Restoring headlights

pudzey101

Hi has anyone any tips on how to clean up the headlights?

my tegs lights are gone a bit dull/yellowish over the years from previous owners

any tips for me to get them looking like new ?

colm_mcm

T-cut/compound/toothpaste.

pudzey101

colm_mcm wrote: »

T-cut/compound/toothpaste.

toothpaste yeah heard that works alright , but does it ?

cgarrad

yeah, works well.

pudzey101

cgarrad wrote: »

yeah, works well.

Ill give it a go tomorrow ha ha hows it work must be abrasive o something is it ::)

blade1

Brasso

pudzey101

blade1 wrote: »

Brasso

Does that really work?

colm_mcm

pudzey101 wrote: »

Does that really work?

Yes.

So does Mustard (the grainy type)

pudzey101

colm_mcm wrote: »

Yes.

So does Mustard (the grainy type)

jesus im learning all sorts tonight haha ill give the toothpaste a go tomorrow think thats the best option on the cheap isint it ?

Lazybones

On my 2002 Passat which had badly discoloured headlights I tried tothpaste it only made a very slight difference.

Depending on the state of the headlamps you may have to use other methods.

what worked best for me was sanding by hand with 2500 grit wet/dry sandpaper (was majorly fearful of doing this - thought I was going to make a mess of the lights!)

I used masking tape to protect the paintwork. Use lots of water (I had purchased a sprayer bottle in Aldi which proved very useful), as you sand you will get a milky residue as the failed protective layer on the lamps come off (they will look worse before they get better).


Wipe the lamps dry with a cloth after sanding.


Next I used Meguiars Ultimate Compound which gave the new look back to the lamps.


Finally I polished both lamps with Simoniz wax to act as a protection layer.

Gave a crystal clean look but does take a fair bit of elbow grease.

There are headlamp cleaning kits from 3M with attachments that you can put on a drill.

The method that works best for you will depend on how badly degraded your lamps are.

Just my experience for what it's worth.

Now I am building up my courage to do some wet sanding on my paintwork to fix some scratches........... maybe next weekend....maybe :-)

peejay01

Lazybones wrote: »

On my 2002 Passat which had badly discoloured headlights I tried tothpaste it only made a very slight difference.

Depending on the state of the headlamps you may have to use other methods.

what worked best for me was sanding by hand with 2500 grit wet/dry sandpaper (was majorly fearful of doing this - thought I was going to make a mess of the lights!)

I used masking tape to protect the paintwork. Use lots of water (I had purchased a sprayer bottle in Aldi which proved very useful), as you sand you will get a milky residue as the failed protective layer on the lamps come off (they will look worse before they get better).


Wipe the lamps dry with a cloth after sanding.


Next I used Meguiars Ultimate Compound which gave the new look back to the lamps.


Finally I polished both lamps with Simoniz wax to act as a protection layer.

Gave a crystal clean look but does take a fair bit of elbow grease.

There are headlamp cleaning kits from 3M with attachments that you can put on a drill.

The method that works best for you will depend on how badly degraded your lamps are.

Just my experience for what it's worth.

Now I am building up my courage to do some wet sanding on my paintwork to fix some scratches........... maybe next weekend....maybe :-)

I recently used one of the 3M kits that attach to the drill. They are really good but you may need to depending on the size of your headlights. I could have done with two for my lights as there were a few imperfections at the end.

peejay01

First pic was before. This is after

Lazybones

Nice work peejay01...... always satisfying to see a job well done, especially when you have done it yourself!

Plus you always have the skills if the works needs to be done again in the future.

pudzey101

are those the same lights PJ ? haha good job well worth the time and effort , fair play ~:D

dredg

Do you seal the lights with anything after? My understanding is that headlights have a UV resistant coating and when that goes the plastic starts to oxidise. By restoring them you've stripped off the oxidation and any protection, which means they'll just oxidise again but faster.

Lazybones

I used Simoniz wax as a protective layer..... I can always keeps this topped up as needs be.

_Kaiser_

So the headlights on my A6 are a little cloudy - it's not bad but that's why I want to do something now before it becomes a bigger job.

