3rd Gen HID vs LED vs Halogen H11 projector headlights

I'd pull the lamin-x, and spray the lens (after cleaning/removing any adhesive residue) with either a 2k clearcoat (get a vapor cartridge respirator and watch your eyes), or another UV curing/crosslinking spray product like "Literight." Those are your best bets for getting as close to the original hardcoat as possible. It could also be the start of some hazing on the inside of the lens. For being original, they're in quite good shape.

 

Well with all said and done I'm happy with my retro's. Nice clean cutoffs on low and good throw on Highs. Clean white without any blue tint.

Low beam


High


On trail low

 

I haven’t heard of lightrite before, thanks for the recommendation. I didn’t have luck in the past with uv coatings lasting (I think the one I tried was from Meguiars) but it could’ve come down to my application.

 

Most those are a maintenance coating that need to be reapplied annually, depending on the brand. Depending on your wax schedule, I’d just add it to the wax routine which I try to do 2x a year, in spring and fall.

 

The first US manufactured car to have HID headlamps was the Lincoln Mark VII of all things in a reflector lamp. The first overall was the E32-era BMW 7-series.

 

I usually polish and clearcoat.

 

Polish and clear bra!

 

You need to watch the effects on lens clarity with different coatings/films. They may be clear and still block a significant amount of light.

 

Has anyone tested the transparency of the XPEL headlight film and any negative effect on optics? It's something I've looked at but am worried it could ruin the UV coating when it's time to replace it.

 

Try the Novus Plastic Polishing kit with 3 deep scratch remover, 2 light scratch remover, and the 1 which is the plastic clean and shine.

$15 Novus 7136 Plastic Polish Kit - 2 oz.

Amazon.com: Novus 7136 Plastic Polish Kit - 2 oz. : Automotive $11 for the 2oz and about $18 for the 8 ounce.

 

damn
I’ve had it on my lights since day one of owning the truck and never thought about that. Same thing with my sti, clear bra it’s whole life

 

Clear films reduce output. When the film yellows and fades it can also damage the headlight when trying to remove. I’d not recommend any clear film for headlight protection.

 

This is what I do on headlights and tails. I use a finishing polish on headlights if needed first then a sealer with UV protection. Seems to work so far.

 

i think the xpel has a 10 year guarantee for yellowing
But good to know
I mostly have it on there for rock and debris protection

 

@Spike Spiegel this is where I’m at after 3 rounds and at least 5 weeks. If it’s a thumbs up then I can order supplies and maybe send this last prototype to you to test out? The other guy hacked pieces together so I’m not at all 100% confident that this is the final final but it’s the best I have right now shooting from 3 point territory.

 

That would be super easy to bench test.

 

If you need general function testing then Crash would be a solid source. If it's about testing the functionality on the vehicle then I should be able to do it near the end of the month.

 

It’s vehicle specific at this point. The other guy says this works. I have nothing to test with. Independent collaboration needed. Mostly we need the led headlight? I don’t think crash has one, correct? If he did we would have performance metrics.

 

T4R OEM LEDs? I have 2.

Edit! Wait. Did you know see the performance metric post?

 

Crash has the LED headlights I'll be picking up so I'm sure we can make something happen. I got pretty quick at removing my bumper