coupe
$249*
Mobile Window Tinting in La Jolla
Carbon and ceramic film, fitted at your address
Rated 5 stars 5.0 1,000+ five-star reviews on
Overview
We install window tint at your place in La Jolla, not ours.
Tint is not only about how the car looks. The right film cuts the heat that builds in a parked car, takes the glare out of a drive and keeps UV off your seats and dash. A car parked above the cove takes sun from above and reflected light off the water, and salt air on top of both, which is harder on an interior and on glass seals than an inland spot a few miles east.
We fit carbon and ceramic films, from a straightforward carbon tint up to Apex Ultra ceramic at 95% heat rejection, and we will tell you honestly which one is worth the difference for how you actually drive. Every package, price and coverage diagram is set out on this page, so you can decide before you call.
Film needs a clean, covered space to go on well, so a garage or covered space is ideal. Our technicians are licensed and fully insured. Family-run since 1994, rated 5.0 across more than 1,000 five-star reviews on Google, Yelp and Facebook.
Packages & pricing
Window tint packages, prices and coverage
Three full-car film tiers, plus front-window and windshield options you can fit on their own. Prices are set by the film you choose and the size of the vehicle, from a coupe up to a full-size SUV or truck, because bigger and more complex glass takes more film and more time.
These are the same prices we charge across San Diego County, with nothing added for the postcode. Each package shows what the film does, which glass it covers, the shades available and the warranty behind it.
Bronze Carbon Tint
Choose vehicle type swipe
sedan
$299*
compact suv
$329*
truck
$349*
full-size suv
$399*
What's included
- 50% Heat Rejection + 99% UV Rejection
- Application of GeoShield C2 Carbon Film to All Windows (Excluding Front Windshield & Sunroof)
- Your Choice of 50%, 35%, 20%, or 5% Film
- 3 Year Film Warranty
- Only Available In Shop
The one tier that cannot come to you, since C2 Carbon has to be fitted indoors. That one is done at our San Marcos shop.
Vehicle condition & upgrades
Addons:
- Tint Removal ($90/hr*): Complete removal of existing window tint from the vehicle.
- Tint Front Windshield (Starting at $299*): Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic Window Tint to the front windshield.
- Tint Sunroof ($100*): Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic Window Tint on 1 sunroof.
Silver Ceramic Tint
Choose vehicle type swipe
coupe
$349*
sedan
$399*
compact suv
$429*
truck
$449*
full-size suv
$499*
What's included
- 76% Heat Rejection + 99% UV Rejection
- Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic Film to All Windows (Excluding Front Windshield & Sunroof)
- Your Choice of 70%, 50%, 35%, 20%, or 5% Film
- Low Haze
- Lifetime Film Warranty
The middle tier, and enough for a car that lives in a garage and only takes sun on the road.
Vehicle condition & upgrades
Addons:
- Tint Removal ($90/hr*): Complete removal of existing window tint from the vehicle.
- Tint Front Windshield (Starting at $299*): Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic Window Tint to the front windshield.
- Tint Sunroof ($100*): Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic Window Tint on 1 sunroof.
Gold Ceramic Tint
Choose vehicle type swipe
coupe
$549*
sedan
$599*
compact suv
$629*
truck
$649*
full-size suv
$699*
What's included
- 95% Heat Rejection + 99% UV Rejection
- Application of GeoShield Apex Ultra Ceramic Film to All Windows (Excluding Front Windshield & Sunroof)
- Your Choice of 70%, 50%, 35%, 20%, or 5% Film
- Low Haze
- Lifetime Film Warranty
The tier most La Jolla customers choose. Apex Ultra rejects the most heat of anything we fit and has the best optical clarity, which matters on a car with good glass.
Vehicle condition & upgrades
Addons:
- Tint Removal ($90/hr*): Complete removal of existing window tint from the vehicle.
- Tint Front Windshield (Starting at $399*): Application of GeoShield Apex Ultra Ceramic Window Tint to the front windshield.
- Tint Sunroof ($200*): Application of GeoShield Apex Ultra Ceramic Window Tint on 1 sunroof.
Front Windows
Choose your film swipe
C2 Carbon
$149*
50% heat rejection · in shop only
Pro Nano Ceramic
$199*
76% heat rejection
Apex Ultra Ceramic
$249*
95% heat rejection
What's included
- Your Choice of GeoShield Film to Front Two Windows
- Your Choice of 70%, 50%, 35%, 20%, or 5% Film
- High Optical Clarity
- Lifetime Film Warranty
Popular on a newer car that came from the dealer with factory-tinted rear glass, so only the front two windows need matching.
