Z4M headlight improvements ?

R

Rattler

Member
What can be done to improve the look and performance of Z4MC headlights?

Mine look a little tired and seem to age the car badly, I've seen posts about cleaning up the front area with t-cut, Polish, toothpaste etc, any best practices here?

Also, what options for improving the performance? Would later lights fit and / or deliver any performance benefit?

Thanks in advance
Tim
 
the headlights are really good, much better than my new fiesta ST for sure.... they also look really cool too, don't waste your money for the sake of it rattler..... next up you'll be mad enough to ruin one of the best n/a engines and supercharge the thing in search of further mods :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

what do yo mean by tired? they can restored btw if its the outer glass thats tired, if its the internals , you could split them and clean them up or even paint them.
 
This should leave your lights looking factory fresh on the exterior http://www.amazon.co.uk/Meguiars-G1900UK-Headlight-Restoration-Kit/dp/B001O7I7FS/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1436385147&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=meglars+headlight+restorer
As for the actual light :cry: welcome to BMW Xenon's :oops: not great when compared with other manufacturers :thumbsdown: i can live with mine as its a weekender so rarely used
 
Ok thanks, I will take a look at the restoration options. The tiredness I mean is the discolouration of the glass.
 
ok after deciding that i could not wait for the weekend, please find a before and after pic of my hard work :P

to be honest i would like to go over the headlamp again but the drill is flat, but i may go over both this weekend :thumbsup:


Before


After
 
Keyper said:
ok after deciding that i could not wait for the weekend, please find a before and after pic of my hard work :P

to be honest i would like to go over the headlamp again but the drill is flat, but i may go over both this weekend :thumbsup:


Before


After
Click to expand...

Lovin' your work :thumbsup: :thumbsup: how long did it take?
 
Rattler said:
Keyper said:
ok after deciding that i could not wait for the weekend, please find a before and after pic of my hard work :P

to be honest i would like to go over the headlamp again but the drill is flat, but i may go over both this weekend :thumbsup:


Before


After
Click to expand...

Lovin' your work :thumbsup: :thumbsup: how long did it take?
Click to expand...

Not long Rattler around 20 mins per headlight :thumbsup:
 
Keyper said:
Rattler said:
Keyper said:
ok after deciding that i could not wait for the weekend, please find a before and after pic of my hard work :P

to be honest i would like to go over the headlamp again but the drill is flat, but i may go over both this weekend :thumbsup:


Before


After
Click to expand...

Lovin' your work :thumbsup: :thumbsup: how long did it take?
Click to expand...

Not long Rattler around 20 mins per headlight :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

Time well spent :D
 
I had mine done by a pro detailer, but even he couldn't get rid of all the haze and markings. I haven't tried but I don't imagine an off-the-shelf kit would be able to do what a well regarded detailer can't, so I'm also tempted to pull the trigger on some new headlights. But tbh I don't really appreciate how good or not good the OEM ones are, I don't want to buy some third party angel eyes off ebay with them being essentially an inferior product to the OEMs. I do love the ambient blue light from the OEMs.

 
If a kit won't improve them due to deep marks or grazes, then you can wet sand by going down progressive grades of paper and finish with plastic polishes.

Nervy when you start sanding lights, so not for the faint hearted, but not difficult to do and returns them to factory new. Loads of guides on internet.

Trick is do everything slowly when you get to the power tools part as it's all too easy to melt lights and smear the lens plastic using too much speed/force.
 
cj10jeeper said:
If a kit won't improve them due to deep marks or grazes, then you can wet sand by going down progressive grades of paper and finish with plastic polishes.

Nervy when you start sanding lights, so not for the faint hearted, but not difficult to do and returns them to factory new. Loads of guides on internet.

Trick is do everything slowly when you get to the power tools part as it's all too easy to melt lights and smear the lens plastic using too much speed/force.
Click to expand...

that is what i did, please look at the vid i posted near the top, you maybe suprised what can be acheived
 
Sorry - Didn't look at the video as sat on South coast of Spain the internet is too tiresome to download videos and way to expensive on 3g/4g.

Do agree though - mine look like new after sanding and I'd never dream of paying £1200 (halogen) to £2k xenon) for a new set of OEM dealer supplied lights
 
ncrossy1980 said:
I had mine done by a pro detailer, but even he couldn't get rid of all the haze and markings. I haven't tried but I don't imagine an off-the-shelf kit would be able to do what a well regarded detailer can't, so I'm also tempted to pull the trigger on some new headlights.
Click to expand...
Mine were about the same as that, cleaned them up great with just my normal gear. Wet sanded with 600, 800, 1200, 1500, 2000 then 2500 (going up in small steps makes each one much easier and faster overall IMO), then used a 3" orange pad on a drill with megs 105, then a softer 3" pad on a DA with 205 to finish. Sealed with FK1000p to keep them looking good :)

I forgot to take a before pic :headbang: but here are some progress shots. Having the bumper off made it easier getting in to the corner too :)
lights.jpg


EDIT: It doesn't actually look like yours were sanded, at least not enough to get all the original clear off, probably just polished. You need to get down to just plastic or you'll not get a good finish.
 
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