Window Tint Chief Applauds UAE's 30% Max Regulations

DUBAI, UAE – ( WWW.AUTOCARMAG.COM ) - November 2005 - A leading window tinting operation has applauded the UAE's decision to enforce the maximum 30 per cent tinting law for car windows.

Vice Chairman and CEO of Kuwait-based Kapico Group, which includes V-KOOL, tinting in its portfolio, Mr. Pradeep K. Handa, recently commended the decision at the opening of V-KOOL's new showroom in Sharjah.

“There's a perception that tint stops heat and harmful rays which is wrong and I think it's a good decision by the Government to limit car window tints to a maximum 30 per cent,” Mr. Handa told Autocar Middle East.

“Heavy tint is a hazard especially at night as it reduces visibility dramatically, but there's another danger in that people are buying cheap tints which can block up to 80 to 90 per cent of the light, yet they do nothing about stopping V or infra-red rays.”

“This may be giving buyers the impression they are being protected against the sun when in fact some – including some with very dark tints – are providing no protection at all,” he said.

The penalty for using illegally dark tint includes a fine and confistication of the car for a week for first offences with confistication of the car for two weeks for second offences.

Police have also stated that drivers must be visible at all times through the tint to allow police to verify suspects.

Mr. Handa was speaking at the opening of V-KOOL's third showroom in UAE – an impressive 4500 square foot operation in Sharjah at the Kuwait roundabout opposite Etisalat and Al Safat Square – following stores in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, which opened in 2001.

V-KOOL is a global leader in what it calls “heat control films” instead of window tint as its film has virtually no tint, yet blocks heat and dangerous UV light.

“The film is only one micron thick, yet it consists of seven layers and while its virtually clear, it cools a car 25 per cent faster and cuts out 99 per cent of UV rays, 94 per cent of infra red light and 55 per cent of solar heat,” Mr. Handa said.

More scientific than making the glass darker, V-KOOL has been developed to block heat instead of light and was initially used by NASA as protection against the flight crew of its space shuttle USS Columbia on re-entry.

Following its development in space, it was adopted for use on the US Air Force's Stealth bombers.

“We figured if NASA can use V-KOOL after all its due diligence then it should be perfect for domestic cars and houses.”

“As recently as 10 to 12 years ago, it was still classified by the US Air Force,” he said.

Being a premium product, V-KOOL is expensive at dhs 3000 for an average car, which would otherwise be around dhs 1500. But it's claimed to cut fuel costs by up to 3 per cent following independent tests by Visteon because of its quicker cooling properties which means less demand on the car's air-conditioning compressor.

V-KOOL began life as a concept in 1993 and in 1999 voted as one of the Top 100 Inventions of the Millinneium by Popular Science magazine along with other revolutionary products like the refrigerator, eyeglasses and the Internet. Today, V-KOOL is fitted to eight million cars globally and is an original equipment option for manufacturers including Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi and Renault.