I need help with my headlights. they appear dull and there's a kind of film starting to peel off on the edges... this is worrying me...

i looked into Meguiars heavy duty headlight restoration kit, and it seems good. The kit include the sanding buff and the polishing compound, etc... what i'm asking is, does anybody have experience using this? does it really can restore my headlights?

 

I just used their Plastix compound and my orbital buffer. Worked really well and cleaned them up real nice

 

The kit includes Plastix compound. It works wonderfully. You don't want to work them too hard because you can remove protective UV layer that prevents your lenses from getting all yellow and gross. Plastix is great and the kit is wonderful. You are guaranteed quality with any Meg's product.

That film peeling off might be the UV film. One idea to preserve your lenses if you notice the UV film already coming off is to hit your headlights with a coat or two of clear. That way the next time your headlights start getting funky you're just buffing away at the clear coat and not into the UV protective layer.

 

my headlights are already hazy.. they're not clear anymore... i wonder if it'll be better if i just sand down the headlights and buffing them and putting on some protection layer on them, like the meg's kit suggested?

i tried reading about this in some other thread, and they also do the same thing, sand down, compound the headlight and polish it... it'll return to new... but they didn't use meg's, instead they use turtle compound wax and meg's plastic polish for finishing touch...

maybe i'll just try this... my headlights are already messed up anyway...

 

ok... i tried the megs headlight restoration kit... and it creates new problem...

i wet-sanded down the headlight with 1000 grit, followed by a 3000 grit. then i use plastx and buffed them so they're clear again. but i noticed that it's still a bit hazy, but from the inside... before i sanded them down, they're not hazy. they're just a bit yellow and the protective film starts peeling off. but they're still clear...

now i'm not sure what to do. since the haze appears from the inside, can anybody gives me suggestion?

 

Use toothpaste. Put on like wax and wipe off. Its a cheap way to restore the headlights.

 

seriously?

 

K, toothpaste works, just don't last very long. Used it first on my old minivan. Then when the yellowing came back, I bought the 3M restoration kit and changed the OEM bulbs to Silverstars. The combination made a big improvement. The yellow haze didn't come back... well not yet anyway... Here are the links:

3M Headlight Restoration Kit

Toothpaste Headlight Restoration

There's more. Do a YouTube search on headlight restoration.

 

If you have scratchX, try that as well. It's less abrasive than PlastX. You can always step up to the headlight kit containing PlastX if it's not good enough.

 

ppl need to look into my older post... i've tried the headlight restoration kit.... the outside is nice and clean again, but now the INSIDE of the headlamp is hazy... The inside was not hazy BEFORE i sanded the headlight and buff it with palstx... i have no idea what i should do now... try to buff it again? or take it apart and redo the inside? *sigh*

 

Sorry K. I did look at your posts... Meguiars is what you said you used, not 3M if that makes a difference. Don't know why the inside would be hazy if you just worked on the outside. Just sharing my experience hoping it'll help.

 

Sorry Subie, I misunderstood ur post. But that is exactly why i've been scratching my head... How in the world can the inside get hazy? Are my eyes deceiving me? i am now afraid of doing it all over again and resulting in even more haze... darn it...

 

K, all I can think of is maybe the haze just looks like its inside. Maybe they are just residue swirl marks when you buffed it. Maybe worth a closer look when wet then when dry. Did it get wet inside when you were working on it?

Second guess is maybe you didn't get all the haze off the first time.

Did you check out the video links I posted? Good luck bro...

 

the inside was not wet when i was working... i couldn't pinpoint the exact time it gets hazy, since sanding it means it was frosted looking all over.. regarding the haze, i looked intently, minutely, closely.. from the side, so i can distinguish the outside of the plastic from the inside.... and it really looked like the inside is hazy.... i can be wrong though... light refraction do funny things.. i wonder whether i should try sanding them down again, or just start by buffing....

and not yet, i cannot open the vid links. office policies... i'll look at it when i'm @ home... tks for your help Subie

 

Yeah check out the 3M video when you can. Maybe missed a step or not enough of a step... Good luck!

 

Could be general discoloration in the plastic. Gotta think the UV effects more than the outer surface.

Last spring I ran into this guy in Florida that was 'repairing' headlights door to door @ $75 a pop. Wet sanding, polyurethane spray and collect the money. This guy was actually ringing door bells... and getting work. Repair seemed to work, though the one I saw him working on was still slightly discolored [old and sitting in the FL sun too long].

 

hmm... you could have a bad seal that water somehow leaked into when you were wet sanding. bake them open, remove the moisture, then reseal -- this is a good opportunity to black out your headlight housings if you're down with that look.

i remember seeing a DIY somewhere on fitfreak, just search.

 

ok i give up... i've tried redoing the whole thing again, and nothing works... it still looks hazy from the inside... my only option now is opening the headlight and try redoing them from the inside... and if that doesn't clear it up, i'm going to buy a new one... i kinda curse my own stupidity on why don't i just swap the headlights with new one from the start instead of trying to fix this damn thing...

 

Hey there K! Maaannnn, still stuck on the hazy headlights? Just get some new ones (maybe upgrade to HIDs) then put clear armor film on so it won't fade out... Good to see you post up again! Good luck!

 

Hey Subie.. unfortunately yea... been to a week long vacation with wifey, kids, cousins, and nephew.. taking whole day dip in the pool and slides, games with the kids... fun activity... thanks god for my country's one week long national holiday...

anyway, I am on HID with projectors and stuff... you can get a sneak preview of my car here: https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/fit-...thread-73.html. I seldom take any decent pics of my car. I was thinking to buy a new OEM headlights, and taking the clear plastic to replace the ones i had on... My headlight housing is very different than OEM ones..