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NCT & Window Tinting failure

  • 10-04-2010 10:33am
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 36


    Hi,
    just failed the NCT on a Grand Scenic 04 because of window tinting on the front driver and passanger window and small triangular window mirror. I bought the car second hand and I believe this was a Renault feature at original purchase. Looks like it is a type of film but how does one remove this without scratching the glass and given the tint seems to go below the window rubbers and suggestions on what to do?
    Thanks for any advise!
    Tagged:


«13

Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 3,884 ✭✭✭pa990


    i'd say your timt was added by previous user.
    Original tinted glass, are Tinted Glass, not a tinted film.

    The film will peal straight off, but will leave a messy sticky residue.

    search youtube for detailed guides on how to remove it, its best to see the process in action


  • Registered Users Posts: 537 ✭✭✭blond45


    me thinks the tinted windows law came into affect on 1st day of april, as to get it of i dont know but im sure when the men get up from the scratcher will let you know:D;).


  • Registered Users Posts: 679 ✭✭✭Darsad


    Not up to date on this new rule is this an automatic fail or do they test the opacity of the tint surely there has to be a legal limit


  • Registered Users Posts: 321 ✭✭TheColl


    Darsad wrote: »
    Not up to date on this new rule is this an automatic fail or do they test the opacity of the tint surely there has to be a legal limit

    A certain percentage of light must be able to pass through, cant remember the figure.

    EDIT: It's 65%


  • Registered Users Posts: 679 ✭✭✭Darsad


    Thats in the Uk where the cops carry opaque meters is that the case with the NCT do they actually measure the transparency or just fail if you have tinting fitted!


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  • Registered Users Posts: 321 ✭✭TheColl


    Darsad wrote: »
    Thats in the Uk where the cops carry opaque meters is that the case with the NCT do they actually measure the transparency or just fail if you have tinting fitted!

    They measure it!


  • Registered Users Posts: 679 ✭✭✭Darsad


    OK

    A friend of mine was only last week not allowed to do his driving test due to having tinting fitted but they did not measure it , just told he had failed as the tester refused to get into the car and this tint is well within the leagal limit as it is very light !


  • Registered Users Posts: 321 ✭✭TheColl


    Darsad wrote: »
    OK

    A friend of mine was only last week not allowed to do his driving test due to having tinting fitted but they did not measure it , just told he had failed as the tester refused to get into the car and this tint is well within the leagal limit as it is very light !

    That sounds very harsh alright, never heard of a tester doing something like this. I wouldn't have thought a tester for the driving test would be too bothered about this, as long as it wasn't really dark!


  • Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 38,162 Mod ✭✭✭✭Gumbo


    Darsad wrote: »
    OK

    A friend of mine was only last week not allowed to do his driving test due to having tinting fitted but they did not measure it , just told he had failed as the tester refused to get into the car and this tint is well within the leagal limit as it is very light !

    just to let people know, any tint, and i mean any form of tint now fails the NCT if on the drivers or front passenger window.

    even the lightist tine available to the tinting companies fails the NCT. the most up to date one is clear to the nakid eye and clear when put on and is only put on to avail of the UV protection as such.


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,220 ✭✭✭✭Lex Luthor


    kceire wrote: »
    just to let people know, any tint, and i mean any form of tint now fails the NCT if on the drivers or front passenger window.

    even the lightist tine available to the tinting companies fails the NCT. the most up to date one is clear to the nakid eye and clear when put on and is only put on to avail of the UV protection as such.

    thats not true. my windows are tinted to 85% VLT so that will pass.

    if you go to aftermarket tinters you need to bear in mind whats on the window already

    OP, did they put a meter across the glass to check its light transmission %?


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  • Registered Users Posts: 4,294 ✭✭✭Tefral


    kceire wrote: »
    just to let people know, any tint, and i mean any form of tint now fails the NCT if on the drivers or front passenger window.

    even the lightist tine available to the tinting companies fails the NCT. the most up to date one is clear to the nakid eye and clear when put on and is only put on to avail of the UV protection as such.

    Completely False. It must allow 65% light through. I know of 2 cars that have passed the NCT in recent days with tinted front windows.

    Incidently, the Construction, Equipment and Use of Vehicles act 1963 states that you cannot have anythin on your windows that "obscures" your view of the road, so technically you should not have any tint on your front three windows.

    Also under the EU regulations brought in by the Car Entry into Service (Amendment) Regulations 2008 it states that your tint must allow 70% light through the front three windows.

    Its funny because the NCT has also put a 99dB limit on car exhaust noise and the above act limits it to 74dB.

    So the law and the NCT are at odds with each other.


  • Registered Users Posts: 188 ✭✭Dangerdunf


    If it's a film on the glass it will just peal off. As stated above it will leave glue on your window. Petrol or nail varnish remover on a rag will remove this glue. :D


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,162 ✭✭✭giant_midget


    heat the window up with a black an decker paint stripper or a good hair dryer then it will peel straight off, Usually it will come off very easily.

    Then just use washing up liquid and a blade to clear off the remaining glue.


  • Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 38,162 Mod ✭✭✭✭Gumbo


    Lex Luthor wrote: »
    thats not true. my windows are tinted to 85% VLT so that will pass.

    if you go to aftermarket tinters you need to bear in mind whats on the window already

    OP, did they put a meter across the glass to check its light transmission %?

    ehh did you not read my post properly? i said that the lightist tint will pass it but it is clear to the eye. can you provide pictures of your car to prove its tinted beyond clear? of course 85% VLT will pass as the NCT rule is 65%, but i bet you its a clear film, and not tinted.
    cronin_j wrote: »
    Completely False. It must allow 65% light through. I know of 2 cars that have passed the NCT in recent days with tinted front windows.

    Incidently, the Construction, Equipment and Use of Vehicles act 1963 states that you cannot have anythin on your windows that "obscures" your view of the road, so technically you should not have any tint on your front three windows.

    Also under the EU regulations brought in by the Car Entry into Service (Amendment) Regulations 2008 it states that your tint must allow 70% light through the front three windows.

    Its funny because the NCT has also put a 99dB limit on car exhaust noise and the above act limits it to 74dB.

    So the law and the NCT are at odds with each other.

    the 2 cars that passed, i find hard to believe that they are tinted tbh. the tinting companies such as Vision FX and Revolution Ireland even say that their lightist tinting does not pass the new NCT rule, only their clear film passes, which is a UV protection as stated in my original post.

    people are so quick to jump in with "ha ha, your wrong" but take the tine to read the posts please


  • Registered Users Posts: 17,819 ✭✭✭✭peasant


    I'm not entirely sure on the exact figures, but even clear glass without any tint has a light transmission of only 92 - 95% or thereabouts.

    Clear glass without any factory tint is pretty much extinct on modern cars and most of them have a tint already, reducing light transmission to around 75 % for the lightest tint.

    So once you put extra tinting film on top of that you're automatically below the limit even if your tint film label says it's only a 15% tint ...simply because you never start from 100% in the first place.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,787 ✭✭✭slimjimmc


    kceire wrote: »
    ehh did you not read my post properly? i said that the lightist tint will pass it but it is clear to the eye. can you provide pictures of your car to prove its tinted beyond clear? of course 85% VLT will pass as the NCT rule is 85%, but i bet you its a clear film, and not tinted.
    kceire wrote: »
    people are so quick to jump in with "ha ha, your wrong" but take the tine to read the posts please


    Perhaps you should read what you wrote yourself then: :)
    kceire wrote: »
    just to let people know, any tint, and i mean any form of tint now fails the NCT if on the drivers or front passenger window.
    which is totally incorrect. Tints are allowed on all glass front side windows and even on the windscreen, so long as the VLT is not below 65% ( 65% is the NCT rule not 85% as you also incorrectly stated).
    I get what you're saying about some after-market tints not meeting that standard but it doesn't mean that having any tint results in an NCT failure.

    S.I. No. 567/2009 — Road Traffic (National Car Test) Regulations 2009
    Item 10: glass
    Reasons for refusal:
    : :
    (11) glass in windscreen and front side windows has a light transmission level of less than 65%.


  • Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 38,162 Mod ✭✭✭✭Gumbo


    slimjimmc wrote: »
    Perhaps you should read what you wrote yourself then: :)
    which is totally incorrect. Tints are allowed on all glass front side windows and even on the windscreen, so long as the VLT is not below 65% ( 65% is the NCT rule not 85% as you also incorrectly stated).
    I get what you're saying about some after-market tints not meeting that standard but it doesn't mean that having any tint results in an NCT failure.

    S.I. No. 567/2009 — Road Traffic (National Car Test) Regulations 2009

    Which is exactly what I said in my original post. All tint other than the clear tint will fail it. please read my full post and don't quote sections of it.
    kceire wrote: »
    just to let people know, any tint, and i mean any form of tint now fails the NCT if on the drivers or front passenger window.

    even the lightist tine available to the tinting companies fails the NCT. the most up to date one is clear to the nakid eye and clear when put on and is only put on to avail of the UV protection as such.


  • Registered Users Posts: 393 ✭✭Gitb1


    My windows only let 30% light through and when my car went through the nct last tuesday there was no mention of window tinting on the list of fails, only emissions and lights


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,787 ✭✭✭slimjimmc


    kceire wrote: »
    Which is exactly what I said in my original post. All tint other than the clear tint will fail it. please read my full post and don't quote sections of it.
    Your first post #10 claims that any tint will fail the NCT (incorrect) and that the available after-market tints fail (correct). Nowhere does it mention that clear tints will pass. It was not until 2 other posters corrected you did you mention clear tint (which is still a tint btw therefore contradicting the 'any tint will fail' claim). You also claimed the NCT spec was 85% but I'll assume this was typo and I commend you on editing your post after you were corrected on this too.

    I have read all your posts in their entirety, many times, so I'm very clear on what you have written. It's only in your subsequent posts that you say what you perhaps intended to say originally i.e. that light tints >=65% VLT are ok but dark aftermarket tints <65% VLT are not. On that we are in agreement.
    Gitb1 wrote: »
    My windows only let 30% light through and when my car went through the nct last tuesday there was no mention of window tinting on the list of fails, only emissions and lights
    You were lucky. The new regs came into effect on the 1st April. Did you happen to notice if they measured the tint or not, perhaps they didn't have the equipment yet?


