just a rant

I just had to rant about the communist state of iowa. I bought a pickup last winter from a dealer. it came from california, dont bother me that way.
Here is the rant it has tinted windows, california sticker on the window. spray on tint or something like that, doesnt come off, i got pulled over by a county sheriff tonight said windows are to dark, i explained to him it doesnt come off, he said not his problem. have 5 days to take care of it, i explained i work from 8 to 8, when am i goin have time to take care of it, he says not his problem.
i am gettin so tired of the states an their stupid money grabs. so now i am goin to have to find someway to remove the stuff or replace the windows. i could go but i'll quit now.
sorry for being off topic but i am just really ticked off.
johndeeregene

I'd go back to the dealer and tell them to get it off. They sold you an illegal truck and should have known. I'm sure they get asked all the time to tint windows. I know a guy that has tinted windows in all his vehicles but also has a Drs. note stating his eyes are very sensitive to light. Dave

Just another gov. revenue collector.

Was the vehicle sold "as-is" or with a warranty? If you bought it "as-is", you're just going to have to suck up and take care of it. But if the dealer gave you any sort of warranty, I'd take it back to him and let him fix it.

There are few materials that can't be removed with MEK (methyl-ethyl-ketone), available at any hardware store. Note that "any materials" includes most of the plastic parts in your car, as well as any paint.

You say it has a "California sticker" on the window. Do you mean that it has something that says the tint is legal in California? Then you may have a case for leaving the tint on. California and Iowa have the same requirement: the tint must allow 70 percent of visible light to pass. Of course, you'll have to go to court to state your case, as no cop in recorded history has ever admitted being wrong. Here's a site with some info on tint laws:
tintcenter.com

I'm a bit confused. You say you work 8 to 8 so I assume you were pulled over when it was dark? If so, how could he tell? Also curious why you were stopped, was it just for the tint or for another reason. Maybe he was mad at you and decided to add on charges?
Also, did he use a meter to clamp over the glass to verify it was too dark, or he just looked at it and assumes it's too dark?

Caveat emptor: Buyer beware

You bought an illegal truck. Believe it or not it is the driver's responsibility everytime they get in a vehicle to drive it to insure it is legal. That includes tire tread, bulbs, tint etc. You chose to drive it. Sorry but that was your call. The excuse of I bought it this way just doesn't fly. If it did you could use that for everything: Shotgun barrel sawed-off: bought it that way; house sump pump dumps into city sewer: bought it that way; car has 90# of Marijuana in the trunk: bought it that way.

You work 8 to 8. I assume this is not a 7 day a week schedule. If so I am guessing that with a 12 hour day you have at least a 2 if not 3 day weekend. Next Monday is Memorial day, working then too? It really doesn't matter anyway. A person's personal schedule has nothing to do with when or if they have to follow the laws: "I was speeding at 100 mph because I was late for work officer, have a nice day." You were given 5 days, that should be plenty of time. If you can't do the job because of time or ability 5 days is enough time to find someone else who can and pay them to do it - They might even do it [i:236c351776][b:236c351776]while[/b:236c351776][/i:236c351776] you are at work.

Communist money grab? If a fix it ticket in Iowa is anything like Wisconsin, you don't have to pay squat unless you don't fix the situation. It seems to me you got off with a good deal. They can write the ticket instantly if they want. This officer gave you a 5 day window to fix something without penalty which you obviously knew was illegal.

If he would have offered to personally pick up your vehicle while you were at work, remove the tint himself, detail the truck, return it to your work, write your assembly person about how unfair the situation is and issue a written apology for pulling you over for breaking the law during your busy life, would that have been ok?

Ryan

That is just not the American way any more. Everyone now is taught to blame the mistakes they make on someone else. So this is obviously the fault of the dealership that he bought a vehicle with dark tent that doesn't meet state laws. And now a law officer that is doing his job is out of line because he doesn't have sympathy for this driver.

Gene, you clearly have no one to blame but yourself. Take your lumps and get it fixed. You have leaned another lesson in life, take responsibility for you own actions and mistakes.

Doesn't Iowa have vehicle inspections before they can be Licensed? In MO if a dealer sells a vehicle it has to pass a state inspection. So it seems to me that either the dealer is liable or who ever passed it on inspection!

Iowa has no inspection . They used to years ago . If push came to shove and you actually got a ticket , I would make sure they officer used a light meter to test the tint , if not ticket will more than likely be thrown out . If just a warning , maybe do some homework , have it checked WITH a light meter , see if it's within Iowa limits . If it fails , remove it . I can understand officers point, I sure would not like to approach a car with windows so dark I could not see whats going on in the car . Taking back to the dealer would get you no where , unless you a a very good customer of his, you might mention it to him , see what he says , doubtfull at best . Worst case , have new windshield installed. I just had one in a customers 2001 grand caravan $275 ,,surprised me it was that cheap .

Sorry, I have to side with the cops on this one. Last July 3rd I got stopped at a DUI check point on the way home from work. A car that was traveling ahead of me stopped first. Four cops surrounded the car, I couldn't see if they had their heat drawn but they were being real careful. I was stopped behind and another cop walked up to my truck like an old friend. I said "must have a live one". The cop stated 'the windows are too dark to see in the car'. He gave my license a quick glance and told me to have a safe trip and motioned me around. A cop friend of mine told me that the vast majority of cops that are shot in the line of duty had approached vehicles with dark tinted windows. So no wonder this is a touchy sort of thing with them.

Seems rather odd, since California's and Iowa's regs (at least as they're shown in the site linked by Mark down below) are the same.

If that's the case, it might be all you have to do is go to an auto glass outfit that does tinting. They should have a meter to test your tint and be able to certify you to be in compliance. Pain in the neck, but you'll only be paying for the inspection not for them to have to remove or replace anything.

Don't bring it to my area of MI., you would not make 2 days without getting stopped.
I dislike pulling up beside a vehicle at a stoplight with dark tinted front side windows.
Mark

Boys from the local barracks made a friend remove his, or deal with the ticket, was borderline like an '05 truck, looked fine too, but not sure how it measured up to whatever they inspect/check the opacity (if that is the correct term)with. I've got a cobra mustang with tinted windows, not sure if it's over the limit or what, had no idea that this was an issue when it was done, so when I see the boys, I roll the windows down. I too would love to tell em to go pound salt, but others ruined this for us long ago.

Pretty sure that is what happened here too, they were ambushed, human nature is wonderful isn't it, take something harmless and use it for the element of surprise to kill an unsuspecting law enforcement person

I'll side with the law, also.

If I was a LEO and had reason to stop a vehicle with tinted windows, I wouldn't screw around. I'd simply sit in the safety of my patrol car, get on the speaker, and tell all the occupants to exit the vehicle and place their hands on the roof before I even exited my car.

how dark was the tint on the cop car windows?

Indiana has window tine darkness laws also that they cant enforce because the state cop car and local cops all have darker tint then the law allows.

its a do as I say not as I do thing.

(quoted from post at 11:25:57 05/19/09) how dark was the tint on the cop car windows?

Indiana has window tine darkness laws also that they cant enforce because the state cop car and local cops all have darker tint then the law allows.

its a do as I say not as I do thing.

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Must be awesome to live in a state where the law enforcement officers can't go faster than 55 to catch speeders.

The State of NC specifically permits law enforcement to have darker tint. That is one of the tipoffs on unmarked cars. Annual inspections required and the stations have a meter to check tint for darkness.