed by quality shops.

I think that any sort of film on the front is technically illegal in CA as is tinting the side windows in front so that the drivers vision is restricted. You can put black limo tint on the back windows and be OK, but the front is a bit of Russian Roulette. Sometimes you are stopped and they don't care, other times they write you a fix it ticket. I try to roll the windows down before they get to the car, but have still had to remove tint.

Had mine done three weeks ago. The installer struggled, really struggled over the course of two days, but finally got the job done the way it should be. I like the 3M tint because it does not darken the cabin but it certainly cools it down. I am very happy about this addition to my i3.

I had 3M tint installed. The tint does not perceptively change windshield clarity but provides greatly reduced cabin temperatures. We live in a sun-intense region and that plus the relatively large windscreen area results in high cabin temps when parked in the sun for even the shortest period. I paid $200 for the tint/installation and consider it well spent. UV protection of the interior/dash is a bonus.

We had 3M Crystalline installed before I even drove our new i3 home (The installer, The Specialists, in Tucson, was just across the street from the dealer.) 70% on the windshield; 40% on the sides and back. The 70% and 40% films were the only ones this installer offered.

So I've never driven the car without the tint. But it seems to help tremendously compared to other cars. No issues with distortion of any kind through the windshield. Doesn't bother me driving at night either. Several years ago, upon moving to Tucson from Colorado, we had our two cars tinted. That was before Crystalline existed. I was told then, by the same installer, that the windshield could not be tinted. Since then, either the law changed or something about the new tint film permits it to legally be applied to the windshield. I didn't ask a lot of questions because the installer is perhaps the premium shop in town and I am very confident they would not do an illegal installation. (Though of course, the law varies from state to state.)

pdurham said:

We had 3M Crystalline installed before I even drove our new i3 home (The installer, The Specialists, in Tucson, was just across the street from the dealer.) 70% on the windshield; 40% on the sides and back. The 70% and 40% films were the only ones this installer offered.

So I've never driven the car without the tint. But it seems to help tremendously compared to other cars. No issues with distortion of any kind through the windshield. Doesn't bother me driving at night either. Several years ago, upon moving to Tucson from Colorado, we had our two cars tinted. That was before Crystalline existed. I was told then, by the same installer, that the windshield could not be tinted. Since then, either the law changed or something about the new tint film permits it to legally be applied to the windshield. I didn't ask a lot of questions because the installer is perhaps the premium shop in town and I am very confident they would not do an illegal installation. (Though of course, the law varies from state to state.)

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In Arizona, it is illegal to apply ANY tint to the windshield below the top tint band. Most shops will do it with 70% or lighter, as it is nearly impossible to see, but you won't see the word windshield on the paperwork.

Thanks. That's very interesting. Still, I'm very happy to have it on the windshield, even if it makes me an outlaw.

As the side windows retract upon door opening and as they are covered by the window gasket when closed how is the tinting done to cover the whole side window? Thanks in advance.

The nice thing about the 3M product is that it has a very good performance even when it is still transmitting lots of light - the 200+ layers of coating on the film really do absorb a significant amount of IR and UV. So far, no issues, but technically it is not allowed where I live. First inspection in the spring...we'll see how that goes.

The issue is with law enforcement...they want to be able to see the person in the driver's seat, so the front windows can't be too dark. They aren't as concerned with the potential mob boss you may be carrying in back...

What kind of pricing are you seeing (or did you pay) on the 3M Crystalline? I'm very interested in 70% on all windows except the windshield, on which I'd like to get the 90% Crystalline. Anyone in the D.C. Metro area have this done by chance?

Labor costs vary considerably, so what someone pays in one area, may not have much correlation to another. Based on how much of a pain it was to get the front done, the guy that did mine will probably end up charging a lot more for the next i3 he does! He had to go to the BMW dealer to look at one before he'd quote, and then, it ended up taking nearly 3x longer than he'd thought. The hassle is, the crystalline sheet is a lot thicker than most others on the market, and is tougher to get to conform to things that have both a large vertical and horizontal size, and compound curves. Once it's on, it's pretty tough if done right, though. 3M won't sell it to just anyone, either, so your choices may be somewhat limited on installers.

I paid $700 for my installation, That's the highest number of the three shops that I got quotes from. I chose my installer because of the excellent reputation for quality work and customer service. They did a great job.

HomelessDude said:

I paid $700 for my installation, That's the highest number of the three shops that I got quotes from. I chose my installer because of the excellent reputation for quality work and customer service. They did a great job.

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Thanks much. A local shop installed 70% on all glass but the windshield this afternoon for $535 out the door. He said the windshield would cost $200, if I decide to add it down the road, so ~$700 total.

It was their first install on an i3 — lots of wide-eyed interest among the crew.

Hi everyone,

I am trying to get my front window tinted in 3m crystalline but the installer didn't think they made the film big enough to do it in one piece on the monster i3 window?

I hear a lot of people on here that had it done... what are other people doing?

It does come big enough, but it is not a very easy job...the i3 windshield has some challenging compound curves, and the film only stretches or shrinks so much (less than most other films that tend to be thinner).