  • Registered Users Posts: 393 ✭✭Gitb1


    slimjimmc wrote: »

    You were lucky. The new regs came into effect on the 1st April. Did you happen to notice if they measured the tint or not, perhaps they didn't have the equipment yet?

    I watched the whole test and they never put anything on the window similar to the light tester things that ive seen in pictures and stuff. Rolled the windows down but that was it.

    I'm not putting my through again because Im scrapping it but I wonder what would happen if I brought it for a retest now?


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  • Registered Users Posts: 3,684 ✭✭✭david


    Gitb1 wrote: »
    I watched the whole test and they never put anything on the window similar to the light tester things that ive seen in pictures and stuff. Rolled the windows down but that was it.

    I'm not putting my through again because Im scrapping it but I wonder what would happen if I brought it for a retest now?
    Well those amendments were made on 1st April so at a guess you'd fail :p


  • Registered Users Posts: 393 ✭✭Gitb1


    david wrote: »
    Well those amendments were made on 1st April so at a guess you'd fail :p


    Yeah but since it passed the first time (well didnt fail) wouldnt they just check the failed items?


  • Registered Users Posts: 4,294 ✭✭✭Tefral


    kceire wrote: »
    the 2 cars that passed, i find hard to believe that they are tinted tbh. the tinting companies such as Vision FX and Revolution Ireland even say that their lightist tinting does not pass the new NCT rule, only their clear film passes, which is a UV protection as stated in my original post.

    people are so quick to jump in with "ha ha, your wrong" but take the tine to read the posts please

    Believe what you will, but your providing false information. Tinted glass will pass the nct if it allows 65% light transmission, just because a few tint companies you know dont stock the tint doesnt mean they all dont.

    Theres a couple of NCT testers on the site i run midnightclub and they will also confirm my previous statement.


    OP, in the removal process, in all the cars ive had, its best to just rip the tint off in one quick motion, i find this leaves behind less adhesive. Tar and glue remover on a cloth will then remove the remainder.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 12,456 ✭✭✭✭Mr Benevolent


    That anti-UV tint thing is a bit suspect. No harmful UV light can pass through glass anyway.


  • Registered Users Posts: 4,294 ✭✭✭Tefral


    Confab wrote: »
    That anti-UV tint thing is a bit suspect. No harmful UV light can pass through glass anyway.

    Do any glass companies make glass that reacts to UV light, like glasses, where they react in the sunlight to darken and then go clear at night time?


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,730 ✭✭✭E39MSport


    I'm a bit worried about this.

    My car has tint from the factory but contrary to a previous post, the tint is a film type and not in the glass itself.

    It's mentioned on the build sheet as a spec and there's a note in the dash about caring for it.

    I want to keep my car as factory spec and don't want to remove the tint. I'm not sure how much light it lets through but it looks quite dark.

    I can't imagine that they'd make you modify a factory spec if it was legally allowed on the road in the first instance ?

    When this test (tint) was hinted at a few years ago I asked a tester about it and he said it was aimed at boy racers.

    Fingers crossed it won't fail....


  • Registered Users Posts: 36 amurray32


    Thanks for all the replies, got drivers window de-tinted last night with a steam cleaner but still left with a lot of glue residue to remove...passanger window tonight!

    This was an original feature of this Grand Scenic which is annoying that it can suddenly become an issue 6 years on. The tester was not having any of my plea that it was a car feature.

    With regards to the test itself, I don't know what was used to measure the tint but the testers were like flies around the car at one point which I'm guessing was related to the windows.

    Makes you wonder what people who spent their days tinting windows will do for a job from now on!

    Anyway thanks again for all the advise...not looking forward to the small mirror windows but I guess I should be grateful that it wasn't failed on anything else.

    I see a gap in the market for de-tinters!


  • Registered Users, Subscribers Posts: 13,408 ✭✭✭✭antodeco


    Im going to chance my arm with the car going through the NCT. All four side windows and rear window are tinted. If thats all I fail on, then so be it, but there could be a few other "minor" things. If it fails, Ill try remove it all in one go. Could I get the corner of a blade and scrape it off?


  • Registered Users Posts: 17,819 ✭✭✭✭peasant


    amurray32 wrote: »
    This was an original feature of this Grand Scenic which is annoying that it can suddenly become an issue 6 years on. The tester was not having any of my plea that it was a car feature.

    It couldn't have been ...international standards only allow for a light transmission > 70% on front side windows
    Standard Requirements in terms of light transmission
    ECE R43

    WindscreenLT > 75%

    Side windows forward of the B-pillar (in the driver's direct field of view)LT > 70%

    Behind the B-pillar No value if a 2nd exterior mirror is mounted (otherwise LT must be 70%)
    http://www.sekurit.com/en/index.asp?nav1=GC&fn=glass_eng_certi.html


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 16,793 ✭✭✭✭Hagar


    /edited/


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