Rear deck removal/tint shop says unable to tint over rear brake light?

Papachristou

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2003
Location
Memphis, TN
TDI
2012 VW Passat SE DSG
Went to my usual tint shop that did my jetta and audi a4 for me for a tint job on the wife's new passat. she instructed them to tint over the brake light. they were also supposed to do a strip and light windshield tint. Anyway, she picks it up and they were out of the strip material and windshield tint and then he said it was impossible to remove rear deck. I didnt believe it so i called back and he said he wouldnt/couldnt do it. i call BS but has anyone else ran into this issue?

Anyone removed the rear deck? ive thought about just DIY this weekend then take it up to them to do.
 

WesTID

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2012
Location
PA
TDI
12 GTI
Not sure if they removed it, but I saw a new Passat with the rear done over the brake light on a car from NJ last week, it looked really nice! I don't have one yet, but have been eyeing a Passat up for a few weeks now. I will be getting my windows done in the future. Good luck finding a place that can do it.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
It is illegal here to tamper with the lighting, so they won't do it here because it won't pass inspection. I guess it really doesn't make that much difference, I don't know.
 

Papachristou

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2003
Location
Memphis, TN
TDI
2012 VW Passat SE DSG
yeah, it is illegal to do strips and windshield tint too but they do it. it just looks so much cleaner. guess ill either have to pay another shop to redo the rear but they will probably charge more since they didnt do the rest of it or take off the rear deck myself then have the shop redo the tint for free (which he said he would do)

it has some wrinkles/gaps so he has to redo it either way.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Yeah, I dunno. I always have to pay someone to REMOVE the darn stuff on used cars I buy, LOL.
 

Nebelwerfer

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2012
Location
Canuckistan
TDI
2012 Passat TDI
Mine was done and the tail light is still visible. Looks good too.

Not sure if he removed the deck or not though.

Regards
 

TD Einspritzer

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 18, 2012
Location
South Florida
TDI
2012 Passat TDI SE
Had mine done without any issues. Legal in Florida. Do not believe that they removed the rear deck. Sorry, no tip on how to remove it.
 

LokiWolf

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 21, 2008
Location
Richmond, VA
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL
I love tint, but I don't understand anybody that wants to decrease the light output of the brake light. I also find it funny that the same people who want to tint the brake lights and taillights want to increase their headlight output.

Mine has the cutout for the brake light and looks good. I want my Brake lights as bright as possible, so someone doesn't reared me, in bad visibility conditions. In addition it is illegal in VA.

Hope you get it how you like it though, to each his own...

-Loki


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 

IRISHpride

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 20, 2008
Location
somerset KY
TDI
2015 Golf
my tint shop removed my door panels and broke a lot of clips. they also didn't remove the top 1/4 turn bolt from the front door panels and just pulled them. needless to say looks like they will be replacing door panels too.

oh my 2013 had .4 miles on it, and my 2012 had about 50 miles. both were bought new this past saturday...
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
Tint shop removed your door panels and "rear deck thing" to tint your windows? Were they looking for drugs or something?
I don't get it...

The 3rd brake light is not sealed to the window. The gap between it and the glass is the same as all the way across the rear deck. A good experienced window tint guy can wet the glass and slide the tint into place w/o removing the deck. Whether or not you want your 3rd brake light tinted makes no difference.

Removing door panels? What's that all about?
 
Last edited:

IRISHpride

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 20, 2008
Location
somerset KY
TDI
2015 Golf
Tint shop removed your door panels and "rear deck thing" to tint your windows? Were they looking for drugs or something?
I don't get it...
i don't get it either. But nonetheless I ordered 60 door clips (enough for 2 cars). I'll make my own thread later with pictures.
 

no-blue-screen

TDI Nut
Joined
Feb 9, 2006
Location
Maryland
TDI
TDI
here in MD you can tint the windshield. Its called a 'visor strip' and state law dictates how many inches they can come down with it. I think it is 6" here.

Removed the door panels???? For what? That sounds crazy to me.
 
Last edited:

APT

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2012
Location
Metro Detroit
TDI
2012 Passat SEL
My rear window tint (15%) covers the 3rd brake light. I did not instruct the installer one way or the other. It looks good, IMHO.
 

Turtherlips

Active member
Joined
Aug 30, 2009
Location
Boston
TDI
2012 Passat TDI SE w/ Nav
The tint shop I went to had no problem tinting the whole back window without removing the rear deck. The brake light is covered, but it's still very bright. No issues for me:
 

Blue_Hen_TDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 23, 2005
Location
Slower, DE
TDI
owned: 96 B4V, 06 Golf, 12 NMS, 15 GSW
I wish we could have tinted our Passat like that, but I didn't want to risk a failed inspection :(

-J
So what do they do in VA, just have the computer do a cutout for the rear brake light?

Still deciding if I want to tint and how dark I want to go with a light blue car. Hmm...
 

skinnyb

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 19, 2009
Location
Western, NC
TDI
2013 JSW TDI
My tint guy just freehand cut around the light. It isn't absolutely perfect but you have to look really close to see any issue. For the price I couldn't beat it.
 

LokiWolf

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 21, 2008
Location
Richmond, VA
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL
So what do they do in VA, just have the computer do a cutout for the rear brake light?

Still deciding if I want to tint and how dark I want to go with a light blue car. Hmm...
Yes, the shop that did mine, the computer cut it that way, with the notch out for the brake light.

-Loki

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 

eprater1

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Location
Spartanburg SC
TDI
2012 Jetta TDI w/DSG(transmission failed w/800 miles on it) 2012 Passat SE w/Sunroof -65k traded in on 2013 Passat TDI SE w/Sunroof 2006 Ford F350 on 37's, few things deleted, little methanol injection, few things modded, few more filters added :)
To remove the rear deck take out the holders behind the top of the seats, then remove the side pieces(pop right out) then it should come out if I remember right.
 

socalz71

New member
Joined
Jul 22, 2012
Location
Inland Empire
TDI
2012 SE Auto Midnight Blue
to tint the rear, like most already stated, you do not have to remove the rear deck. Plenty of room to wet and slide the tint and room to squeegee with a little push. If you need a cut out, freehand cut or computer. I watched mine get tinted (all side windows and rear) with clear bra (paint protection) 1/3 hood, fenders, lights, bumpers, mirrors and rear trunk lip strip, so not to scratch the bumper cover when removing things from the trunk in 3 hours and looks great.
 

lopergl

New member
Joined
Jun 18, 2012
Location
Northeast Florida
TDI
2012 Passat TDI SE Sunroof
The shop that did mine did not have to remove the deck lid and tinted over the high mount brake light, surprisingly it did not affect the brightness. They did a nice job.
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
The shop that did mine did not have to remove the deck lid and tinted over the high mount brake light, surprisingly it did not affect the brightness. They did a nice job.
There's NO WAY it did NOT affect the brightness. It may be plenty bright to you, but your insurance company may feel differently if you're involved in an accident...just sayin'...
 
Top