Polishing Headlights

[97SierraGMC]

alright my stock headlights are cloudy.

 

now its $130 for a pair of new headlights (nice ones, not crap from Ebay) ,i have all clear everything else but i really like the look of really nice clean factory headlights... don't know why i just do.

 

now today i bought 1500 and 2000 grit sand paper and didn't seem to help at all and i pretty much wasted my time. it made the headlight nice and smooth but it is still cloudy. its like $20 bucks for a "headlight polishing" kit but is it worth it?

 

Thanks!

[x10]

alright my stock headlights are cloudy.

 

now its $130 for a pair of new headlights (nice ones, not crap from Ebay) ,i have all clear everything else but i really like the look of really nice clean factory headlights... don't know why i just do.

 

now today i bought 1500 and 2000 grit sand paper and didn't seem to help at all and i pretty much wasted my time. it made the headlight nice and smooth but it is still cloudy. its like $20 bucks for a "headlight polishing" kit but is it worth it?

 

Thanks!

 

my one buddy did it on an old bronco he had...it didnt turn out too nice...the bronco was for offroading so it didn't matter to him...when my headlights on my old grand cherokee got cloudy, i just replaced them....i ordered decent ones from ebay...i believe they looked better than just polishing them...

[tramz]

I did my '97 with a kit from Advance Auto, I was skeptical but bought it. It's a process that took about an 45-60 mins. Turned out like new, stayed that way until I traded up. I would do it again before spending the $$ for replacements.

[97SierraGMC]

do you know what kit?

 

they have a Permatex kit there. or something that it spelled like that.

[Zembonez]

After you sand them, you can use regular 3M white automotive compound to clear them up... followed by a good wax. You'll have to do it about once every 6 months.

[DofD]

I used Meguiar's PlasteX on mine and they turned out really well. It removed all the cloudiness and made them look like new.

[dietz4ibanez]

I will have to work on mine!

[Gryphon]

Greetings! Figured I'd make my first post here a helpful one.

 

I have something of an affinity for warning lights. Several years ago I had a nice collection going, and it was lots of fun to tinker with them and make custom configurations. One of the lightbars I had was delivered with a broken lower dome courtesy of UPS (properly pronounced OOPS). A factory replacement was $250+, so I hit up the local cop shop fleet garage who used the same lightbar to see if they could help me as I was friendly with the mechanics. They gave me a lower dome that came off a cruiser that had been involved in a fire and was significantly scorched, but otherwise physically intact.

 

Enter Novus Plastic Polish: http://www.novuspolish.com/

 

I used the #2 polish on the dome as directed a few times, with just elbow grease and no power tools. I wish I had taken some before and after pics of the work because the results were truly incredible. Not only did the Novus completely remove the blackness but it polished it to a crystal clear finish. It was impossible to tell this dome had anything wrong with it before.

 

I don't recommend the #3 unless your headlights are REALLY crazed as it's quite abrasive, and the #1 is more akin to Windex than an actual polish. If you can find yourself some #2 Novus you will be very happy with the results. I found some locally from a plastics dealer that dealt in plexi and stuff like that, so I imagine it's available locally. Novus sells a 2 oz "starter kit" on their website but that's not a lot to work with if you have any decent amount of surface area to clean up. I recommend the 8 oz bottle.

 

Hope this helps!

[NFSGamerUSA]

Yeah, I've used one of those headlight repair kits, and it works well for what you pay. I couldn't get everything off, but it's far better than it was originally. I'd go for new headlights if you really want them to look nice; I probably would if I could find some on discount. IF you take the repair method, be sure to use sealant on the lenses unless you want to do the same process every few days.

[takevin]

Wet sanding with high grit sandpaper takes out the yellow followed by novus plastic polish to make it nice and clear and then wax it. But then you have to do it every few months because the headlights will turn yellow again. As what happened to my wifes older jeep. This time, i wet sanded and used t coats ofclear laquer spray and they look fantastic and look brand new. They wont turn yellow again.

[sk]

I used this kit on my 1994 Silverado:

Headlight Polish

 

I bought it for about $20 at Wal-mart. The lenses don't look perfectly new, but it did a really decent job. The kit is supposed to do 2 headlights but I managed to do my headlights, running lights, and taillights with one kit. The nice part is that kit comes with a special plastic sealer that you put on last. It should hold up better than wax will. They've been done for about 5 months now and still look the same as the day I did them.

[pm26]

I used one of those Autozone kits for about $ 12 on my car's clouded headlights and they turned out OK. The kit comes with a sanding pad and several self adhesive sanding discs pre-soaked in polishing paste. You need an electric drill with these of course.

[redvett]

Tooth paste works great too.

[gvbhunt]

I used Meguiar's PlasteX on mine and they turned out really well. It removed all the cloudiness and made them look like new.

I concur captain...

 

Plast-x is good stuff.

[csheatz]

toothpaste, i heard it somewhere and gave it a try on a friends truck, worked pretty good. followed that up with a good polish and they were like brand new. be ready to spend some time with the toothpaste and rub it in good.