I restored mine by hand with just: Mothers Alu polish, a microfiber polishing pad and 303 UV protectant. Took me about half an hour and they look like new.
Here is a tip for people who want long term protection after you finish the sanding and buffing. It does take skill to get it perfect, but for most cars it will come out good enough and your headlights will never yellow or haze again. spray on two or three coats of Gloss Crystal Clear Spray Paint as the protectant. Rustoleum has uv protection in its paint, so this stops future yellowing. If you spray evenly it will look pretty perfect, or if you want true perfection and long term protection spray 3 or 4 coats of gloss crystal clear, and then wet sand that glossed headlight to make it perfect. That last wet sand removed what they call orange peel, which i do not find that ugly, but some people would notice. and if you did not wait long enough for each coat to dry or sprayed to heavy and have drips you can sand those out. Anyway a few layers of clear gloss is a much better long term protectant. It will be so easy to clean , resist scratches and protect from the sun and still let all the headlight light through, it looks shiny and beautiful on my geo metro!!!!!!. Also if you have classic cars and buy the new replacement led headlights or any new headlights that are not glass, or even buy a new car, you can just start the protection from day 1 by spraying on clear coat. it will protect any plastic from yellowing. If you buy a car with black plastic anywhere, like a lot of the early 90's cars had on their bumpers, it also will protect that plastic long term from fading in the sun.
Great vid/tips! One tip I may add would be to layer the masking tape if needed; first layer being a higher grade to interface with the vehicles paint and clear coat with the additional layer being a barrier layer and could be a lower grade if someone wanted to be efficient with their materials.
After cleaning up several headlights from info from videos, this is what works for me. Just wet sand with 2000 sandpaper using light pressure to remove defects. Use a foam pad on a drill with 2000 leveling compound (for paint), repeat polish until the lens becomes clear. Use headlight cleaner/sealant as a finish polish.protectant; wait 30 min and apply wax.
@@ChavezDIY It depends upon the sealant or wax used on top, could be a few months to a year or longer. Just polishing the lights and not doing anything for protection, expect discolored lights in 3-4 months.
I own a detail company something that would help and make sure you don't burn through the plastic would be too wet them down every single time you sand down the headlights It would help if you used the paper that they gave you it's in the box for a reason there's no reason to add extra strengths or use lesser strengths that do not come with the product. It's a great video but there are definitely things that I would not do that you mentioned. At the very end when you polished it it comes with a different polish the stuff for McGuire's that was just extra money you did not have to spend. Even though Meguiars don't have a fantastic line of products especially the headlight sealant that they offer all you did was use two coats and you're good to go for our year maybe longer.
I used the Maguire's HD kit which uses hand sanding versus drill/mechanical sanding . Much easier to avoid damaging finish thru the tape as the tester experienced. And its final sanding step is like 3000 grit, so no need for extra sand paper...It worked well for me.
Great video! Thank you for fully explaining every step along with useful tips. The m45 is a rare model with the V8. My mom has one, and I almost never see them on the road. Fantastic car.
I got a 100-piece velcro-backed variety pack of 3" discs on Amazon for about $10, ranging from 60 grit to 2000. Use with a drill, saves a lot of work if your headlamps are really bad, like mine were on my old 996.
If you falow the directions 3m gives you to a T you get perfect results. The first two steps are dry and you sand a little then use a cloth to wipe the disc free of clogs then keep at it doing the same for step 2. 3rd step use water just enough to keep it wet but not soked and forth with just the supplied compound. There is no need to do all the extra stuff this guy did. Oh and the kit comes with quality tape fyi
Thanks for the advice. Sand wet with 800 and 2000 grit. Then polish twice and spray the sealant twice. Did it all by hand and there was no need to tape. Not quite perfect but 95% there. BTW - Scoob is a great job filming. LOL
If your a beginner do not use a drill. Use a hand held sanding block this allows you to have better control of the pressure application and you avoid swirls.
Why did you not clean the headlight lens after sanding before polishing, and then again after polishing before applying the sealant? It is so important to clean with glass cleaner or alcohol between steps so you're not pushing contaminants around.
Wow, that lens came out very nice. Good job but yes, the blue tape is painters tape so it’s not made for this type of project. Better to use a good, durable masking tape. I just ordered 3M lens restoration and 303 protectant in order to do my headlights so this video came in handy. Thank you.
Just did that whole process bro thanks for this video.2 questions.How often do you apply that sealant ? Does that sealant have uv protection.Thanks again bud.
its not the tape that is crappy or low end. u need to lay the masking tape flat and minimise those folded/crumpled area which will tear up when your pad hits it.
