Headlight polish

[ChrisEdu]

Done one side with the 3M kit today, in-between the showers.

 

[StMarks]

I guess this would work on my old Vito, the OSF looks slightly "milky" compared to the NS.
How long does it take please.?

 

[AMGeed]

^ Allow about an hour each side to do it properly.
They need to be sealed afterwards or the UV will cloud them again quite quickly.

 

[ChrisEdu]

I guess this would work on my old Vito, the OSF looks slightly "milky" compared to the NS.
How long does it take please.?

Didn't take very long at all.
My biggest problem has been that the crouching has irritated my insides where the surgeon implanted a stent a few weeks ago = agony!

 

[W1ghty]

Didn't take very long at all.
My biggest problem has been that the crouching has irritated my insides where the surgeon implanted a stent a few weeks ago = agony!

Raise the front of the car up ?

 

[Teego]

Raise the front of the car up ?

Nah. Just get a camping chair and take your time.

 

[ChrisEdu]

^ Allow about an hour each side to do it properly.
They need to be sealed afterwards or the UV will cloud them again quite quickly.

Yeah, I thought the 3M kit had a sealant but it doesn't. Anyone got a recommendation for one?

 

[Larkone]

You need a UV resistant lacquer

Krylon® UV-Resistant Gloss Clear Coating 11oz Can

Krylon UV Resistant Gloss 11oz - to be disco

www.techsil.co.uk

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rustoleum-AE0040001E8-400ml-Crystal-Clear/dp/B001W03PRM/ref=sr_1_6?adgrpid=121366593039&hvadid=606109323512&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1007041&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=10343856438826960638&hvtargid=kwd-305168437861&hydadcr=1125_2624382&keywords=uv+resistant+lacquer&qid=1662703743&sr=8-6

 

[ChrisEdu]

Treated with Meguiars sealant.

 

[Smiley]

I have had equally good success in polishing very badly clouded headlights without buying a special kit but just using 1500 grade wet and dry paper used wet with some soap - then using a rubbing compound such as Farecla G3 / G10 and then waxing. They do seem to need redoing every few months though. It is very quick though - a few minutes is all it takes as the 1500 paper cuts through the discolouration very quickly

 

[OldskoolRS]

I was going to do similar to you @Smiley but then I read about needing to seal them afterwards. Not on our C200, but an old Ford Ka that I use for driving to gigs and places I don't want to take the C200: Both headlights are a bit dull and need something doing and it's a cheap banger, so I'm not in favour of spending £100+ on a set of new ones for it.

I found a Turtle Wax product at Euro car parts for £4.99 so I'm tempted to try that to see if it seals it well enough so that it lasts a while.

Turtlewax Headlight Cleaner and Sealant 300ml | Euro Car Parts

Interested if anyone else has tried this?

 

[Gbrowncls55]

Ive used 1500 wet and dry then 2500 then 5000 follwed by machine polish on my last cls. Crystal clear.You can seal them with the wipes that claim to clear the lenses but do a good seling job.

 

[ChrisEdu]

Certainly using sheets of glass paper would have been much easier on my son's car, as his headlights have horrible contours that make using machine pads really awkward.

 

[OldskoolRS]

I got the Turtle wax polish/sealant and it's quite mild but has brought the NS light up quite well (the OS looks new, I think the car has had a bump due to some other marks). I think I'll wet sand it and then machine polish, just using the Turtle Wax stuff to final polish and seal it. Can't grumble at £4.99 a bottle, but if it doesn't last then not a bit outlay either.

 

[Alex225]

That looks good OP. Wet sanding and polishing is usually the way to go but you need to seal it in with some decent lacquer.

I liked the Meguiars kit that had the lacquer spray with it, even the spray alone brought up the lights much clearer.

I give my Shogun's lights a quick hand polish with some Meguiars Plast-X. It doesn't make them perfect but good on light clouding.

 

[DSM10000]

That looks good OP. Wet sanding and polishing is usually the way to go but you need to seal it in with some decent lacquer.

I liked the Meguiars kit that had the lacquer spray with it, even the spray alone brought up the lights much clearer.

I give my Shogun's lights a quick hand polish with some Meguiars Plast-X. It doesn't make them perfect but good on light clouding.

I used the Meguiars Plast-X liquid on the MB headlamps today applying it with a drill mounted foam polishing pad.

It took about 15 minutes a side and the results are very good.

Before

After

They look even better after a wash and application of a polish.

 

[Piff]

I did my truck headlights with a Holts kit last week.
Kit came with a 3" drill hook & loop pad, 4 grades of wet & dry from 800 to 3000 grit, a polishing pad & compound and sealer.
Holts Headlight Restoration Kit
Best to do both headlights at the same time as only one polishing pad provided.

 

[merc85]

Job well done there Chris

 

[Mercizzy]

Looks like a nice job. I used Autoglym stuff and came out with similar results. That was for my C200

 

[as400]

Love some of the 'money saving home tips' on cleaning cloudy headlights found on the internet, everything from using toothpaste to peanut butter to cat wee!...not sure if either of these work and suspect someone is having a laugh....