Ceramic vs Carbon Window Tint

The shade percentage is how dark the glass looks. The film construction is how much heat you actually dump before it hits the cab. Those are two different choices.

At Rob’s we install three Solar FX lines: Vintage Carbon, FXtreme2 Ceramic, and FX Plus Ceramic. All three reject about 99% of UV. All three carry a premium lifetime warranty when we put them on. The difference is infrared heat and what you pay for it.

Carbon (Vintage Series Black)

Vintage Carbon is a dyed 2-ply polyester with a true black, non-reflective look. It is built to stay that color instead of going purple the way cheap dyed film used to. UV inhibitors sit in more than one layer of the film.

Choose carbon when you want:

• A factory-black appearance
• UV protection for dash and skin
• The lower film price on the quote

You still get a cooler cab than naked glass. You do not get the infrared numbers of the ceramic lines.

Ceramic (FXtreme2 and FX Plus)

Nano-ceramic film uses ceramic particles to bounce infrared (IR) heat without a metal layer, so it does not fight with radio, GPS, or toll tags.

FXtreme2 is the mid ceramic: up to about 88% IR rejection, 99% UV, signal-safe.

FX Plus is the top ceramic: up to about 96% IR rejection and the highest total solar energy rejection in the lineup we stock. That is the film for people who bake on US-50 or sit in a black truck all summer.

Ceramic costs more. On a full vehicle the gap is usually worth it if heat is the reason you called. If you mainly want the look, carbon does that job.

What does not change

• Package price on window tinting is coverage (fronts, rear, full vehicle), not shade. What that costs is a separate note.
• A ceramic 20% is still a 20% as far as the meter is concerned. Shade is the look. Film is the heat.
• Darker is not automatically cooler. A light ceramic can dump more heat than a dark carbon.

A straight recommendation

Daily driver in western Kansas, you care about A/C load: FXtreme2 or FX Plus.

You want a clean black look and you are watching the invoice: Vintage Carbon.

Farm cab where the operator is in the glass all day: ceramic, same as a truck. See why farm equipment needs tint.

Send the vehicle, the shade you like, and which film you are leaning toward on the quote form. We will price it before you drive in.