Mobile Window Tinting in Del Mar

Every package lets you choose a shade, measured as VLT, or Visible Light Transmission. That is the share of visible light the film lets through, so 70% is very light and 5% is limousine dark. The strip above shows the five shades side by side.

California sets this rule statewide, so it applies in Del Mar exactly as it does everywhere else. Front side windows must let at least 70% of visible light through. Rear side windows and the rear windshield can be any shade you like.

Is a 35% tint legal in California?

On the back, yes. A 35% film is legal on the rear side windows and the rear windshield, and it is a common choice for privacy. It is not legal on the front two side windows, where the limit is 70%. Anyone offering to fit 35% up front is quoting you a fix-it ticket.

The part that surprises people is that darker does not mean cooler. A 70% Apex Ultra ceramic film rejects far more heat than a dark carbon film, because the heat rejection comes from ceramic particles in the film rather than from how dark it looks. If a hot cabin is the problem rather than privacy, spend on the film and keep the front light.

We will go through the combination with you before anything goes on the glass, so the finished car is road-legal and still does the job.

We come to you: your home, your office, or your own garage. Film wants a clean, covered space, so a garage or carport gives the best result. Wind is what makes an install difficult, not heat, and the exposed streets down near Camino Del Mar catch a steady breeze off the water. Up in Del Mar Heights, where most homes have a garage, it is usually simple.

The C2 Carbon film is the exception. It is in-shop only, both as the Bronze full-car tier and as the front-window option, because carbon needs to go on indoors. That work is done at our San Marcos shop, about half an hour north, and it is the reason Bronze is priced below the ceramic tiers.

What the appointment looks like

We are out seven days a week, 7am to 7pm, and we cover all of Del Mar, from the village and Camino Del Mar up to Del Mar Heights and across the valley towards Via de la Valle. Your technician texts on the way and again when the car is finished, so you are not waiting around.

A full-car tint is normally a half-day job. We need the car with us for the whole appointment and enough room to open every door. During the summer race and fair season, traffic through the valley is worth allowing for when you pick a time.

After we leave

Keep the windows up for three days while the film cures. Haze, small bubbles or trapped moisture straight after an install is normal and clears on its own, usually in one to two weeks in summer. Under a long winter marine layer it can stretch to three or four weeks, which is slower than most people expect but is not a fault. We explain all of it before we go.