- To take this one step further I am going to apply that plastic paint protection film over the Cerakote - Guranteed Lifetime CERAMIC Coating to completly protect the headlights from scratches and rock chips from road debris and it adds another layer of UV protection too.
Comment from manufacturer on Amazon said the sealant should be used after applying another uv clear coat so I think this sealant is not the best product to use.
When I sand, before I buff, I use the follow sand paper working up from the lowest.. 600 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 4000 5000 Then polish, and finish with clear cloat.. Take a few hours, but the results are completely different than these kits.
I typed in removing factory sealant from headlights.Car makers put there sealant on and in time that sealant starts to crack and peal.Finding a perfect way for all situations is rare.Any info for this situation.
Hi mate, I followed another tutorial, used wetsand 800, 1200 and then 2000. Then polished. Did the steps about 3 times but still looks foggy. Any tips? Help me please. I can send pics if you’d like to see.
I don't have much planned other than intake and exhaust. There isn't a ton of aftermarket for these as you probably know. Are you making any big changes to yours?
I've done the muffler delete as well but I'm going to get a catback with and X pipe In the near future and I understand aftermarket parts are rather hard to come by disappointing for such a nice V8.
Never seen these drill ones in action before! Though I see why they exist now! As for the swirls you mention, this is likely why those kits don't sell too well in my area. I'd recommend using a DA next time, DAs have an eccentric rotation which ultimately makes an orbit or triangular run. Gone are the days of swirls! :D As for alternative protection options; would a quality clear coat be just as sufficient? Still, very informative vid! Cheers!
Good tip. Since I seal/wax the car so frequently I figured I'd be good with just a sealant. But for someone who wants less maintenance or doesn't detail often clear coat is the way to go for sure.
Thanks for your comment ESD, our Rock Hard Clear is specially made for Headlight lenses. Only about $1 per vehicle and it lasts for years, even in harsh southern climates. www.SaveMyLenses.com
The biggest problem with dry sanding in this case is that the sanding disc will get gummed up and become useless very quickly. I would not recommend it.
I've sanded my 2 headlights, beginning with 600 then 1000, 2000 and 3000. Then I've degreased it and applied the primer. But now 1 of the headlights still looks a bit dull, even after a full night. Will this be gone when applying the clear coat? Or what should I do?
It actually comes with a 3k grit "3M Trizek" magic wet sanding pad! Great product, and the video here helped get me motivated to finally USE it! EXCELLENT results on my '04 Escalade!!! Joe in Sunny California (lot's of UV... planning to wax and UV shield those puppies every three months now!) (PS With a cordless drill, I was VERY happy with the result, and only 100 minutes of work!)
The kit does not tell you to Wet sand until the 3rd step (thin pad). Was this another tip? You didn't mention it so I don't know if this was something you discovered or you just didn't follow directions correctly. Also you are using water on extra steps which could be why your tape is falling off.
Thanks Zach for subscribing and enjoying the videos! I do apologize, I've been distracted as of late and have not been able to get a new video out. I am however working on one with my Lotus that will be out within the next few days. You should start seeing more videos from me and my goal will be at least one a week. Thanks for sticking around and being patient!
You run out of the rubbing compound pretty quick, but you can buy a larger quantity at the auto store for pretty cheap. The sand paper and the other polishers last for several headlight sets.
More like don't use a drill at all. Sand it by hand. Using a drill might make the process a little bit faster but you have less control with your sanding. The more control you have the better.
@@chancewindham1718 a headlight restoration kit is literally a set of sand paper with specific grit so you can remove the faded yellow layer on the surface of the headlight...
@@y.blanxo Are you confused? I was simply stating it's not as important on a headlight as you don't typically have to worry about hitting body lines or over sanding one spot. Hell, you don't have to worry about it being flat. You arent blocking it like a body panel, therefore a drill is just fine to use.
"Cheap tape"? Try "sloppy sanding." Masking tape is not canvas - it's meant to keep paint and oversprays off adjacent surfaces, not deflect stray bullets or renegade power tools. Also, adding an old sheet/dropcloth or such beyond the first line of tape protects well beyond the proximity to the lens, especially as you're definitely going to be overspraying well beyond the 2" tape width. Anyone can finagle a similarly effective polishing perhaps with just PlastiX alone often enough; what makes you the expert on the quality of the sealant you're applying? How long does it last, compared to plain modern car waxes, especially as many can simply be spray-wiped every few weeks, perhaps delaying indefinitely the need to ever actually re-sand another lens. That is the real issue in headlight lens maintenance.
I've used this kit for 2 cars so far and I still have enough disks and buffing pads for more. The only thing you may come up short on is polish since they only include a small packet of it. If that happens though you can buy a bottle of polish by itself at most auto parts stores.
