Comments on: Cure Those Hazy Headlights

By: Teacher

Teacher — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 20:22:24 +0000

I think any fine abrasive will work. I’ve used rubbing compound, polishing compound, 1500 and 2000 grit wet-dry sandpaper, toothpaste and they’ve all worked.

By: Joe

Joe — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 03:07:48 +0000

Aluminum polish will clean them up too. I did my 96 Mustang about three years ago and they still look good as new. Total cost under $5.

By: Toolmonger » Blog Archive » Toolmonger’s Top 5: The Week In Tools

Fri, 03 Aug 2007 21:32:35 +0000

[...] Cure Those Hazy Headlights My Jeep Grand Cherokee’s headlights fog over once every few years, and this looks like a pretty good solution. Nothing screams “old and ready for replacement” like foggy headlights! [...]

By: Jon

Jon — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 14:48:45 +0000

Another option is Brasso and elbow grease. Look it up! The lenses are most likely Polycarbonate, the same thing CD’s and DVD’s are made of.

By: DaleC

DaleC — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 14:05:55 +0000

I had a 99 Tacoma Prerunner truck that looked great except for the headlights yellowed. I sprayed the headlights with Castrol Superclean, and you could literally watch as the yellow tinged liquid dripped off the bumper. It didn’t return them to new, but it got rid of 3/4 of the yellow. I followed up with some fine polish and wax, and they did look better. I concur with the idea of adding a clear coat. Had I kept the vehicle, I would have done that.

CAUTION: Castrol SuperClean is sodium hydroxide, and will seriously damage aluminum and anodized metals. Don’t get it near your wheels.

By: Uncle Flea

Uncle Flea — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 04:59:16 +0000

I have a REALLY bad fogged set on a car with 194,000 miles. After a lot of research, I’m about to do this job myself. From what I have read elsewhere, the thing that is missing in this kit is the clear coat that keeps the haze from coming back. There is one company that offers it in their kit, as I recall. There are several of these kits out there. Sorry, I don’t recall who it was. I decided to piece the elements together myself since I had a buffer already. Spend some time on the web and it’ll turn up.

Apparently the plastic headlights come from the factory with a clear coat that wears off after a good bit. Mine has a definite line where the uppermost portion, more exposed to the sun, is oxidized away. I think I’ll have to remove the rest of the oxidized clear coat before I can even begin to polish the plastic underneath.

I read somewhere that you wet sand with 600 then 1200, and finally 2000 grit, then you get to apply a polish/compound like in this kit. I bought a 6.00 spray bomb of clear coat for the big finale. I’ll try to post before and after picks in the Flickr pool if it turns out decent.

By: Stuey

Stuey — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 00:23:52 +0000

I tried two methods. Nu plastic polish, and a drill mandrel w/ abrasive foam pads. The Nu polish was fairly cheap and the drill kit was a measely $10 or so at Napa.

Now, 6 months later, my headlights are just as hazy and just as yellow.

Any product suggestions as to how to prevent them from rehazing?

By: noname

noname — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 22:48:50 +0000

Unless you have a really badly fogged up set of headlights toothpaste will do the same thing for a WHOLE lot less money.