Refinished my headlight lenses today and thought I'd throw a quicky detail on the car. As discussed elsewhere in the forum, I used the 3M headlight restoration kit. Highly recommended, but NOT for the faint of heart. That first step can scare the cr*p outta you if you've never done it before. But, they were what I would call severely yellowed. Turned out great.


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very nice...

 

Good job..........

 

Is it true that if you restore the headlamps you have to keep doing it every so often?

 

That's what I've heard, and it makes sense. The plastic lens from the factory, when new, is at it's most perfect, non-porous state. Opening up the surface with sandpaper, buffing compounds, etc. does seem like it would make the surface degrade faster over time.

But, when the lenses are as degraded as mine were, there is little choice besides full replacement. I'm going to find a UV sealant in the next few days, apply it, and hope for the best. If I do end up performing some maintenance to them in a year or so, I imagine I'll be able to skip the more abrasive steps in the restoration process and just do a light polishing compound.

 

So basically, after you get a sealant, it will be like new?

 

Essentially. My car is a 2006 and the lenses were very yellow and ugly. After the restoration today, they look "kinda like new". If I have to do some yearly maintenance on them with a buffer and some polishing compound to keep them looking as new I guess I don't mind. And it could probably be argued that it would have taken some type of preventative measures if they yellowed in four years after being factory new.

If you're thinking about doing it, search "headlight restoration" on youtube.com. There are LOTS of step-by-step videos. I probably watched 10 of them before I was satisfied that I wasn't going to ruin my headlights. And even after that, the look on my girlfriends' face after the initial, most abrasive step was priceless! She was sure that I had ruined them. Pretty funny.

 

I think I realized that mine are fogged from the inside.

 

If your headlamps are yellowed from interior condensation and your car is still under warranty, then Chrysler will fix or replace your headlamp.

 

After restoring the lenses, I am curious if a special kind of clear coat can be applied to maintain the clear look longer?

The reason I ask is because years ago when I would restore old plastic model car kits, if the plastic windows were dull and scratched, I would steel wool them, then spray clear coat on them and they would look new and clear again. Of course heat and the elements were not a concern.

James

 

The UV protectant that I've seen used in conjunction with headlight restoration (and this is only thru recent research as I am no expert. Although I do play one on T.V.) is a very thin, clear, watery looking chemical that is misted on then wiped off. I personally wouldn't use any type of spray clear coat as I would imagine this would yellow rapidly.

I found a very good Q & A regarding the 3M kit here > 3M 02516 HeadLight Repair System

A quote from that page "In order to maintain the clarity of the lens after refinishing, Plastic Cleaner (3M 39017) and Plastic Polish (3M 39010) can be used on an as needed basis."

Hope this helps.

 

I did mine about 2 years ago with the 3M kit. About once a month since then I've gone over them with Plast-X and they still are clear as a bell.

 

Shoot a coat of automotive clear coat over them. Unless you manage to find some amazingly cheap off brand, it's not going to yellow in your lifetime.

 

I had to repair my headlights 3 times and after the third I put lamin x over them and they are just as clear as day 1

 

My headlights have always had etching. Drivers side only. I've used both 3m and Plastx products with great success. The one problem is that it has to be addressed every six months or so. Its about a 5 minute job with the PC and they sparkle. I also hit them with detail spray once a week when I wash the car and wax them once a month when I wax the car. I have never had an issue with yellowing, just the etching.