W212 Privacy glass removal

[hawk20]

Feck the dog, your car would look rubbish. It's just a dog, the cars gotta look right.

Yes but it doesn't look right to everyone as a read of the posts on this thread clearly shows. Some like privacy glass (I do) and some don't (I used not to). Thank goodness for freedom of choice.

There is no doubt that sitting in the back, looking out through tinted galss is darker than normal. It is like wearing sunglasses and there are many days in the UK when many would not choose to wear sunglasses. By definition the view out is more normal with clearer glass.

Many cars,especially black ones, do look a bit 19 year old in a souped up Astra. But some like exactly that look.

I now like tints because they keep the car cooler which with two dogs is a useful benefit. They also suit the ML IMO. And the added security, where people can't see what's in the back, is nice too.

 

[219]

Why would you want to remove such a nice feature. With out exception cars look better with it, and it keeps the temp cooler in the back of the cabin?

I think it is a matter of opinion and clearly I am not alone in disliking it .

For me so called 'privacy glass' is associated with the 'bling' brigade and there is nothing more tacky looking than these cars with standard glass at the front and dense black from the B pillars aft . To me , the whole thing smacks of 'gangsta rappers , Z list 'celebrities' , mafia staff cars and those whose taste is akin to smothering everything they eat in tomato ketchup ; not something I would wish to associate myself with .

To me , and I am sure many others , a Mercedes-Benz should be about understated elegance and this glass , along with accessories such as non original 'Carlos Fandango widewheels' and silly exhaust systems are simply vulgar .

The cars with lasting value tend to be those that are factory original and spared the 'wrong' accessories . Few discerning buyers will want something that looks like it has featured on 'pimp my ride' .

 

[219]

Many also prefer the added security given by thieves not being able to see what is in the car at night.

That's what the load area cover is for . Apart from the child seat , and an umbrella which lives behind the rear headrests , nothing is left on display in my car when it is unoccupied .

 

[st4]

That's what the load area cover is for . Apart from the child seat , and an umbrella which lives behind the rear headrests , nothing is left on display in my car when it is unoccupied .

I've got film tints, the laminate makes it harder for the glass to be broken.

My only regret is the law as I could have my windscreen and side windows done. The car would look amazing and I can see out the back fine.

 

[219]

Thanks for all the responses. As I'm not keen on privacy glass on saloons, and as it can't be removed, I'm going to steer clear of cars with it fitted. I think it looks a bit pimp-ish, and I'm too old for that! If it wasn't so dark, or could be matched to the front side windows it wouldn't be so bad.

That last point , for me , is significant .

Sorry , but Steve's picture illustrates it perfectly : having the glass one colour ahead of the B pillar , and another behind just makes the car look bodged - a bit like someone who replaces a door or a body panel then doesn't bother having it painted to match the rest of the car .

I did once see a black 600 (W100) which had completely blacked out glass everywhere ( even the front windscreen ) , a proper Mafia staff car , which did carry it off well , but the law was different back when it was built and the typical dictator/head of state type owner tended to be above the law anyway .

 

[219]

Have you ever been in a car with privacy glass? It doesn't make it dark unless some knob has put limo tint on it and even then it's only like having sunglasses on. It looks dark from the outside because you're looking through two layers of it.

The much overlooked benefit of decent privacy glass and films, and why I like it, is because it massively reduces the UV.

I have been in such cars and , while you can indeed see out of them without difficulty in daylight , there is no doubt that outward vision is impaired after dark - hence the illegality of having the front glass darkened due to the very real danger of not seeing pedestrians , cyclists or unlit objects on the road at night .

Even 'normal' tinted glass does darken the interior somewhat , compared to older cars which have clear , untinted , glass . Sadly , tinted glass is viewed as a luxury item these days and clear glass is not even offered as an option , despite the improved vision it offers .

 

[219]

No problem with personal preference but never heard such rubbish, factory tints aren't dark, dank or any of the other of the descriptions used especially the difficulty for the dog seeing out. In fact it's only usually when you open the door when you realise how much glare they're cutting out, which is another good thing. Yes, it's darker but only very marginally.

It makes a big difference at night .

 

[kit17]

I'm not keen on tints either, I sat in the back of my mates RR Sport with factory fitted Tints and its really dark, not my cup of tea at all. Thats one of the things I love about the Pano roof is the amount of light it lets in, really lifts the interior.
However I can see the benefit of cutting out a bit of glare in the summer months if you've got children, although I find any bad glare always seems to come through the front windscreen anyway, I don't think you need to worry about UV rays as all windows have UV protection anyway.

 

[219]

There do seem to be more people who are not keen on dark glass than those in favour , even just amongst those who have posted on this thread .

It is probably fair to say that Mercedes owners in general tend to be a fairly conservative lot and that members of a forum such as this one , being more car enthusiast oriented than the general population , would probably have a higher proportion in favour of things like tints than those elsewhere .

I suspect that tints / privacy glass are only favoured by a small minority of the public at large and may significantly devalue vehicles fitted with them - especially if replacement panes are more difficult or expensive to source as cars get older .

 

[MrVix]

Imo it looks cheap and nasty!! However what makes me chuckle is the lengths people go to in pampering their kids. I am sure the next generation will be a bunch of pansys. My boy used to sit in the back of a cerbera and he had to like it and as a lad i was regularly carried in the boot!!

 

[davidjpowell]

Have you ever been in a car with privacy glass? It doesn't make it dark unless some knob has put limo tint on it and even then it's only like having sunglasses on. It looks dark from the outside because you're looking through two layers of it.

The much overlooked benefit of decent privacy glass and films, and why I like it, is because it massively reduces the UV.

Yes. I didn't buy it!