Do I need to appear in court for tinted windows?

Look at your ticket and see.

you probably don't need to go to to court. you might just need to show you took the tint off the windows.

You can just pay it.

The rules are different in every state.  But in my state, you just mail them a check for 'bail'.  If you don't show up in court, the bail becomes the fine. Most people do that.

If you think the ticket was wrong, or if you believe there are extenuating circumstances, you can go to court and plead innocent or ask the judge if he can reduce the fine.  But there's no point in going and just pleading guilty.

If everyone who got a traffic ticket showed up to court to contest it, the courts would be totally clogged.  Most people just mail in the money.

On the ticket itself is the phone number of the Court Clerk's office.  Call them and ask about it!

First of all, READ the ticket. It will have all of the information that you require on it.

Secondly, if you signed the ticket (and read what you signed) you'd know that what you signed was an admission of guilt. But you probably have to go to the court to provide evidence you've fixed it.

All of that being said, considering that if you are supposed to appear, and you don't that you could have a warrant issued for arrest, don't you think it would be smarter instead of asking Y/A, to call the court and ask THEM if you have to go?

You should go to court.  Even if you are guilty you could get the fine lessened.  If you don't show up then they can do whatever they want since it'll go uncontested. I also think failure to appear in court would be another violation but I'm not an expert on Virginia law.

You might also want to consider hiring a lawyer.  And lawyer can appear in court in your stead in some places.

Is it a "fix it" ticket?  If so, you probably do.  Otherwise, going to court and pleading guilty might lower your fine.  But that's optional.