headlight restoration kit

[Mangozac]

Hahaha I like your logic Ranski

 

[goon]

Brasso is good for this also,takes a minute layer off most plastics and glass,try it on a watch glass or mobile phone screen too.

 

[T2FFN]

hmmm, my headlights are back together but need help from this restoration kit. shame i cant find that turtle wax kit in the uk!?

 

[T2FFN]

Anyone ever heard of Quixx? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Quixx-Headlight-Restoration-Kit-Lens-Sealer-Headlamp-Restorer-Prevent-Cure-/260956882100?pt=UK_Car_Accessories_Car_Care_Cleaning&hash=item3cc23e04b4

Just as good?

 

[ZeeFore]

Here are the before and after pics:
http://images.neerden.nl/z4_headlight_before.JPG
http://images.neerden.nl/z4_headlight_after.JPG

That looks great!
Question: the work only needs to be done on the outside surface?

 

[T2FFN]

yep, outside only

 

[ZeeFore]

yep, outside only

Brilliant! (Thank you).
I'll be going shopping then ...

 

[Jensz4]

Dear all,
first of all thanks for this fantastic forum and the great tips and tricks everywhere.

I would like to know your opinion on the pics below:
I am not sure if the foggy part in the headlights is coming from the inside or outside,
so what could be the solution to get the headlights clear again... :?

Polishing
or
cleaning the headlights with massive Qtips while exchanging the xenon and h7 lamps?

http://s7.directupload.net/file/d/2969/piefqbyy_jpg.htm
http://s1.directupload.net/file/d/2969/tojvnphy_jpg.htm

Many thanks for your help here and best regards,
jens

 

[ranski]

if you look close enough you should be able to see where this fogging is taking place - from the pictures i would say the inside, by which the only way to resolve is to cut open the headlight and clean, or buy replacements units

 

[Jensz4]

Hey Ranski,
many thanks!
Replacement is unfortunately no option...
Just too expensive for me at the moment...
But i have read that it might be possible to access the inside of the headlights by taking out the gasket and lamps (of course making sure the gasket is sealed properly afterwards or even replaced).
Then a kind of huge Qtip with some cleaner might work?
Or are they also completely sealed from the backside?

Thanks!

 

[ranski]

yes, you can remove the inners via the cover at the back, but from what i know only one fourm member has tried this and it took him a few weeks

the other, quicker option would be to cut open the light so the inner side of the lens can be cleaned

good luck!

 

[Mowflow]

I picked up a cheap set of facelift headlights for my e90 a few years ago. When I bought them I knew they were not in the best of condition but following guides from a few threads on detailingworld and videos on Youtube I wet sanded and polished them by hand. It took a few hours of work to do both lights but I was in no hurry and wanted a good job.

I tried the Turtle Wax stuff but found it useless on the deeper scratches.

Wet sanding and polishing was very easy. I went through grades of paper from about 600 I think to 2000 then polished with Megs scratchX then just a regular car polish as a fine polisher.

From what I read before doing this project all modern headlights do indeed have a UV coating so sanding does remove this. You can buy wipe on products that will go someway to providing a similar protection to the plastic. I used AG Extra Gloss Protection. This was a product that I had used in the past to protect paintwork on a red car from fading as it contains UV filters.