The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Tool Chest Meguirars Headlight Restoration Kit

Bought one for my PT Cruiser headlight lenses. Didn't do much about the haze. They are pretty hazy on the top outer edges and that stuff didn't touch it.

Anybody have better success?

I just used Mequirars heavy duty restoration kit on my Camry. It includes 1000 & 3000 wet sanding pads, plastic polish and drill attachments & a protectant that's supposed to protect the plastic from UV rays. So far thy look almost as good as new. Is that the kit you used or the lower priced kit they produce?

The wet sanding part is the key to that restore process.

I would say it must be. I didn't get the wet sanding pads.

I have never bought a Meguires product that was not outstanding!

I have three kits that are to restore headlight lenses. I've used two, Mothers and BlueMagic. I also have a 3M Kit I haven't used. I have a 94 Pinnacle Chev P30 chassis, but it uses a 94 Fud headlight. I used the BlueMagic and wasn't particularly impressed. The Mothers seemed to work better, it got about 95%. I didn't use their severe restoration pads. I was watching "Motorweek" on PBS, and they did a segment on the 3M resto kit. From what I could see on the TV the lens looked new when done. The kit consist of a 3" pad for the drill, and a three step sanding disks. Here's a link to 3M;

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/Car/Care/DIY_Projects/Appearance/Restoring_a_Headlight/

Your milage may vary.

Larry

Meguiar's Headlight Restoration Kit

"Meguiar’s unique PlastX formula works in concert with our unique buffing pad and your drill to safely deliver amazing results in just minutes! No extra steps, complicated solutions or sanding with abrasives that can damage plastic and surrounding paint and trim."

for a less expensive fix of hazy light covers, Brasso works well

Bill

...here is what I do and I've fixed some really bad headlights.
I fill up me a windex bottle with water, or use the windex, and start with a piece of 1500 wet sand paper. I simply spray, sand,wipe.... spray,sand, wipe. I then finish off with a spray sand and wipe with the 2000. Then use my favorite auto polish. Looks like new.
If not bad I simply use the 1500 or 2000 by itself.

The sand paper usually come in 5 sheet packs for $4 bucks around here. I can do both headlights with one sheet each.

I ask a local auto body shop that has a super reputation and the owner, a good friend of mine, says this is exactly what they do EXCEPT you can either polish it with finish paste OR spray a light coat or two of automotive clear on the headlights.

I just hate giving my hard earned money away on these kits which are WAY overpriced. Its a "Cash Cow" to the manufacturer's.

Bill, haven't tried Brasso.....thanks for that tip as well.

One other tip not mentioned is to put painters tape around the headlight on the body panel to protect it from scratching. I know we are usually careful, but it's just an added preventive measure.

Alvin,

Some of the commercial Headlight Restorers (except Meguiar's) use the fine-polishing ingredient in Brasso, diatomaceous earth. This is a very fine polishing agent (it used to be commonly found in in out parents'/grand-parents' tooth-paste). Meguiar's uses fine alumina as a polishing agent.

I'd try what you suggest, using Brasso as a last polishing stage.

I used the 3M Headlight Restoration Kit on my 2001 Taurus a couple of years ago with good results. The kit has fine grit sandpaper, liquid cleaner, and pad for your drill. I use Mequires Plastix to refresh. Probably need to use the full kit again.

Another tip -
Cover your engine and underside of your hood to avoid splattering with white residue from the spinning disk on the drill.

I "restored" headlights using the kits. It sands off the external surface, then you polish it back to smooth. However, I found that it tends to haze over quite quickly after the restoration. 3M Imperial Hand Glaze brings it back in one step.

From the 10,000 foot level, just treat the lenses as you would paint. If it is hazy and dull, polish it back using your favorite materials. I don't buy kits any more. I already own all of the necessary materials.

Bill

Well I don't remember how much I paid for the kit, but I know it wasn't cheap. I bought the Mequires because of the name. I'll get some ultra-fine sandpaper and see if I can't get the haze out. Most of the lens is decent, it's just the high edges that must get all the debris hitting it. I like glass.

I Watched a show on Spike (trucks! Or hotrod tv) where they used regular toothpaste as the polishing agent along wet sanding as mentioned above.

Many toothpastes use the same fine-grained diatomaceous earth as is used in Brasso (and in many other polishes).

You can pretty much accomplish the same effect as using the kits with some 800 grit sandpaper used wet with something like ivory liquid as a lubricant. Then to preserve the finish hit it with some clearcoat otherwise they'll all yellow again.