Older 2nd gen: has anyone successfully polished back their hazy yellowing headlights?

I just picked up a rattle can of 2k clear coat from Home Depot. It’s a little expensive but one can did two coats on each light. If a guy wanted to you could probably wet sand and re-clear every 18 months or so and you probably would never have a problem again but I haven’t needed to yet. Total I had about 40 bucks and maybe 2 hours per light or so into it.

 

The best way and preferred way is to polish your headlights lens using wet / dry sand paper with soapy solutions with 50 percent mix dish soap / water

1 ) Start with 600 grit to break down the glaze while keeping the lens lubricated with the soapy water

2) Next by using 800 grit polish until smooth then follow by using 1000 grit then 1500 grit , 2000 grit , 2500 grit , 3000grit and then finish with 5000 grit

3) follow with Mequires plastic x polish and buff the lens then finish with a good sealer wax

 

Using bug spray will melt the lens

 

Maybe if you use too much but I have been doing this for years now with great success on many vehicles

 

I used Meguires Heavy Duty kit and it worked pretty well. I also had some 600, 800, and 1000 grit sandpaper handy and hit it hard with that before doing the buffing stages. I think those extra passes with the sandpaper made the difference. Most of the bad reviews of those kits are because there was too much elbow grease required and not enough sandpaper of the right levels.

Afterwards, you either need to do a clear coat option (2k shown above) OR be prepared to apply the Meguires UV protectant (also shown above) or a similar product every 6 months.

 

some evidence. I think I did one or two more rounds after that initial
“After” picture.

 

the polish kit, with sanding pads, work great. Dont remember if i used 3M or meguiars, i think 3M. I say with sanding pads because you need grit. A paste with rag wont cut it. The kits start coarse and you work your way up to very fine pad on a wheel. Last i did it on my wifes car and the results were pretty amazing. I wouldnt hesitate to do it on my tacoma if the need arises. After 7 years and regular 303 aerospace mine still look almost new.

 

But that sock has to be worn at least 2 weeks to get that odor up then works great

 

Agreed. This job absolutely requires a kit with a wheel that can attach to a drill, etc.

 

Sanding takes WAAAAAY too long. I used 3m headlamp kits in the past with the drill attachment and was not satisfied at all, and I tried it on my 2009 about one year ago. My 2009 had yellowing of the original lenses, but being cheap I didn't want to spend big bucks if possible, so I polished and it kinda worked, but I was not happy. Now, enter RestoWipes, very EZ, clean lense with soap and water, I followed that up with Isopropyl alcohol just to be absolutely clean, then dry completely with a microfiber cloth. Make sure the headlights are out of direct sunlight for next step, use application wipes, you may have to rub a bit on the really bad areas. When done, they recommend not driving vehicle until the emulsification process cures. I was amazed at the difference, night and day, perfectly clear. The solution actually emulsifies the lense surface and leaves the lenses absolutely clear, like new. I can't seem to find their website, but here is their number 833-403-6304.

Edit. Hey, I found the website.... https://myrestowipe.com/

I can flat out guarantee these do the job...

 

Had luck with this kit. Meguiar's G2980 Heavy Duty Headlight Restoration Kit

$65 Meguiar's Heavy Duty Headlight Restoration Kit, Car Headlight Cleaner and Restorer

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M2D763D?_encoding=UTF8

 

This thread is like the ones about oil "what I do is the best, etc." Having said that, I used the Turtle Wax kit from wally world. It was less than $ 10 and worked fine. I did it last year on my son's Subaru. The lens are still clear.

 

There’s a number of kits out there that work great. I personally used Meguiars heavy duty kit. Made my super oxidized headlights crystal clear again like new. But the next step after getting the lights clear again is the most important. If you don’t apply a UV protectant then the lights will become cloudy again within a couple months. I spray on Meguiars headlight coating UV protectant twice a year. I did my headlights over 3 years ago and they still look like new and the truck is outside not garaged. Here’s a pic taken a few months ago 3+ years after I restored them. The whole thing is easy peasy and you save $$$ over buying new headlights.

 

I had the dealer do this on an 02 tundra for cheap. Lasted several years.

 

I have both a random orbit polisher that can take sanding discs, and a variable speed drill for attachments, so the sanding kits sound like the way to go over my approach of using a cutting compound of car polish. I ordered the 3M kit and will give it a whirl, and use a UV coating to protect them.

 

Its mostly preparation. I used 1500 grit followed up with 3000 grit, then sprayed with the top coat.

 

As the others have stated, if you're just polishing then you're wasting your time. If you want longevity then you need to spray a clear coat and then follow it up with regular waxing/sealing to keep them protected.

One thing worth mentioning though... many people think that you need to do a full refinish, polish and then clear coat. That is NOT true. You're wasting your time if you're doing all that polishing and you may also reducing the adhesion ability of the clear. People seem to have different opinions and it likely depends a little on the products and specific headlights... but generally you should be good to go with something in the 1000-1500 range. I don't even think I went that high with the headlights on my Integra but those (old school design) hide imperfections better than a Tacoma (or other, more modern style) headlight due to the design.

If you want to go all out and have the time to spend on fine sanding and polishing that should be done AFTER the clear coat, just like you'd do when painting body panels.

 

I have used both the Meguiars spray and the 2K Max spray. Both have worked well and so far both have lasted. The Meguiars having been on longer (about 2 years now) just because I didn't find out about the Max until later.

If I need to redo Meguiars at some point, I would switch it to the Max, as the Max appears to be more durable (and should be being a 2-part spray).

Just trying to polish a turd still makes it a turd, and I found over the years that just polishing tends to only last a year, if that.

I believe most headlights these days come with a UV protective clear coat stock. Sanding and polishing is just removing the rest of the dull/yellow clearcoat, then you end up with 'raw' unprotected plastic which just can't hold up under the barrage of the environment and UV from the sun.

 

I used Meguiars heavy duty kit on a set of headlights I bought for my 09 sierra. they were bad(yellow) so I bought of used oem headlights on line. one had a couple of small scratches on side. stopped at a buddies auto supply store- he recommend it.- it took out the scratches- then I sealed them with Meguiars clear. looks great -so sealed the tacos lights and may try to get the yellow out of the stock sierra lights.

 

I used the 3M kit yesterday. It did a pretty good job but I see there is a hazy film inside the headlight assemblies, from when I did the black headlight mod back in 2006. Some weekend soon I will open them up again and clean the inside. If that doesn't go well, I will just order new ones.