Simple Pleasures and Nice Surprises...

[RJM62]

Such as when the stuff you bought to clarify the headlight lenses on your old car actually works.

This is before:

This is after:

That's just with the compound. It took me about seven minutes total to do both the driver and passenger side lenses. There's an optional, additional step involving some sort of lubricant and progressively finer abrasive pads, which it's tool cold to fart around with today.

Anyone else enjoy any simple pleasures or nice surprises lately?

-Rich

 

[JB1842]

I pulled $20 out of my wife's jeans pocket after I did the laundry this weekend. Mine now.

 

[dell30rb]

what stuff did you buy?

I hate these plastic lenses. What happened to glass? Wish I still had my '89 cherokee.

 

[RJM62]

Turtle Wax Headlight Lens Restorer.

It consists of a bottle of compound that I used maybe 10cc of and probably will never have to buy again, a bottle of some lubricant I didn't use, three abrasive pads that I didn't use, and a sealant sealed in a packet that I didn't open nor use today, but which I'll probably use after I do the optional step on a warmer day.

-Rich

 

[Matthew]

I got really good results about a year and a half ago on my headlights with the 3M product. I really need to do it again.

 

[Gary]

I got really good results about a year and a half ago on my headlights with the 3M product. I really need to do it again.

I'll second the effectiveness of the 3M product. A bit time consuming but worked great. Still nice and clear after 8 months.

Gary

 

[Old Geek]

I got really good results about a year and a half ago on my headlights with the 3M product. I really need to do it again.

The process removes the UV protective film over the plastic. So you have to redo it every year or two. I opted for a pair of replacement headlight housings for the Subaru. After much shopping around I got a pair of aftermarket units for around $200.

 

[Clark1961]

Wish I still had my '89 cherokee.

I'll sell you a '79 cherokee...

 

[Matthew]

My understanding, and I'm probably wrong but whatever, is that the factory headlights come with some kind of UV coating over the plastic. Eventually that coating wears out and the plastic begins to oxidize or something. These headlight restore kits will polish the plastic lenses, but don't replace the coating. I have seen some kits with a bottle of 'coating' that can be applied after you finish, but I don't think there's really any way to get them back to original. I think that body shops do have the ability to put a real coating and cure it properly, but I'm not sure it's cost effective for a DIYer to get the proper chemicals and equipment. I think I'll just have to repeat this process every couple years, or until I get rid of the car.

edit : Well, I didn't type quickly enough and Old Geek jumped in with the details. Yeah, I did check the prices for replacement lenses for my car, in the $250 range each. I think I'll just spend $20 every two years for a while longer.

 

[denverpilot]

So the real question is, why are auto manufacturers stuck using this plastic that fogs this badly. Fogged headlights weren't a problem when we used this nifty stuff called glass... Heh.

 

[Sac Arrow]

It actually was just a fart. I thought it might have been worse.

 

[RJM62]

My understanding, and I'm probably wrong but whatever, is that the factory headlights come with some kind of UV coating over the plastic. Eventually that coating wears out and the plastic begins to oxidize or something. These headlight restore kits will polish the plastic lenses, but don't replace the coating. I have seen some kits with a bottle of 'coating' that can be applied after you finish, but I don't think there's really any way to get them back to original. I think that body shops do have the ability to put a real coating and cure it properly, but I'm not sure it's cost effective for a DIYer to get the proper chemicals and equipment. I think I'll just have to repeat this process every couple years, or until I get rid of the car.

edit : Well, I didn't type quickly enough and Old Geek jumped in with the details. Yeah, I did check the prices for replacement lenses for my car, in the $250 range each. I think I'll just spend $20 every two years for a while longer.

I guess that's what the sealant is that I haven't put on yet. It's cold here today and they're projecting snow tonight and tomorrow, and the sealant says it takes 24 hours to cure, so I figure another day would be better.

-Rich

 

[Matthew]

Looks like I can get replacement headlight lenses for around $100 each, for a total of around $200. I must have forgotten and thought the $250 was each, rather than the pair. $200 once vs $20 and some labor every couple years...

