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Headlight restoration how too!

60K views 73 replies 52 participants last post by  Sniper Focus 
#1 · (Edited)
Headlight restoration how to!

My 04 SVT has a set of Mach Audio HID's that were originally on my old ZX-3, and they have gotten rather nasty looking so I have decided to restore them, and here is how I did it.

Here is the passanger side, you can see they are rather dull and nasty looking,




[xx(]
So I got some 1000 grit sand wet/dry sand paper to get out everything but the deep nicks, wiping down the plastic every couple of minutes and keeping the sand paper pretty wet.
Next I removed the 1000 grit marks with some 1500 grit paper, using lots of water and wiping as I went.
Then I went to 2000 grit, by then the light looked pretty foggy but was very smooth, and to be honest looked better foggy than it did before I started.
To get out the 2000 grit marks I went up to Wal-Mart and picked up some of this stuff...

I found out you need to go SLOW with back and forth motions, if you go too fast or use too much power on your drill you will make some burr marks on the plastic and then you will have to resand that section with a bit of 2000 grit and go over it again with the polish pad. This stuff is basically an attachment to an electric drill and some stick on polish pads and you will use 2 or 3 per light.
I will say again during the entire process go SLOW, it took me an hour and a half to get my drivers light looking like this...




I just got done with the drivers light and I was so impressed I figured I'd post this before I started on the passanger light.
I have some Lamin-X on the way and when it gets here I will probably go over the lights again real quick with the polish pad again.
 
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#58 ·
Well I was stupid last year and tried using the "high grip sand paper" method and totally ruined them. I went to napa and grabbed a pack of the CCP headlight restore kit and spent a bunch of time today and got most of the scratches out but the haze was still there and wasnt coming out. I had a bottle of plast-x from Meguiars, and started hand buffing them and they started looking better...however I wasnt completely satisfied, so I got the big ass buffer and put more plast-x on and VOILA, these look AMAZING!

Definatly use the plast-x after the restorer and you will be WOWED! (pictures tomorrow)
 
#59 ·
3m kit works pretty good. oont know if you can get the replacement discs or not. i worked in aviaton and have used their roloc disks and stuff. funny about thing about the 3m kit is the rubbing compound is their cleaner wax by part number...lol. novus system is what we used in aviation on the cabin windows as they are plastic and works pretty good. i have a micro mesh kit and they are great to have especially since it is cloth. i have plastx and was wondering if the meguiars mirror glaze plastic cleaner and polish would be better?
 
#63 ·
Nice before/after. I've used the Permatex kit and the 3M kit. I wish I had borrowed my dad's drill and just used the 3M the first time. Follow up with Meguiars' Plast-X on a foam pad every so often and you're in business.
 
#65 ·
I have done this several times to no avail as it continues to haze. Is there a secret or trick I am missing to stop the perpetual hazing?
 
#69 ·
Before & After

Before


after w/ 3m kit & paint
[/IMG]
 
#71 ·
I didn't get a before picture, but my headlights had a thick, yellow haze on them from these damn Wisconsin winters... I had used a Turtle Wax restore kit twice before without any good results, but I saw this thread yesterday and then picked up some 1500 grit paper. I used that to wetsand that thick layer of crap off, then I followed it up again with the remnants of that same Turtle Wax kit. The wetsanding was the missing link, and now my lights are shining as bright as they were when I first got the car!
 

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#73 ·
How to keep the headlights clear?

Okay, waking up a very old thread. 2004 SVTF with HIDs. I have cleaned the headlight covers twice. The second time I used the 3M kit. It worked very well. But... after about 6 months they started to get hazy and within a year they are where I was when I started.

How do you keep these things clear once you have cleaned and polished them? Do you use a clear coat of some kind?

Frustrated.
 
#74 ·
Okay, waking up a very old thread. 2004 SVTF with HIDs. I have cleaned the headlight covers twice. The second time I used the 3M kit. It worked very well. But... after about 6 months they started to get hazy and within a year they are where I was when I started.

How do you keep these things clear once you have cleaned and polished them? Do you use a clear coat of some kind?

Frustrated.

Vinyl is the answer
Lamin-x

5 years and I havent touched them since, my lights have been in the oven four times too.
 
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