Vehicle condition & upgrades
Addons:
- Tint Removal ($90/hr*): Complete removal of existing window tint from the vehicle.
- Tint Front Windshield (Starting at $299*): Application of GeoShield Pro Nano or Apex Ultra Ceramic Window Tint to the front windshield.
- Tint Sunroof ($100, 200*): Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic or GeoShield Apex Ultra Ceramic Window Tint on 1 sunroof.
Windshield Ceramic Tint
Choose vehicle type swipe
coupe
Pro Nano $299*
Apex Ultra $399*
sedan
Pro Nano $299*
Apex Ultra $399*
compact suv
Pro Nano $299*
Apex Ultra $399*
truck
Pro Nano $399*
Apex Ultra $499*
full-size suv
Pro Nano $399*
Apex Ultra $499*
What's included
- Up to 95% Heat Rejection + 99% UV Rejection
- Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic or Apex Ultra Ceramic Film to The Front Windshield
- Your Choice of 70%, 50%, 35%, 20%, or 5% Film
- High Optical Clarity
- Lifetime Film Warranty
For glare on a coast road with the sun over the water, and for heat through the largest piece of glass on the car. It is a separate job and can be added to any package above.
Vehicle condition & upgrades
Addons:
- Tint Removal ($90/hr*): Complete removal of existing window tint from the vehicle.
- Tint Sunroof ($100, 200*): Application of GeoShield Pro Nano Ceramic or GeoShield Apex Ultra Ceramic Window Tint on 1 sunroof.
* Plus tax. All prices are estimates and subject to change until the vehicle has been inspected to verify condition and size/complexity of the windows. A covered area is recommended for installation. Additional labor will not be charged without customer approval. By tinting your windows at Smith Bros, you are acknowledging and agreeing to the Window Tint Disclaimer.
Every option can be fitted on-site in La Jolla except Bronze C2 Carbon, which is in-shop only. The full technical comparison of the GeoShield range is on the main window tinting service page.
Choosing your shade, and what is legal in California
Every package lets you choose a shade, measured as VLT, or Visible Light Transmission: the share of visible light the film lets through. 70% is very light, 5% is limousine dark. The strip above shows the five shades side by side.
California sets this rule statewide, so La Jolla is no different from anywhere 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 rear windshield and is a common privacy choice. It is not legal on the front two side windows, which are held to 70%. Anyone offering to fit 35% up front is quoting you a fix-it ticket.
On a car where you would rather not change the look at all, the useful point is that performance and darkness are separate. A 70% Apex Ultra ceramic film rejects far more heat than a dark carbon film, because ceramic particles do the work. The glass can stay looking close to factory and still be doing a great deal more.
We will settle the combination with you before anything goes on the car.
Why we fit GeoShield film
We are a GeoShield dealer and fit their film exclusively across all three tiers. The ceramic films block heat with nano-ceramic particles rather than a metal layer, so they reject a lot of infrared without interfering with phone signal, GPS or tyre-pressure sensors the way older metallised films could.
The films resist surface scratching, hold their colour instead of turning purple after a few summers, and both ceramic tiers carry a lifetime film warranty against bubbling, peeling, cracking and colour change. Apex Ultra also has the highest optical clarity of the range, which is the thing you actually notice looking out through it.
There is a coastal argument too. Salt air is hard on glass seals and trim, and it collects along the top edge of a window. Film with clean, tucked edges gives it nowhere to sit, and edge work is what fails first on a car kept this close to the water.
The full film-by-film comparison is on the main window tinting service page.
How mobile window tinting works in La Jolla
We come to you: home, office, or your own garage. Film wants a clean, covered space, so a garage or a covered space in a building is the best option. Wind is the real difficulty rather than temperature, and the streets above the cove and out at Bird Rock catch plenty of it.
Parking is the other practical thing. Around the Village, and on the older streets down towards the Shores, a lot of homes have no driveway and street parking is tight. It is usually workable, but tell us what the situation is when you book so we are not solving it on the doorstep.
The C2 Carbon film is the exception to all of it: in-shop only, both as the Bronze full-car tier and as the front-window option, fitted at our San Marcos shop.
What the appointment looks like
We are out seven days a week, 7am to 7pm, covering La Jolla from the Village and the Shores through Bird Rock and up around Mount Soledad. Your technician texts on the way and again when the car is finished.
A full-car tint is normally a half-day job, and we need enough room around the car to open every door.