 

[DaleB]

I've just used Novus plastic polish in the past. Works like a champ. I've also found that aftermarket headlamp assemblies are pretty cheap, if I'm going to keep the car much longer.

Nate... we have plastic headlamp lenses because it's a hell of a lot cheaper to get big, complex shapes that change every couple of years done in polycarbonate than in glass, and the poly weighs a lot less and doesn't shatter. I would not be surprised to find there's a regulatory requirement for new cars to use plastic.

 

[janikpilot]

we have plastic headlamp lenses because it's a hell of a lot cheaper to get big, complex shapes that change every couple of years done in polycarbonate than in glass, and the poly weighs a lot less and doesn't shatter. I would not be surprised to find there's a regulatory requirement for new cars to use plastic.

Would aircraft landing lights use the same plastic? I don't think I've ever seen yellowed-out landing lights, so do they use a different kind of plastic or glass?

 

[Dan Thomas]

Would aircraft landing lights use the same plastic? I don't think I've ever seen yellowed-out landing lights, so do they use a different kind of plastic or glass?

The bulbs are normally glass. Those that are behind plastic will suffer the same sort of degradation as these new and improved plastic headlight lenses. I have seen yellowed plexiglass over them.

An airplane doesn't usually get the constant dirt and dust and salt and road film hacking at the lights like a car does. It's usually the heat of the light, or the sun's UV, that does it.

I do miss the good old glass sealed beams. My '51 International has them and they're as clear as when I put them in eight years ago.

Dan

 

[Henning]

Such as when the stuff you bought to clarify the headlight lenses on your old car actually works.

This is before:

This is after:

That's just with the compound. It took me about seven minutes total to do both the driver and passenger side lenses. There's an optional, additional step involving some sort of lubricant and progressively finer abrasive pads, which it's tool cold to fart around with today.

Anyone else enjoy any simple pleasures or nice surprises lately?

-Rich

Cool, thanks for reporting. yes, Collenite Insulator Wax. I use it to maintain almost all non fabric surfaces. You have to be careful with plastics and test a sample area first to see if the solvents in the wax react adversely with that plastic. I have only found adverse reaction a couple of times on cheap brittle plastics. For everything else from windows to brushed matt or polished stainless and other metals, hard paint to vinyl to varnish, even use it to polish and treat bare wood working it in with progressively finer Scotch Bright products and bronze wools.... Easy on, easy off, a little goes a long way using a damp Microfiber over foam applicator and a microfiber towel controls the dust on the wipe down. I can singlehandedly detail out the entire service area of a 115' yacht in a day and have it looking better than it ever did using only those tools and about $7 worth of product.

Before that I hadn't run across anything since Rain X and Micro Mesh kits for fixing aircraft glass.

 

[AggieMike88]

So the real question is, why are auto manufacturers stuck using this plastic that fogs this badly. Fogged headlights weren't a problem when we used this nifty stuff called glass... Heh.

SHHHHHH!!!!

I wants to sell more headlamps!!

Fogged over headlights is the most frequent reason I get requests for them. Broken ones are the close second.


We also use the 3M cleaning products to great success.

 

[N801BH]

Such as when the stuff you bought to clarify the headlight lenses on your old car actually works.

This is before:

This is after:

That's just with the compound. It took me about seven minutes total to do both the driver and passenger side lenses. There's an optional, additional step involving some sort of lubricant and progressively finer abrasive pads, which it's tool cold to fart around with today.

Anyone else enjoy any simple pleasures or nice surprises lately?

-Rich

I am impressed.. I assumed the major fogging was on the inside, where you can't get to... Looks like a headlight detail is now on my next weeks "to do" list... I will post pics..

 

[cessna182b]

The process removes the UV protective film over the plastic. So you have to redo it every year or two. I opted for a pair of replacement headlight housings for the Subaru. After much shopping around I got a pair of aftermarket units for around $200.

