Kruppa

I know there are a ton of tint threads, I did quite a bit of searching and reading through old threads and still have some more specific questions and I’m hoping for Q5 owners to chime in. You will see I keep referencing Formula One Pinnacle - the place I trust the most closest to me uses this and I've had solid prior experience.

I currently have F1 Pinnacle 40 on the two front windows which is 43% VLT and meters at 37% when installed. This must mean the front windows have ~85% factory tint (85% * 43% = 37%). The rear factory tinted windows meter at 27% (surprised Audi is so light – my old Grand Cherokee metered at 18%). It goes without saying my fronts are currently lighter than the rears. I’ve seen a Q5 with Pinnacle 30 (33% VLT) that must have metered at 28% which is right on target with the factory rears. I’ve seen many people with tint in this range and say it matches the rear perfectly. While technically it matches perfectly, it doesn’t look like a match in real world applications because of all the light that floods in through the windshield. The next shade of F1 Pinnacle beyond 30 is 15 (18% VLT) which should meter around 15%. I would imagine this would look almost identical/maybe slightly darker than the factory rear.

Assuming I go with Pinnacle 15 (18% VLT) on the front, I’m trying to figure out if I could get away with tinting over the rear windows and still have a uniform darkness front to back (again, real world application realizing light will come in through the front and I won’t tint my windshield). Pinnacle 50 is 54% VLT which on top of 27% factory tint should be 15% and match my fronts technically, but that will give me the same problem of it not really matching due to the windshield light. I suspect however it would be less noticeable once you get down that low on VLT.

Sorry, that was a lot of detail, so this is what I’m hoping to see/find out.

1) Does anybody have F1 Pinnacle 15 installed on their Q5 front windows that can post a picture? I looked almost 3 full pages back in search results and couldn’t find any. I guess 20% of most brands would be close enough in terms of darkness but would love to see the exact tint.
2) Does anybody have their Q5 rear windows tinted (over the factory tint) that can share what % they had installed and the final % metered? Pictures would be great.
3) Regarding the panoramic sunroof the two most popular option seems to be Llumar Air 80 for a clear look or around 20% of the popular brands (Formula One Pinnacle, Huper Optik, etc.) I’m interested to see pictures from the inside of owners who have 20% tint installed on the pano roof and if they feel like it effects visibility significantly. Passengers all love the pano, especially people in the back seat, so would hate to ruin that.

I highly doubt anyone has F1 Pinnacle 15 front/F1 Pinnacle of some % on all rears and could share pictures or their experience with matching, but that would be fantastic. Thanks!

dassq5

viper ceramic 20 on rear windows brought metering down to 9%

viper ceramic 30 on front side windows brought metering down to 27%

BlackAce

I have Pinnacle in exactly what you described (15 in the front, etc) on both my cars. These pictures look darker than it is, you can see in slightly, but you can at least see the uniformity between the front and back.







I had the Pano tinted in my Q5, but skipped it in my SQ5, and haven't noticed any difference. The newer ones (mines a 2015) are extremely dark tinted from the factory, and I figured I could always add it later if needed. I live in Orlando for reference.

Kruppa

Wow that was way easier/faster than I thought. Thanks for replying. Just to confirm you have Pinnacle 15 front and Pinnacle 50 on all the rears?

I have a 2016 Q5 (also black) so the pano roof should be the same as yours. I haven't even had my car in the summer yet, but when it was very sunny this winter I could feel the heat on my head/neck pretty easily. I also have a lighter color headliner (don't have sport package with black headliner) so that doesn't help much when I do close it. What tint did you use on your pano on your Q5? Any issues still seeing out of it well?

Thanks again!

Redd

Kruppa-
I have a security film, not a conventional tint, on my side windows so can't help you there. But I had the lightest grade of 3M Crystalline installed on the moonroof, and I can tell you that it totally kills any heat transmission, even on scorching days. It also makes the view through the roof "dim", even though it is the lightest shade they make. So if anyone plans to look up...whatever you use, make it lighter than you think it needs to be. FWIW.

GiddyHitch

I feel your pain, Kruppa. Matching a factory tint with aftermarket films is an exercise in frustration. My installer's meter measured the factory tint at 37% VLT so I went through the available 35% films and settled on a 3M product because it had the closest color match to the factory tint, even though there were higher end films available. All of the films skewed yellow/warm compared to the factory tint and it still kinda bugs me and is most apparent from the inside looking out and on very sunny days from the outside. To be honest, I even see the color shift in the photos that BlackAce posted. Keep in mind that because you presumably aren't tinting the windshield, your front window tint will never match your rears from all angles when viewed from the outside.

uberwgn

Kruppa, welcome aboard. Don't forget your annual inspection in MA as you consider your tint options.

Kruppa

Agreed, it's especially difficult with the Q5 with the front windows having a slight green tint and the rear windows being 27% factory (not darker). I've seen a lot of brands of tint in person/on cars over the years and I still feel like Pinnacle is the blackest of the bunch which is why I'm going that route in hopes of masking the green tint as much as possible. And of course, the darker you go the less apparent it will be. The only way to really match the front/rears without tinting the windshield is to just tint the front that much darker which I suppose I could do with Pinnacle 15 up front and leave the back stock. That would be about 15% VLT front, 27% VLT back and I think that could be pretty close. Of course that is only in the sun, then when it's overcast your fronts will look darker - never win.

Kruppa

Thank you for the heads up! I could go with the Llumar Air 80 for the very light side or alternatively the Pinnacle 50. I've seen others who got 20% tint and say you can still see through it well - so hard to know without seeing it yourself in person since everyone's opinion varies drastically.

BlackAce

For what it's worth, in Florida this wouldn't have worked for us because we need the ceramic all around for heat rejection. If your primary focus is looks, then yes, you could leave the backs untouched, but you don't get any of the other benefits that the Pinnacle has to offer.

Also, I just replied to your PM as well.