Overall summary: The new tint is significantly better than the aftermarket tint that came with the car and has reduced interior temps drastically. I highly recommend it to any Aston Martin owner.

For the full writeup: (copy & paste)
http://www.vantagev8.com/reviews.htm

 

Hey 007, do you have any pics showing your tint? I'm thinking of tinting my windows with the ceramic film and would like to see what the 30% tint looks like. Thanks.

 

Here are a couple low res pictures of Formula 1 ceramic 30% tint.

I will upload some better ones once I shrink the file size.

I agree you get what you pay for. They are much cooler. But, I disagree that they will last the life of the car. I just had my car redone after 3 years. There were some scratches and bubbles appearing. They replaced it all no questions asked. That is the best part, they stand behind their work with a warranty that is honored at any Formula 1 backed shop.

 

So you only drive at night or in the shade? Why would you need to have window tint with good heat rejection in the first place?

 

so your car DOES go out in the sun. you just don't leave it out in the sun. haha i was confused too when you commented ^^^ there

 

There is a simulator on the Formula One web site that enables you to see what the various products and tint levels would look like on a car.

http://formulaone.com/en/FilmViewer.aspx

 

Does it really make that big of a difference considering the largest window of the car (i.e., the windshield) is not tinted? I've always thought that the biggest problem with heat in the summer is the sun baking the dash, which can store/release lots of heat for an extended period of time. I think this is the main reason why a parked car typically takes so long to cool off in the summer. It's like the AC and a heater are on at the same time, at least until the dash cools off. Regardless, I'll be using a sun screen when I park.

 

Speaking of which. Have you sourced a nice sun screen? I don't like those roll-up flimsy ones. I prefer the ones that fold in several 6in or so segments accordion style made out of a stiffer quality material. I haven't been able to find one custom cut for the Vantage yet, though.

 

No, I have a crap one. It was supposed to be "custom made" for the Vantage, but its height dimension is too small. That said, I can jam it between the dash and the windshield and it stays put, so I think it's fine. I just want to keep the sun off of the dash. I roll it up and stow it on the rear shelf behind the seats.

Autosport offers the fold-up type you describe and they appear to be able to make one to fit the Vantage:

http://www.autosportcatalog.com/reflector-sunshade.cfm

 

Had the Formula One ceramic tint applied yesterday. Looks pretty good. I went with the Pinnacle 35, which means the film will transmit about 35% of incident light. The "solar energy rejection" of the film is 54%.

The tint appears lighter in real life as compared to the posted pics (excuse the crap iPhone photos). Inside the cabin the difference is very subtle. My V8 had much darker tint, which bothered me on partly sunny days (a bit too dark for sunglasses, but still too bright without sunglasses when looking through the windshield). The Pinnacle series is available in 5%, 15%, 30%, 35%, 40%, and 50%, so my shade is about in the middle.

Thanks to 007 for making me aware of ceramic tint and Formula One!

 

Very nice.

Does the tint film go all the way to the edge of the glass on the doors?

They always used to leave a gap so the film wouldn't peel when it went into the door's window frame. Since our doors don't have frames, I wonder if they still do this. They always recommended not rolling your windows down for the first 3 days to allow the film to adhere. However, our cars have that automatic window roll up/down when you close/open the door to form a tighter seal. Does this cause a problem?

 

They did a great job. The tint goes right to the edge. I can't see any border of bare window. I'll take a picture to show that and to give everyone a better idea of how dark the tint is. When you look at the windows with a dark-colored interior as a backdrop, the tint can look darker than it is.

I was told not to roll down the windows (it's funny we still say "roll" down the windows, right?) for 3-5 days. I asked about the small automatic adjustment the windows make when you open/close the door and they said that it's not a problem. So far it hasn't been.

 

Just so we're all on the same page, the term you guys are referring to is "Window Indexing".