6G Celicas Forums

after my math final i left school and made a late stop at a sign...when i looked up the cops were on the other side of the road...didn't seem they cared, so i drove off and they turned behind me...didn't think anything of it until i saw those Damn LIGHTS...rolled down my window and he told me to cross the intersection and pull into a parking lot. While he was taking my info he asked me if i could roll up my window because it looked a little to dark. The other cop came to my window and measured the tint. They found out that my tint is 3% and wrote me the ticket for my tint and passing the stop sign by a few feet... my total is $350... Then he tells me that legal window tint is anything Above 25%... Lastly he tells me that the main reason for the ticket was due to the tint, but they didn't want to stop me just because of that "we didn't want to be mean."
throughout the whole process i was calm about it and didn't over react since i decided to get the tint.
ive had my tint since the beginning of summer and this is the first time any authorities say anything about it...

Fall season of 2006. Good old me driving my old celica to the pet store. I parked my car and got out just to see a a cop stick his face like an inch away from mine with other hand on his gun. As I tried to figure out what the hell happened he turned around and walked back to his car without saying a word. So I went into Petsmart and bought myself some fishies, food etc... probably spending there at least half an hour. So I come out and do a quick look out. I see 2 police cars parked waaaay on other side of the lot by Target just sitting there. With rows of cars in between I figured they would not even see me come out and after all I did not do anything wrong. So I make a step outside the door and see both cops pull out slowly so I walk back inside... I give it a good 15 minute pause just for a good measure and came out again and both cops were back in their spots. So I make a bee line towards next door store which happened to be pepboys and made a 911 call expressing my concern of being stalked by what could be police impersonators. A little while later I see both police vehicles pull out of the lot. So I walk slowly back to my car thinking I was in the clear and as soon as I sat in my car I heard a knock on my window. That was #1 ticket for my 5% limo tint. I pull out the lot and get pulled over by that 2nd cop and that was #2 ticket for tint. Mother effers tagged teamed me all the way from that parking lot back into my college dorm. I got 25 tickets worth a total of over 1 grand. Their pathetic excuse that they could do whatever they wanted because stopping me was counted as separate incidents. I made it home about 5 hours later (and that was a 10 mile drive). Of course I took them to court and judge had cahones to tell me right in my face that I was in the wrong. With family lawyer, 3 return trips to the court house and a $478 lawyer fee I ended up serving 9 days of community service every saturday for the next couple of months. That was the last time I had tint on my windows. Prior to that incident I had a similar nasty incident. Driving down to my parents house my plastic under engine cover starts scraping against the asphalt. After ignoring it for 20 miles I pulled over and took my tools out and got under the car and was in middle of removing it when a cop holding a gun very err persuasively told me to get from under the car. He tried to give me a ticket for going 80 on a 50, reckless driving, improper passing and obstruction to the law. That was somehow with me being under my car stuck for half of hour with one of my wheels off and car up on a jack. Of course I objected and he ended up writing me a ticket for tinted windows because other officer told him on the radio that he passed my car a long while ago.

Overall since 1999 I have been pulled over 74 times paid heavily in miscellaneous retarded fees for everything from having aftermarket parts to my stereo and thankfully never once officially issued points to my license.

$350?? isnt it supposed to be a fixing ticket only? like $10 after removing the tint?

Does seem step. My only ticket (only time being pulled over as well, *knocks on wood*) was for rolling through a stop sign, 138. So unless TX has a steeper penalty for that, $212 for tint seems like a lot. FWIW, my tint shouldn't be anywhere near 3%, but I can't say it's much lighter than yours...I'd say between 20% and 30%. Never had any problems though.

Crappy situation man.

Yeah here in CA it's a $10-20 fix-it ticket

Yep, I love the fact we only pay that for a fix it ticket. But you should really look into people who are more sneaky about that, who can provide a label so it looks OEM. There are crooked people in my town who do it and it usually keeps people safe. Never heard of a problem with it. But even still, I have cops follow me all the time, but they never pull me over unless I am actually speeding. They flip u-turns in the middle of streets, but never really pull me over. Be lucky you have a Toyota, because most cops actually like them better than Hondas.

