Head Light Fade and flakes - Saudi Arabia

[Omprakash]

My 2008 Yaris driver side Head Lamp lower part is faded (see the photo) with some material which on slight scrap come out as flakes of very fine thickness. I am not sure whether flake material is part of the Head Lamp or foreign material. Passenger side head lamp is not having any such issue. Car is used in extreme hot conditions of Saudi Arabia where temperature can go upto 55 degC in open space.

Question: what is the source of fade. Will this go away by polishing? (A year before I got both head lights polished first time after purchase in 2008) Or head light replacement is necessary due to aging? I have caution warning on head light inspection next inspection due a next year

[Kalispel]

Wow, and I thought Phoenix, AZ was bad with regular summertime temperatures in the 45-48 degrees Celcius (113-118F) range.

The polycarbonate plastic housings of auto lights oxidize/haze under extreme UV conditions, where the UV intensity eventually destroys the OEM UV coating on them. After you get your lights re-sanded/polished or replaced, I would recommend that you get some sort of quality aftermarket UV film (such as 3M) applied to them as an extra layer of defense. That is what I plan to do with my 2015 Yaris SE before next spring rolls around here in Phoenix, AZ.