Downtuned

I had some very light buildup on my headlights, so I went and got meguirs headlight polish and protector, 1000 grit and 2000 grit sandpaper, and a big bucket of soapy water, i would pour water over the headlight while sanding for 20 min with 1000 grit. then 20 min with the 2000 grit. i would apply the polish and wipe it off, the protector and wipe it off. it turned out cloudy, even after doing this several different times. I would only recommend this if you are a pro, or have really really bad headlight buildup. for small buildup, i would take it to get professionally done, unless your someone who wont miss the completely clear look that your headlight hopefully still has.

It didnt turn out completely terrible, but if there is any way to get it to be clear like new, what should i do?

RDIS250AWD

iTrader: (7)

any before and after pictures?

KillaIS250

iTrader: (1)

20 minutes is a long time to sand each stage. It really shouldn't take that long. You just sand with the 1000 grit till its uniform, and then the same with the 2000. With my Prelude, I did 1000, 1500 & 2000 grit using soapy water. Then finished with PlastX on a buffer and it was crystal clear.

UniSlayEX

I was reading that and thought that was a long time too. Did it take you that long to smooth out the head light with each price of paper?

chi123

iTrader: (12)

This is exactly how I messed up my headlights. The problem with me was that I started wetsanding without the headlights completely clean. I actually tried again wetsanding my fog lights and it came out good. 20 minutes is too long to be sanding. My fogs were beat up with rock chips and it took under 30 minutes to sand and buff out both lights.

What I'd do is wetsand again with 1500, 2000, and then with a higher speed buffer to polish it out.

slimjimtel

Once you are completed sanding, it will be cloudy. You need to then use a polising compound and a random orbital polisher or buffing wheel on a drill to buff them to a shine. If you are trying to do them by hand, you're gonna be there a while.

ISCrazy

Agreed. He's just kinda missing this step.

jay90011

iTrader: (23)

You might want to buy a sealer as well to seal the headlight. I used the rainX product and it came with a sealer

KillaIS250

iTrader: (1)

Should take less than 5 minutes to smooth out the entire headlight to a uniform finish. I don't remember it taking me any longer than that for the sanding process. Buffing it took a little bit longer per headlight, probably because I repeated the final buffing a couple times

UniSlayEX

Yeah. A sealant is kind of necessity. Before you do it again, clean it out, kind of do the wax on wax off thing after you re sand it. Polish twice and seal. You'll be good buddy.

chicov8

if that was light buildup plastx should work without any sanding

6sick6

iTrader: (4)

2000 grit paper won't get out the scratches made by the 1000 grit paper. Uve gotta use 1500 grit and then 2000 grit. Like others said, a high speed buffer will help out after that

Downtuned

thanks guys. i will go buy 1500 grit, then 2000. it actually didnt turn out too bad, looked much better the 2nd day for some reason, barely noticable, but still a bit cloudy. I guess i will buy a drill attachment buffer and try it again. it cleaned my headlight for sure too, just a tiny bit milky. im confident to try it 1 more time in hopes it will be crystal clear. Thanks for the advice, and i will post before and after pics soon when i get home.

karasha

iTrader: (5)

Also, just a word of advice...

Whenever your headlights start to become cloudy due to plastic failing from UV damage. So the only thing to do is restore them using the methods stated above by CL members. But after you're done, your headlights are bare and no longer have UV protection that it once had from the factory (or so they say). You are now left with temporary, semi-permanent, and permanent solutions.

Temporary: Meguiars UV sealant (the one that comes in that package) is not permanent. It's something you need to continually reapply. It doesn't really give you an estimate as to how long it stays on, but I guess you'll know whenever your headlight starts to cloud up again.

Semi-Permanent: You could also go the route of using Optimum's Opti-Coat 2.0 or using Spar Urethane to seal it. I recommend over just the Meguiars alone. Here is a great link about these two right here (and has techniques AND pictures on doing headlights): http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...oat-2-0-a.html

Permanent: A permanent solution would be getting them wrapped using Xpel. They are made to not only be used on your car's body as a clear bra, but for your headlights as well to protect them from the UV damage.

Sorry for the book of information. I am currently in the process of semi-restoring and protecting some JDM headlights and foglights for my IS300. I thought I would share my few hours of research on the topic.

Good luck!

nociscokid

imo, you sanded a bit too long. At this point, i dont think you should sand again. Hitting it with a speed buffer or polisher with a mild abrasive should do the trick. I would hit it with a light compound/cleaner, then a polish and then wax.