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03-27-2010, 07:30 PM | #1 |
Drives: 07 Hatchback Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Las Vegas
Posts: 15
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Headlight Lens Showing Age
I have an 07 HB. The leadlight lenses are starting to get a bit foggy. Anyone know of a product to clean/restore the lens?
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03-27-2010, 07:34 PM | #2 |
Banned
Drives: 07 sedan Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: new mexico
Posts: 292
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meguiar's plastx, or the whole restoration kit if you really wanted
http://www.meguiars.com/estore/produ...ectionID=15101 |
03-27-2010, 09:57 PM | #3 |
Learn to Relax
Drives: 2007, Meteorite, LB Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Anaheim, CA
Posts: 2,070
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03-27-2010, 11:59 PM | #4 | |
Drives: 2008 Yaris Sedan Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: CA
Posts: 158
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Quote:
is it yellowish or is it water leaking inside and fogging it up? |
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03-28-2010, 12:22 AM | #5 |
Drives: Black Vitz Liftback Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Salt Lake City
Posts: 238
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if they are not too far gone and the hazing is on the outside Plexius is fantastic for plastic lens preservation. Availabe at most motorcycle shops it was invented for plexiglass on aircraft. It really works. Being your car is only a few years old I'd hope you don't need restoration yet. My '08 lamps look as clear and shiny as the day I bought it using Plexius after I wash the car. Hazing/yellowing of clear plastic headlamp lenses is normal-I have yet to see a car with plastic headlamps not do it after a few years-they all require something to keep them looking good. It's all a combination of engine heat, uv's, ozone slowly aging them.
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03-30-2010, 12:21 AM | #6 |
Drives: no-longer-boosted '10 Yaris Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Angus, Ontario
Posts: 1,891
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best produst i have ever used is called plastex or soemthing. it makes the lights (and anything else plastic) look brandnew. it removes the glazing and yellowing and also rock chips. its really a great product. i can't wait for a few years down the road for when i can use it again! lol
u can get it at any canadian tire..... or for those unfortunate to not be canadian or near a canadian tire any auto store (auto zone and parts source)
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If it has boobs or wheels sooner or later your gonna have problems with it |
03-30-2010, 02:21 AM | #7 |
Not quite a noob
Drives: e46 325 Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: edmonton
Posts: 1,408
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Get any kind of polisher and just stick a cloth to it for a few minutes per lense. Worked wonders for mine.
EDIT: I say any kind because I used a metal polisher and it works fine, so pretty much anything will do. |
03-30-2010, 04:25 AM | #8 | |
www.yarisclub.gr
Drives: yaris 1.3 2sz - 1.33 1nr Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: greece
Posts: 199
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Quote:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggO4G0iEcnk |
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03-30-2010, 12:22 PM | #9 | |
Drives: '09 Yaris carmine red 2d HB Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Middletown, NY
Posts: 1,501
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Quote:
I have found that best way to prevent yellowed headlights is to simply wipe them whenever you wash the car and sometimes when they are just wet due to rain as the "yellow" is mainly dirt build up. I have followed this cleaning ritual with my '02 celica (that I got in '01) and the headlights are still crystal clear even though it is not garage kepted. I have seen so many cars with shiny, well maintained paint and yellowed headlights. It seems to many that cleaning the headlights is just an after thought at best. |
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03-30-2010, 03:47 PM | #10 |
Drives: 07 Yaris LB Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Fort Lauderdale
Posts: 179
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Headlight Haze is something very common on every vehicle knows days, no matter how expensive the car is. Car headlights are made of polycarbonate and they are protected by a silicone based clear coat which can last about 3 years or more depending the conditions, for example in Florida most of the vehicles after 4 years need headlight restoration. Why this Happen?
Acid rain, Oxidation, pollution, Saline environment and road debris cause that the silicone based UV coating starts to break and will expose the polycarbonate. In some cases the headlights can be deoxidized with some of the kits available in local stores but sometimes the haze will re-appear after 3 months, when the UV coating is already broken its necessary to re surface the headlight. Is always good to keep in mind that the headlights condition depend on how you take care of them; I always recommend using some type of wax cleaner to keep all the contaminants away from the UV coating and at the same time to keep them sealed, using a good sealant will help them to last longer. I own a headlight restoration business, and this how I make a living, I find that know days there are lots of kits available but none of them will offer a permanent solution, there are some places that charge a lot for this process but you need to make sure what they use because some of them including my local Toyota dealer use this kits and I think this is not honest from their part since it's not done with professional tools and products and the result is that the haze will re-appear within months. Real headlight restoration takes re appying the silicon based UV protectant coating, doing it that way will make the headlights will last for years without the maintenance. This is very simple website I made so my customers can have a better idea of headlight restoration the importance and also there are some pictures of before and after. www.headlightexpert.com Last edited by Lucas13; 03-31-2010 at 02:45 AM. |
06-04-2010, 07:25 PM | #11 |
Drives: Yaris 1999 3dr Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: London
Posts: 3
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once i've polished my headlights can anyone recommend a way i can apply a layer of this silicon based UV coatings? i'm sure there must be something i can buff on buff on or something but i've done a few searches and cant find anything specifically for polycarbonate (seen it for glass - would this work?)
thanks for the help! |
06-13-2010, 04:48 AM | #12 |
Drives: Yaris 1999 3dr Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: London
Posts: 3
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ok i can vouch for the effectiveness of the metal polish
i used Autosol metal polish (the one in the tube) and it works wonders. Seriously effective. I still need something a little more permanent which will leave a layer over the newly polished headlights so that they don't discolour so easily again. |
06-13-2010, 12:24 PM | #13 | |
Drives: 07 Yaris LB Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Fort Lauderdale
Posts: 179
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Quote:
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06-16-2010, 05:19 PM | #14 |
resident senior
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Dude , wax works perfect .
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06-16-2010, 08:02 PM | #15 |
Drives: 2008 Yaris HB Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: University Place,WA
Posts: 828
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www.griotsgarage.com their glass polish works perfectly on headlights,I have used it on about a dozen cars now.....all of them had plastic lenses except for one......then a coat of wax or polish once done and they are good as new.
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04-17-2013, 11:30 PM | #16 | |
Drives: 92 volvo Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: indiana
Posts: 2
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Quote:
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04-18-2013, 03:56 AM | #17 |
Drives: 2007 Toyota Yaris Hatchback Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 323
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look at the OP's date.. thread resurrection!
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04-18-2013, 10:14 PM | #18 |
Drives: '10 Yaris LB Polar White Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Albuquerque
Posts: 248
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