For those with hazy headlights. See link below with detailed article on refurbishing them back to new.

http://www.audiworld.com/tech/ext68.shtml

Jim

 

So I will be honest, I tried a $9 USD kit from auto zone today made by turtle wax and took my time with it, and my headlights went from hazy to new in about 30 minutes. It was just one kit and it did everything that this link shows, just for cheaper. I would really recommend it. In fact, i did practically every single car that I could get my hands on with hazy headlights.

 

I've heard (no personal experience) that the kits don't really protect the lenses from UV exposure and the fogginess will soon return.

True?

 

3-6 months or so, Mikey. Not sure how long the $125 UV protection extends that. OEM makes it what? 3-6 yrs? So I would guess no better than that....maybe less.

 

I spent the time with mine and used a Snap On 3 inch high speed air buffer. I polished off ALL of the hard coat on the lenses. They came out water clear. I now do a quick buff once a year. They look perfect.

 

Once you get the lenses clear again, try putting a coat of wax over the lenses and then you will need to update the wax every 6 months or so. But the wax will have the UV protection built into it.

 

Like thermo said, waxing will protect it from further uv damage. It seemed like the turtle wax kit took this into account because it had some sort of a wipe which to me seemed like some sort of a wax which you put on and then leave for around 24hrs to "cure." When i sanded my headlights like the kit told me to, they looked better, but not perfect. Then I put the wipe on and they looked 95% new which is why i think that this wipe is a sealer/wax all in one. Either way, for 9 bucks, I think it can't be beat because even if the UV damage returns, you can just re-use the kit to make your headlights look new again.

 

I have an update on headlight restoration. The kits work well, but after a little bit, they get hazy again. I've actually started to do headlight restorations as a side job now because I have discovered a secret weapon to seal the headlights after you're done. It's kinda weird, but it works reaaaaaally well and lasts many years. So here it is... After you have wet sanded the headlight down, dip the side of a shop towel in a 1:1 mixture of helmsman spar glossy urethane and mineral spirits. Works like a freaking charm and took me a little bit to figure out, but I was blown away at how will this works!

 

Just did my headlights tonight with the 3M kit. One picture is the 50% and the other is them both done. Got the kit for $22 and its worth every penny as you can see. Plus if you spray the lenses and the sanding pads down with water frequently they won't get clogged. I used one pad for each grit and I did all four lights.

 

Hi there,
This weekend I thought I would give the headlamp fix a go.. I dont have the wipes mentioned above so thought I would go for t-cutting till clear and then wax over the surface.. my headlamps came up really clear.. a few patches of haziness at very edges didnt want to clear but they still look like new! Many thanks for that

 

I've found that a simple wipe with Autoglymm vinyl and rubber protector gives a good result. However, I haven't tried t on really hazy headlights.

 

Hi Steve, What is T-cutting exactly?

 

Hey there......T Cut is actually a product name, but refers to a cutting compound, please see link below for more info.....

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct..._SS7jjj-IQP7AA

 

It is a mildly abrasive liquid in the UK called t-cut (sold in Halfords etc.) it is used for cutting paint back to get rid of blemishes and so on.. on paintwork you would use it on a scrach or scuff then reapply wax polish...
Hope this helps.. but it did the trick on the lights, then just waxed over new shiny clear surface :-)

 

Thanks for the clarification! Clearing up the headlights does improve the look of the car quite a bit, but they get foggy again after 9mos to a year. I used an electric drill with a buffing wheel attachment and some "Headlight Restore" goop I found at the auto parts store. It did an OK job, nothing spectacular. I guess to get them to look new you need to use several grits going finer and finer.

Something my gf said to me the other day is that she saw a beautiful Jag and she mentioned that the headlights looked like white diamonds! I think that's the look we're going for here

 

patterson, stop by your local auto paint store and see if they carry some stuff called "Perfect-It" by 3M.

It is a little on the pricy side, but it will do wonders to your headlights. A little bit of that, a terry cloth and about a minute of elbow grease per headlight and you will be amazed.

Then you can use a little bit of wax to put a really nice polish on the headlights. Even if you have to do it once a year, you will like what this stuff does.

Besides, when you are done with the headlights, you can turn around and use this same product on the paint, chrome, and glass of the car. It works pretty much on everything. It will bring the chrome back to almost new, the small swirls and whatnot in the paint will disappear, even the haze in the glass can be removed (if you use some 0000 steel wool, yes, 0000 steel wool on the glass along with the Perfect It).

The only thing I will caution you on is if you use the Perfect It with a power buffer, if you leave the tool in 1 spot too long or you run over the sharp edge of the body with too much pressure, you can hurt the paint.

But, if you are doing things by hand, no fear. Go to town. My kitty looks pretty after a treatment with the Perfect It and a good waxing. I recommend the Stage 2 product.

If you have very minor scratching and whatnot, then Stage 3 may be a bit better (not as abrasive and harder to cause any serious damage). If you need any pointers, let me know.

 

Like the title says I saw it on you tube, so when I got home I headed to the bathroom and grabbed what I had Crest (blue gel) put some on a paper towel and rubbed in a circular motion on a little spot as to not screw up the whole thing. It dried up pretty quickly and I got some on the paint so I ran inside and grabbed a wet towel to wipe it down and get it off. Dam if it didn't work it looked great, so I did the rest (took about 10 min). They don't look new but I'd say 85%. Mine I couldn't even see the bulb thru the lens. So for 10 min and a lil tooth paste they look great and I could see again at night.

 

That would make sense since sailboats are exposed to UV.

 

I've about 90% success with the RainX headlight kit an thirty minutes of elbow grease.

 

I found another quick fix for hazy headlights - my son's daughter looked on "Pinterest" and found that "polishing" them with a layer or toothpaste works well. I tried it and mine are much better!