Project Tundra Part 3, Making Life Better with 3M Crystalline Window Tint and Protective Film

The backing is removed from the film and the adhesive side of the film liberally sprayed with soapy water.

Crystalline uses 3M's proprietary multi layer technology. The working middle substrate of the film consists of over 200 individual layers that can block damaging UV and IR light while letting visible light pass.  How this exactly works is a closely guarded secret of 3M.  The top layer is a special scratch resistant layer and the bottom layer is an adhesive layer.  The tint is non metallic which means that it won’t interfere with garage openers, cell phones, GPS, Satellite Radio, radar detectors and other telemetric devices like some tints can.  Non metallic means that the film will not internally oxidize or fade purple ensuring a longer life than lesser tints.

The film is placed on the inside of the glass with liberal amounts of soapy water and the lower edge tucked under the weather strip.

This technology blocks 99.9% of UV light and 97% of Infrared, more than any other film on the market. This helps Crystalline earn a recommendation by The Skin Cancer Foundation with an SPF of over 1700! The film also rejects 38 to 50 percent of solar heat depending on the darkness selected. What is cool is this means that the relatively clear Crystalline performs as good as or better than old school ultra dark limo tints. Crystalline also has low interior reflectivity and low glare which helps image brightness, especially when driving at night. The clearness of Crystalline tints means less unwanted attention from law enforcement.

The soapy water is squeegeed out from under the film.

This heat blocking technology means that the car's AC system works much less, thereby saving fuel.  A less taxed AC system puts less strain on the car’s cooling system, important in a tow vehicle like our Tundra. The tough polyester based film also improves safety as the glass if broken in an accident does not fly in many sharp fragments but stays in one softer piece that is less likely to cut or injure you. Crystalline’s exceptional heat and UV blocking ability means that your vehicles’ interior will last much longer without fading or cracking.

The film is cut slightly past the edge of the window and burnished down with the blade of the cutter.  The window is bumped up and down to check to make sure every bit of the glass is covered, even the parts obscured by the window moldings.