After we leave
Keep the windows up for three days while the film cures. Haze, small bubbles or trapped moisture is normal at first and clears on its own, usually in one to two weeks in summer. Through a damp coastal winter it can take three to four weeks, which is slower than expected but not a fault.
Real reviews
What San Diego drivers say
Requested service online and they came out the same day, two hours later. Fantastic field service management, with updates as to when the agent would arrive along with his personal phone number. Nicholas was young but professional. The car went from looking like a 3 year old warzone to a brand new car.
After requesting a quote through Yelp, Luke got back to me very quickly with a thorough explanation of their products and pricing. They had next day availability and Donnie showed up right on time and worked diligently to bring my Honda Pilot back to life. After 4 hours she looks brand new, and the pricing was very fair for the quality of work. I love finding a service professional who takes pride in their work.
I requested the exterior detail to remove some house paint that had been splattered on my car, then ended up going with the silver ceramic package. I am seriously impressed on all levels: customer service, detail, and quality of work. Andrew ceramic coated it to perfection, it looks better than it did brand new off the lot. I cannot thank these gentlemen enough.
Rated 5.0 across more than 1,000 five-star reviews on Google, Yelp and Facebook. Get a free quote for your vehicle.
Recent work
Recent window tint work
More finished cars, tint and everything else we do, are in our work.
Can I add ceramic coating, PPF or detailing?
A ceramic coating does for your paint what ceramic film does for your glass: it rejects UV, sheds water and keeps the finish from dulling. This close to the water it also makes getting salt off a far quicker job. We are an authorized Opti-Coat installer, with tiers from $599. See the tiers and pricing.
Paint protection film takes the rock chips and road debris a coating cannot stop, with packages from $1,000 using self-healing Autobahn film. See PPF packages.
Booking more than one at a time saves you an appointment, since the car only has to be free once. We also fit mobile auto detailing in La Jolla, ceramic coating in La Jolla and paint protection film in La Jolla.
We cover the surrounding area too, including Pacific Beach, Torrey Pines, Sorrento Valley, Del Mar and Downtown. The full list is on the services page.
Good to know
La Jolla window tinting FAQs
How much does window tinting cost in La Jolla?
Full-car film runs from $249 for Bronze carbon on a coupe up to $699 for Gold ceramic on a full-size SUV, plus tax. Front windows on their own start at $149, and a windshield runs $299 to $499 depending on the film and the vehicle.
Every price is broken out by vehicle type in the packages above, and the rates are the same as everywhere else we work.
Do I have to bring the car to a shop?
No. Both ceramic tiers, the ceramic front-window option and the windshield film are all fitted at your address, whether that is a home garage or your workplace.
The only exception is the C2 Carbon film, which has to be fitted indoors at our San Marcos shop.
I only have street parking. Can you still tint my car?
Often yes, but let us know when you book. Around the Village in particular there is no driveway to work on, and what we need is a sheltered spot with room to open all the doors.
If there is genuinely nowhere workable, bringing the car to our shop is the alternative.
What tint is legal in California?
Front side windows must let at least 70% of visible light through. Rear side windows and the rear windshield can be any shade you want.
We will walk you through a combination that stays legal, and a 70% ceramic film at the front still rejects a lot of heat.
Is a 35% tint legal in California?
On the rear side windows and rear windshield, yes. On the front two side windows, no. Those are held to 70% VLT, so a 35% film up front is not road-legal in California.
Will ceramic film interfere with my car's electronics?
No. GeoShield ceramic films use nano-ceramic particles rather than a metal layer, so phone signal, GPS, keyless entry and tyre-pressure sensors are unaffected.
That was a genuine problem with older metallised films and is one of the reasons we do not fit them.
Can you remove my old tint first?
Yes. Tint removal is $90 per hour and covers stripping the existing film off the vehicle before the new film goes on. How long it takes depends on the film and how long it has been on the car.
Film that has gone purple or started to bubble takes longest. We will give you a realistic estimate once we have seen it.
How long before I can roll my windows down?
Three days. The film needs that time to adhere fully, and rolling a window down early can damage it.
Why does my tint look hazy or bubbled?
That is trapped moisture and it is normal straight after an install. It clears as the film cures, usually within one to two weeks in summer and three to four weeks through a damp coastal winter.
Is the tint covered by a warranty?
The Silver and Gold ceramic packages carry a lifetime warranty on the film, as do the ceramic front-window and windshield options. The Bronze Carbon option carries a 3-year film warranty.
The warranty covers the film against bubbling, peeling, cracking and colour change, and all our films block 99% of UV. C2 Carbon rejects about 50% of heat, Pro Nano about 76% and Apex Ultra about 95%.
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