3%? Geeze, can you even see out of that?

Here in CA, any tint is illegal so it absolutely drives me nuts to pull next to some guy with limo tint all around. Sometimes you really need to be able to make eye contact with the other driver just to make sure you are both on the same page (making a lane change, avoiding a road hazard, etc), and these idiots driving with the windows blacked out, seriously makes it harder for everyone else who's driving on the same roads. Not to mention it's AGAINST THE LAW part (again, in CA).

yea, i can see out through my window...
but during the night time it is difficult time seeing out if i don't roll down my windows.

Two things:

- You bought illegal tint
- You rolled a stop

And you're complaining about getting a ticket for that? You made your bed, now lay in it.


Stick to legal tint (looks better than limo tint anyways) and come to a complete stop before the line.

yes i know what did was wrong
and now i'm taking the consequences...
i disagree on the tint,
i've got many people that tell me the car looks real good with the tint job.
also, not complaining, i just wanted to share my my experience.

This post has been edited by marco-polo: Dec 10, 2009 - 5:52 PM

lol you have proof to back up this retarded comment I hope? 'Most cops' don't care what you're driving, breaking the law is breaking the law.


One of the fewer times I agree with you, although I still think 20% tint looks the best, but I live in an area where we don't monitor it.

You know what? I never thought of it like that, the whole Eye to Eye communication. That is a real eye opener and I can totally agree with that now. I thought it was just so cops don't suspect anything retarded. But now that all makes sense.

i also do agree with that, but i live in south texas so weather is always warm enough to roll the windows down.

When you have illegel stuff like that on your car you gotta be extra careful. They know you have it, and they know its illegal, but most cops won't pull you over for just illegal tint. But since you rolled the stop sign that gave them a reason to pull you over AND pop you for two tickets not just one. I've had illegal tint on my car for over a year now, been pulled over a few times, and even had a full inspection on a local cruise night and got numerous tickets for blue reverse lights, HID's and no front plates, but still got away with illegal tint. Don't give them a reason to pull you over, and they most likely won't..

I think a cop would pull you over for illegal tint where I go to school. My celica came with all of the windows tinted and I have been kind of paranoid about getting pulled over for it but it isn't to dark. I got pulled over for another reason at like 1 in the morning and he didn't catch the window tint. It also helps that the lady I bought the car from can get any of tint issues worked out because of her job!

In addition to the 25% tint in TX, you also need a label (“Complies with DPS” or “Complies with 37 Texas Administrative Code (TAC)”) on one window, but soon its going to have to be on every window that has tint applied.

If its a high school you go to thats like a hot spot for cos. I just finished high school last year, and on the street where everyone used to park there was probably 7 to 10 cars that were tinted out, and the cops would always roll by trying to find kids driving off in their cars cause they knew there was someone doing something illegal around there, I think a few guys actually got caught with tint there too.. Just park away from it if thats how it is at your school, cause I did that and I haven't been caught. Being paranoid about it is good, I'm pretty paranoid with cops and tint and i haven't been caught. If its night and i see a cop I'll put my screen on and have the leds on my floor lit up, and roll the windows down too if possible so I don't get pulled over, seems to work for me...

Eye to eye communication my arse. If other drivers actually paid attention to me they would see me swearing off and showing all kinds of hand signals. Come to think of it tint or no tint I have not changed my outbursts of anger on stupid drivers.

Here is the moral question. Why is the tint illegal? Why is it legal for cops and not legal for other drivers? Why does a cop who is pulling me over for tint issuing me a ticket for tint when he is himself sitting there in the dark? As far as I am concerned if cops want us to obey the laws... they need to set an example by doing things like ohh I dont know driving and not talking on the cellphone or driving and not eating at the same time or driving without windows tint unless they are a presidential convoy.

Oh sweet christ, sometimes when i hear stupid crap like cops tag teaming people with the same bs i wish we as citizens could really say whats on our mind instead of getting another ticket or going to jail. Cops are supposed to protect not just hassle on people on the same crap.

^^ I also agree with that as well. Which is why I always tell them "Ah, I see they give you all the important jobs". But surprisingly, I have been let go and complemented on this car by cops.