headlights

Topic: headlights (Read 9996 times) previous topic - next topic

headlights

December 15, 2004, 12:13:05 AM

the headlight lenses on my 87 t- bird look really dull and foggy.ne body know how I could clear them up.

Re: headlights

Reply #1 – December 15, 2004, 12:55:55 AM

This has been brought up many times, just do a search.

220 through 1000 grit sandpaper wetsanding, rubbing compound, polish, and wax on the outside of the lenses will clear them right up

starting with 120 grit will cut through the fogginess quicker and will give a better result, but will take a lot longer to get the scratches out. Using an electric sander (both to drysand and wetsand), it took me a good 4 hours or so to clean up my lenses

Re: headlights

Reply #2 – December 15, 2004, 12:44:20 PM

thanks alot. sounds like a good project to start on my new t-bird

Re: headlights

Reply #3 – December 19, 2004, 05:06:57 PM

actually you'll need to clean inside of it as well, I was the previous owner of that car, so all you need to do is clean the inside really well. There are ways you can do that, I heard dishsoap works well but i;ve never tried it. as for outside do what seek said. Also remember to buff it out really GOOD, and the result will turn out great.

Re: headlights

Reply #4 – December 19, 2004, 05:21:42 PM

eh, I got some horrible replacements from a junkyard and I left the inside alone after having my originals get worse after cleaning the inner side of the lens. Just rinsing with dish soap MAY help a little if moisture has gotten inside (meaning you should reseal them with silicone).

lenses I buffed outside and cleaned inside:

lenses I only buffed outside

Re: headlights

Reply #5 – December 19, 2004, 05:52:21 PM

oh, and what the replacements looked like before I worked on them

left was buffed, right was what they looked like when I grabbed them

Re: headlights

Reply #6 – December 19, 2004, 06:41:37 PM

Something that may peek peoples interest. I've found that Eagle One tire cleaner has an excellent cleaning effect on the lenses. I found this out one day when washing my car and wondering what would happen if I sprayed the stuff on my light lenses. Needless to say, a lot of dirt and grime started emulsifying off of the lenses. I then rinses the lenses off and viola (wal-la) slightly clearer lenses. Now it obviously didn't last long, but i figure that for someone looking to clean up there's and polish them, this would be a good first step for inside and out out the headlights. Just some food for thought!

Re: headlights

Reply #7 – December 21, 2004, 05:48:23 PM

I have some Eagle One wire wheel cleaner left over, and I decided to try that today. I tried it first on the '88's passenger headlight. Looks like a significant improvement. So I decided to try it on the headlights of my mother's '98 ZX2. Its headlights seemed especially cloudy to me for a 6-7 year old car. Well, here's a before-and-after of putting just one treatment on, and *lightly* scrubbing it with the same brush I use on my interior. (since that pic I have done both lights twice, and they look MUCH better) If you do this, though, make sure you rinse it VERY well afterword.. after all, this is hydrofluoric (sp.?) acid.

Re: headlights

Reply #8 – December 21, 2004, 05:53:39 PM

heh, a family member has a 99 escort thats foggier than my tbird's lights have ever been. It looks pathetic really. You'd think that they would IMPROVE the materials they use, not skimp on price more

Re: headlights

Reply #9 – March 30, 2005, 11:45:54 PM

trying some polished aluminum tape as a reflector in a spare headlight. Its near impossible to get the contour right without getting wrinkles though

now if only I could get my spare lens clear (its scratched up badly) to go test it out

Re: headlights

Reply #10 – March 31, 2005, 02:15:27 AM

If thats what new headlights look like, I've been missing out. My spare is a passenger so I plugged it into the driver's side and compared side to side on the garage door. The one currently on there appeared yellow on both high and low beam while the modded reflector was bright white with an even/bright beam pattern. The lens on the car is completely clear while the modded one still has a ton of scratches, but its semi-transparent.

The seams between each piece of tape aren't very easy to see (the only one being on the inner portion - where it meets with the inner marker light so I'll have to start there (to push the seam back) next time. This and it being a thin, yet tough piece of aluminum (slightly thicker than foil?), it should hold up to age and can be polished in seconds whenever it dulls. Not bad for $3

Also appears so very slightly more reflective than the stock reflector's paint. I'm guessing I'm seeing around 80% reflectivity right now, where quality aluminum polishes up above 90% and real chrome is supposedly like 99%

edit:
here's a picture. Most of it doesn't appear very reflective at the angle the picture was taken but look around the bulb socket (especially just below it) or the roll of tape. You can see the actual texture of the tape below the foil. The roll is how it appears before being polished, where afterwards I can see myself clearly in the reflection. When I redo my actual lights, I'll apply the tape differently to minimize bubbles and wrinkles so only the edges of the tape will be visible

Plus, you can then make the upper part of the reflector reflective also :D (not recommended on the bottom since it'll shine more light upwards than should be, possibly blinding other drivers)

Re: headlights

Reply #11 – March 31, 2005, 02:54:27 AM

I love the stuff

tape on sheetmetal

Re: headlights

Reply #12 – March 31, 2005, 01:34:38 PM

mothers BILLET metal polish (NOT to be confused with their aluminum and mag polish) is BY FAR the BEST polish i have ever used. my freeride/dh bike has a polished aluminum finnish and i polish it every once in awhile. when im finnished with it it looks better than it did when it came directly from Santa Cruz brand new. ive used them all and this stuff id fricken amazing. polishes aluminum to the point of looking like fresh chrome with no effort. its almost rub on then rub off. any other pollish i would have to buff and polish with my cordless drill attatchments and then hand buff and pollish to finnish. it never looked as good as when i use the billet. its a little pricey ($13-$14 for 4oz) but is so worth it.

Re: headlights

Reply #13 – March 31, 2005, 01:50:36 PM

automotive stores?

Re: headlights

Reply #14 – March 31, 2005, 02:44:02 PM

auto zone had some. thats where i bought my 3rd one. i ordered my first 2 online.