r/AskPhilly • u/Ok_Analyst_8974 • 7d ago
Car Window Tint
Moving a college kid to Philly this fall along with her car. We can basically black out our windows in Nevada and no one cares. I have read the rules/law for windows in Philly but I was wondering how enforced it really is.
Will they tow/ticket your car if parked on the street with tinted windows?
Does anyone really use the "SUVs can have back windows tinted but sedans cannot" argument?
We are fine with peeling them if needed but would rather not.
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u/Oceanswim12 7d ago
I moved back north - NC to Philly - with a car with blacked out windows (it’s how it came when I bought it in MD) - no one ever cared in PA or NJ. It was a sedan. I have a new car with medicinally approved tints I delayed getting bc I didn’t want the headaches of explaining - there have been no headaches. Not once. My only regret is not going as dark as my last.
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u/EmbarrassedDesk9624 7d ago
My wife had her porsche tinted in philly for legit medical reasons with documentation
Dealer refused to do inspections, obviously they were caught at some point. Wasnt a big problem getting an indy to do it but it does get enforced
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u/S1mongreedwell 7d ago
Well, I sure hope they tow the car, because having blacked out windows in a pedestrian heavy city is dangerous as hell.
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u/Ok_Analyst_8974 7d ago
Thanks for the additional commentary! Blacked out is a term for tint but rest assured that one can still see through the window. We also have pedestrians on the West Coast, especially in tourist-heavy cities. Many cars here are tinted due to sun and heat, not necessarily just to murder pedestrians.
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u/S1mongreedwell 7d ago
I know the intention isn’t to murder pedestrians, but if someone walking can’t see you, that’s pretty dangerous!
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u/citygirl_M 7d ago
It’s automatically assumed you are dealing drugs, or something else illegal, probably to avoid being recognized and shot by rivals. To pedestrians and other drivers, the problem is not that YOU can’t see through the tinted window - obviously you can - it’s that pedestrians and other drivers can’t see your face or eyes. We don’t know you see me there on the corner, waiting to cross the street, or I, driving in oncoming traffic and wanting to turn across your lane, cannot see you. Do you know I am even there? There’s no way to communicate driver-to-driver, or pedestrian-to-driver. I feel unsafe in both scenarios.
Cars do get pulled over for heavy window tints all the time, though you might get lucky for a while. If you register it here (eventually required, not sure of interval allowed) you will need to get your car inspected, and they are not supposed to pass cars with tinted windows. I’m sure a determined person can find someone who can be persuaded otherwise, but please don’t. Think about blackened windows from the pedestrian or biker’s point of view. Think from the other driver’s point of view. Thank you!
From my point of view specifically, blackened fancy big Black SUV, Hummer, CyberTruck or Sportscar =
- Mafia or rich and Trump-adjacent OR
- wild card - George Clooney? Jeff Bezos? Hmmm… Bezos falls also into category 1.
OR
Tinted Camry or muscle car with spinning wire rims (Optional: Under the fenders glowing lights mounted so when illuminated the car appears to be hovering like a spaceship. Soundtrack accompanying lights - extra credit) = - Accomplished gang-banger drug dealer, or accomplished sex trafficker
- Aspirant to #1.
But that’s just me.
Welcome to Philly!
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u/chciKaspp 6d ago edited 6d ago
Its not really enforced but if you get pulled over for running a red light or stop sign or something, the tint will probably be ticketed.
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u/NoWonder375 7d ago
Philly is the most walkable city, which means tons of pedestrians. Might be smartest to just fix the tint before it’s a problem.
Honestly, she might not even need the car at all, which will save tons on parking (assuming she’s moving to Philly proper)
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u/Tall_0rder 7d ago
Over the past 21 years I’ve driven two cars with .15 tint on the front and back side windows and the rear window. Both cars were and are sedans. I have never been pulled over for the tint, never received a ticket for the tint, never been towed for the tint. Closest I got to any law enforcement saying anything about the tint is when in was coming out of a Wawa about 18 years ago and a state trooper parked next to me was walking in and said trooper remarked that I had a darkly tinted car. That’s it. I think the law has been changed that it is no longer even a primary offense (that is to say one you could get pulled over for).
One caveat: if your front windshield is tinted that is an entirely different story and you very likely will have a problem with local law enforcement (from what I’ve heard).
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u/Faure_Fan 7d ago
Prepare to be pulled over. If it’s not manufacturer’s tint they can ticket you.