A search online suggests everything from toothpaste to vinegar to metal polish as possible home solutions.

Has anyone any recommendations from stuff they've successfully used themselves?

Cheers!

joujoujou

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057084549

peejay01

Cheers lads. Yeh was something I had been meaning to do for a while. Well worth the hours spent on it.

I never considered the uv protective layer being stripped away but am hoping that some sealant and wax will protect it!?

Chimaera

I use Meguiars PlastX every time I wash the car. It's a polish designed especially for plastics andit seems to do a good job on protecting them in between.

JohnBoy26

Kaiser2000 wrote: »

So the headlights on my A6 are a little cloudy - it's not bad but that's why I want to do something now before it becomes a bigger job.

A search online suggests everything from toothpaste to vinegar to metal polish as possible home solutions.

Has anyone any recommendations from stuff they've successfully used themselves?

Cheers!

Cutting compound has worked well for me. In my experience it's more effective than toothpaste and you don't have to use as much elbow grease.

_Kaiser_

JohnBoy26 wrote: »

Cutting compound has worked well for me. In my experience it's more effective than toothpaste and you don't have to use as much elbow grease.

Cheers.. something like this you mean?

biko

I've tried several things, incl Brasso and toothpaste and in my view sanding is best to prevent yellowing after a while again.
Then use a cutting compound and lastly seal with something UV-protecting.
It depends on the state of them really. Pics would help.
Are the headlights rough to the touch or smooth?

pudzey101

So i gave the headlights a go with toothpaste today only got one up shining like new , other is a tad bit hazey/yellowish

off to paint the windshield wipers tomorrow , there abit rusted

Zoney

Looking to do this job myself too, and that's the first thing I noticed on a product I was thinking of buying "not suitable for treated or coated plastic" (or somesuch). So I held off on it. Sounds like there's little option but to remove the original coating, but are there any suggestions of something that's easy to apply as replacement protection, and more permanent than wax?

Think I was looking at a Meguiars product alright, it showed a round brush pad on the front.

biko

Most things work short-term, toothpaste included.
In my mind best is very fine grit sandpaper and polish.

Sidewayslarry

Usually if the headlights are gone 'yellow' and the smooth feel is gone off the light, the protective layer on the plastic will already have worn off the light so by sanding/buffing the light you will not make it any worse. The downside is that they will go 'yellow' again pretty quickly.

One great long term solution (12 months +) is to use G-techniq G1 on them which has built in UV protection. Works a treat

Zoney

biko wrote: »

Most things work short-term, toothpaste included.
In my mind best is very fine grit sandpaper and polish.

What do you use for polish?

MetzgerMeister

Sidewayslarry wrote: »

Usually if the headlights are gone 'yellow' and the smooth feel is gone off the light, the protective layer on the plastic will already have worn off the light so by sanding/buffing the light you will not make it any worse. The downside is that they will go 'yellow' again pretty quickly.

One great long term solution (12 months +) is to use G-techniq G1 on them which has built in UV protection. Works a treat

biko

Zoney wrote: »

What do you use for polish?

Some rubbing compound. Then car wax but there is speciality products.
You can also use clear plastic film.

_Kaiser_

biko wrote: »

I've tried several things, incl Brasso and toothpaste and in my view sanding is best to prevent yellowing after a while again.
Then use a cutting compound and lastly seal with something UV-protecting.
It depends on the state of them really. Pics would help.
Are the headlights rough to the touch or smooth?

Sorry for the delay coming back to this.. been a busy few weeks

So today, seeing as I'd also hoovered and cleaned the car I tried going at these headlights with a solution I got in a Motor Factors and after minimal/no improvement I tried the toothpaste option, and a glass/monitor cleaner I have that works wonders on other things.

Not in this case though.. have a look:





As you can see the left side is badly in need of something but the right side has a few spots developing too. Any solution must be doable in a car parking space outside an apartment (:() or preferably I'd even bring her somewhere to get it done (as long as it wasn't crazy money).

Or am I looking at a new headlight do ye reckon?