XPEL CS, XR, or XR+

I got XPEL PRIME XR+ full vehicle and windshield. Not roof but included back window. Very happy with it. Bought a shade for roof. $1,100 total. He’s wrong about the differences: Infrared Rejection: XR up to 85%. XR+ up to 99%. Total Solar Energy Rejection (TSER): XR around 49% at 70% VLT. XR+ up to 60% at 70% VLT. Visibility/Clarity: XR Good light transmission; may have a subtle blue hue in lighter shades (e.g., 35-70% VLT), XR+ Enhanced clarity and light access for the same tint percentage; less color distortion, better night driving. Heat Rejection in Practice: XR Reduces BTUs by ~70% (per installer tests); comfortable for daily use. XR+ Reduces BTUs by 90%+; users report 5-10°F cooler interiors in direct sunlight.

What you want is XR+ and whoever told you that was a complete idiot. XR+ provides superior heat rejection without needing to be darkened meaning it should at the very least be used for both the windshield and the glass roof. As for IR properties not helping unless it's the roof, last time I checked the sun hits more than the roof of the car.

That’s what I was thinking! The interior temp isn’t just controlled by the roof. Thank you

The glass roof is already tinted and there's a lot of reports of cracking from getting it re-tinted so I would always advise people to avoid re-tinting the glass roof.

That’s exactly why I didn’t want to tint the roof. And I don’t like the hard line so didn’t want to do just the cut out. But the guy made it seem like I’m crazy to do just XR+ for sides and windshield

Thank you!! This is perfectly thorough. I appreciate your time walking me through this. How do you feel about the tent on just the back window? I’ve never really been a fan of the harsh line.

While the factory tinting on the glass roof provides good UV protection, it offers mediocre IR rejection at best. Now, how critical that is to you really depends on WHERE you live and what the environment is like. I live in TX and if I didn't tint it then I would fry like an ant under a magnifying glass. As for cracked glass roofs, it has never happened to me or anyone I know who has owned a Tesla and tinted their roofs. Where I work, that is a LOT of Teslas with tinted roofs. I won't deny there are people who have cracked roofs, but a couple of things on that topic: 1. How do you know it was actually the tinting that caused it? Keep in mind, there were folks (including some Tesla service reps) who confidently but erroneously blamed tinting for being the reason that the light strips in the new refresh models cracking as well. 2. The thing to remember about these sort of reporting is that people who share experiences are typically the ones who had a negative experience. People who have positive experiences with tinting their roof aren't usually jumping online to share them. Tinting the roof is a very common thing to do for Tesla owners and in the grand scheme of things, even if it was caused by tinting, the amount of people with cracked roofs are only a handful in comparison.

No problem. It is undetectable on my back window. Plus with the roof shades, it makes it even more so.

Would it be crazy to get XR+ on all windows but the roof and back glass?

Does the rear window tint for Model 3 include the roof portion over rear pax?

Yeah. All one piece

No. Do what you want to do. You can always add the back window later. Or even the roof. I’ve considered adding the roof. It still can get hot even with the roof shade and the sun still shines through. I added a large piece of newsprint (from a large newsprint roll) between the roof shade and glass to block more of the sun, which does a pretty good job.

After experimenting with two different roof shades, even adding thermal insulation on top of a shade, I came to this layman conclusion: The roof does a good job of absorbing the sun's heat, keeping it from heating up your head and the inside of the car. But since the glass gets really hot from absorbing the heat, it has to send that heat somewhere, down is one of those directions, it's now a radiant heater. Somewhat like a black metal car roof with nothing underneath, it stops the sun, but heats up itself. Tint, even ceramic, is either absorbing, or sending more of the sun's heat back through the glass, which heats the glass further, probably why the advice not to use tint on the roof. So with new advanced reflecting glass, or adding thick heat insulation covers, they hopefully can cut down a significant amount of the radiated heat into the car. In the meantime enjoy the low angle of the sun right now, it will be back soon! :p

Thank you! This makes sense to not tint it. I’ve read that people see cracks due to that absorption factor that you noted.

That’s awesome. I appreciate the time you took for the advice!

Yeah they're dead wrong about not going XR+ for what you're looking for. We tint Tesla's all the time and XR+ will make the largest difference in heat rejection, even at 70% you will feel a tremendous difference. So you could put 70% on the roof without darkening it and should feel the difference- as for your worry of the roof cracking we've done hundreds of Tesla's and never seen that happen.

Thank you! I appreciate this a lot. Do you see a percentage on the roof that works without a noticeable darkening of the roof from the interior view(outside of 70%)?

Outside as in darker? The lightest would be 70%, anything from there to 55% will work without darkening it too much. Just becomes preference at that point. If you're in the SoCal Inland Empire area come stop by and we can show you some samples, if not see if the shop you're working with will do that with you

Much appreciated!

I love in TX and have used XR+ on both my 2022 RWD and my 2025 AWD. Neither have cracked. I know roughly 50+ Tesla drivers at my workplace that tinted their roof with either XR+ or Stratos and none of them have cracked. Contrary to Reddit FUD, it is NOT the act of tinting that causes thermal fracture, but uneven heating. A ligher, properly applied tint mitigates that. At the end of the day though, it's up to you.

Thank you