How To Restore Auto Headlights Permanently: A Comprehensive Guide

Summary:

Hazy or blurry headlights can really impair your visibility and safety on the road. While you may find some quick solutions like vinegar, toothpaste, or even Coca-Cola that can give you a temporary boost, if you want a long-lasting solution, you’ll need to go through the process of sanding, polishing, and sealing with UV protection.

Why do headlights get hazy?

• UV oxidation: The sun’s rays can deteriorate that protective coating over time.
• Dirt and chemicals: Things like salt, grime, and pollutants can cause that annoying yellowing.
• Condensation: When moisture gets trapped, it can dim your headlights.

Quick Solutions (Temporary Solutions)

• Vinegar and baking soda: This combination can help clean the dirt due to its mild abrasive ability.
• Baking soda and toothpaste: A great way to brighten the surface.
• Coca-Cola: Believe it or not, the phosphoric acid in it can help fight oxidation.

Permanent Headlight Restoration (Step-by-Step)

• Clean and dry the headlights: Start with some warm, soapy water.
• Tape off surrounding areas: Use masking tape to protect your car's paint.
• Sand the headlights: Start with 600-grit sandpaper (or 400-grit if the oxidation is very bad). Move up to 1000-grit and finish with 2000-grit wet sanding.
• Polish the headlights: Take a plastic polishing compound and apply it.
• Apply UV sealant: Apply 2-3 coats, letting each dry for about 5 minutes.

With the right repair, you can keep your headlights clean for years, which will not only improve visibility but also keep your car looking great.

Are you sick and weary of your automobile headlights being cloudy and hazy, which reduces the effectiveness of your lighting system? Do you wish to find a long-term restoration option rather than pay for expensive replacements? There's nowhere else to look! In this in-depth guide, we'll walk you through every step required to restore headlights permanently. 

Foggy headlights degrade the look of your car and can put you and other drivers in danger when driving in dimly lit areas. Fortunately, there are several easy fixes for blurry headlights, including a permanent restoration option.

The Reasons Behind Hazy Headlights

Several factors can contribute to headlight fog. Foggy headlights are mostly caused by UV oxidation, but UV sunlight isn't always to fault. 

• OXIDATION BY UV: Your car's headlight lenses are made of polycarbonate, which is engineered to withstand even the most severe driving conditions. However, they are not as resilient in the sun, which is why the producers cover them with a UV-blocking film. UV light exposure deteriorates this coating over time, oxidizing and clouding the plastic.

• CHEMICALS AND DIRT: Salt and grime can damage headlights. Yellow lenses can develop over time from a layering accumulation of dirt, salt, and other substances. 

• TRAPPED CONDENSATION: Water vapor can condense inside your lightbox and get caught in your headlights. Dimming headlights might also be caused by trapped condensation.

Temporary Quick Fixes For Headlight Restoration

If you need to fix your headlights quickly, there are a few quick solutions you can try with things you probably already have lying around the house. While sanding will permanently restore headlights, these solutions are fast and simple to do.

Method 1: Distilled Vinegar And Baking Soda

What can vinegar not remove? You can use vinegar, a very adaptable cleaning solution, on your headlights. To begin, mix one part vinegar and one part baking soda to make a cleaning paste. While the vinegar gets rid of the dirt, the baking soda breaks down any pollutants on the lenses.

You can put your paste to your headlights after you've made it. Use a paper towel dipped in your paste to firmly rub the headlights. After a few minutes, remove the paste from the headlights with a fresh towel.

Method 2: Baking Soda And Toothpaste

Instead of making your paste with vinegar and baking soda, you may always purchase pre-made paste, like dental paste. Certain toothpastes can be used exactly as is, and they do include baking soda. You will need to mix baking soda with toothpaste that doesn't contain it. Oxidative pollutants are broken down by abrasive compounds found in toothpaste. Baking soda is added, which aids in the breakdown of contaminants even more.

Mix one part baking soda and one part toothpaste, then spread the mixture onto a paper towel. Scrub the headlights with the paste to produce abrasive friction. If you have an extra toothbrush, you can really use it in place of paper towels. Moreover, a Dremel would speed up the procedure. After you've scrubbed for a few minutes, the headlights can be cleaned with a dry towel and water.

Method 3: Using Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola's phosphoric acid is great for removing corrosion and staining from car body parts, which may make you question what Coca-Cola does to your own body.

If you have any extra sugar, it's better to drink Diet Coke instead of Regular Coke because it doesn't contain any additional sugar. Pour your Diet Coke or regular Coke into a spray bottle, then give the headlight lenses a strong spray. After a few minutes, let the Coke sit on the headlights and then use a dry cloth to wipe them clean. It may take a few iterations of the process to clear your headlights of all the junk.

The Steps Involved In Restoring Headlights Permanently

While the above quick fixes will serve for a while, sanding down the headlights is the simplest way to restore them permanently. Are you curious about how to permanently fix headlights? Before beginning the restoration process, you need to gather the following supplies:

• Soap water 
• simple water 
• Gentle fabric 
• Painter's tape or masking 
• 600-grit sandpaper (dry or wet) 
• 1,000 and 2,000 grit waterproof sanding papers (Matador sanding sheets are our preferred choice). 
• alcohol 
• Polishing compound for plastic 
• Flannel polishing cloth 
• UV-resistant sealant

1. Clean And Dry The Lenses For Headlights

The process begins with cleaning the surface you will be working on, as with any other sanding operation. The pollutants on your sanding surface may cover up surfaces or be crushed into the surface while sanding, resulting in an uneven finish. Before you start sanding, you should make sure the surface of your headlights is clean.

Wash the foggy headlight lenses in warm, soapy water. Rinse the lenses multiple times with distilled water to remove all soap residue. To ensure that your tape sticks correctly in the following step, you might also wish to wash the areas surrounding the headlights. Next, use a gentle towel to dry wipe the headlights.

2. Cover Your Lenses With Tape

You should be careful not to sand the paint off your car, as you will be sanding your headlights. To avoid having to tape anything, you could always take out your car's headlight lenses, although doing so usually requires more labor than merely taping something. Apply tape and a garbage bag to the area surrounding the lenses to mask them carefully. For this task, masking tape or painter's tape works well.

3. Sand The Headlights

To sand your headlights, you will use a grit progression consisting of three different grits (600, 1,000, and 2,000). We advise using our high-quality sandpaper sheets from Benchmark Abrasives. First, you will need a 600-grit sanding sheet.

You can sand the 600-grit sheet dry or wet. Sand in straight horizontal lines until all traces of the hazy layer are gone. For more extreme sanding, heavily oxidized headlights might need to be sanded using a 400-grit sheet.

Make sure your 1,000 and 2,000-grit sheets are waterproof before you start wet sanding after your 600-grit pass is complete. To provide lubrication for sanding, use a spray bottle to mist your headlights with water. Using the 1,000-grit sheet, gently sand the headlight surface, then keep applying water to keep the surface moist.

After using the 1,000-grit sanding sheet, transition to your 2,000-grit sheet. Sand in straight horizontal strokes after greasing the surface with water once more. Once you've finished sanding, the headlight surface should be continuously clear and smooth.

4. Headlights: Clean And Polish

After sanding, you should clean and shine your headlights to remove sanding residue. To start, use paper towels soaked in alcohol to wipe the headlight lenses to remove the sanding residue. Next, use a flannel polishing cloth to apply your polishing compound evenly, making sure to rub it in.

If you'd like to work with power tools, you can apply the compound using an angle grinder and a cotton buffing wheel. If you choose to use an angle grinder, make sure it is set at a low speed to avoid overheating the plastic surface.

5. Use The UV Coating

Applying a fresh UV coating is the final step toward permanently repairing headlights. In the end, your headlight lenses should have three coats of UV coating applied to them. Allowing the first coat to dry for a minimum of five minutes is recommended before adding a second or third coat. Ensure that every application is uniformly lit. After that, give your headlight lenses a full day to dry.

Additional Tips To Consider

Following are some of the tips to consider while restoring the headlights:

• Start using 400-grit sandpaper if you have a severe haze and deep scratches in the headlight.

• A polishing compound is a way better option than using a 3000-grit sandpaper.

• Use a cushioned foam backing pad for power sanding, which offers high flexibility on curved surfaces 

• Ensure to set a low power setting during the process if you are using power tools. This helps in preventing overheating of the plastic surface. 

NOTE: ensure to go through the user manual once before using the tools to prevent accidents and understand the products better. If you are not clear about any step, consult an expert.

CONCLUSION

Although oxidation may not always be avoided, there are things you can do to make your UV coating last longer. To protect your automobile from the sun, try to park it in a shaded spot whenever you can. Regular car washing can also help prevent the accumulation of chemicals and dirt. Lastly, you can maintain clean headlights all year long by sanding your car's headlights a few times a year.