Be careful with aftermarket parts (I.E. get a guarantee). I bought a new "OEM Equivalent" taillight assembly (made you-know-where) - and the connector wouldn't fit. In the end I got a genuine used OEM assembly on eBay - and had no issues with it. Likewise a set of rear brake drums (part of a brake job). They vibrated like hell when applied above 30 Mph. Replaced 'em with genuine OEM and had no issues. The real ones didn't cost much more. Lotsa junk being peddled out there.

Dave

 

[HighFlyingA380]

I've heard toothpaste will do just as well. Can anybody confirm/deny this? I know it works well as a poor-mans metal polish, so I don't see why it wouldn't. Guess I'll give it a shot this weekend while I'm not in the tree.

 

[Henning]

All that's happenning is an oxidized lay of plastic is being polished off. As to UV protection being removed, it's long gone which is why the lens looks like that! Just replace it quarterly to maintain condition with something like STP Son of a Gun. As for toothpaste, it's too coarse of a compound for polishing plastic, it will leave a Matt finish.

 

[fgcason]

So the real question is, why are auto manufacturers stuck using this plastic that fogs this badly. Fogged headlights weren't a problem when we used this nifty stuff called glass... Heh.

Because cheap plastic is high tech leading edge advanced technology and advanced modern technology is always superior to old obsolete stuff no matter what. New is always superior to old.

And they can sell you 25 cents of crappy plastic for $100 every couple years instead of $10 of glass once every 40 years.

 

[Henning]

So the real question is, why are auto manufacturers stuck using this plastic that fogs this badly. Fogged headlights weren't a problem when we used this nifty stuff called glass... Heh.

Drag and weight reduction, it's part of meeting emission and fuel spec as well as price control. If you wax them every couple of months or hit them with some UV bearing sacrificial barrier spray every few weeks and prevent the problem. If you don't maintain your finishes with protective sacrificial sealants on a regular basis they degrade. Everything has a price, they price of aerodynamic efficiency and fuel $ savings is you have to spritz your headlight sheilds regularly to maintain their clarity, or you can polish it when it gets nasty. Remember, all plastics are hydrocarbons and subject to oxidation including rapid oxidation. The key is to block the oxygen from contact the plastic by putting a barrier in the way. You have to maintain these barriers pretty frequently to be effective. Most people neglect their cars, I know I do, I just put fluids and tires in/on them and drive.

 

[douglas393]

Other than in looking better, does it increase the illumination significantly enough to make a difference or do anything else that matters except for looks. My headlights are clouded over, but I see well enough at night with them that it has not bothered me enough to remove it.

Doug

 

[RJM62]

Other than in looking better, does it increase the illumination significantly enough to make a difference or do anything else that matters except for looks. My headlights are clouded over, but I see well enough at night with them that it has not bothered me enough to remove it.

Doug

I went grocery shopping last night (about 52 miles r/t) in the dark on very familiar roads, and yeah, it makes a noticeable difference.

-Rich

 

[Matthew]

Same results here. Before, when I had someone behind me at night, I saw the shadow of my own car in my own headlights. That's starting to be the case again.

It's the difference between having a headlight beam and a headlight glow.

 

[Henning]

Other than in looking better, does it increase the illumination significantly enough to make a difference or do anything else that matters except for looks. My headlights are clouded over, but I see well enough at night with them that it has not bothered me enough to remove it.

Doug

Yeah, makes a solid difference, although if you use those blue white light bulbs, I don't know which is worse to look at.

 

[iflyforfun]

So the real question is, why are auto manufacturers stuck using this plastic that fogs this badly. Fogged headlights weren't a problem when we used this nifty stuff called glass... Heh.

It is what people are looking for ... the auto manufacturers aren't "stuck", they are making design decisions that effectively exclude glass.

1981 Ford Escort vs 2012 Ford Focus (the Escort replacement)

Everybody wants "sexy" and this is one of the costs. Unfortunately, the days of the shade tree mechanic and trouble shooting and self-maintenance are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Every new generation of car is coming closer to disposable due to all the electronics and other complexities.

That said, it is pretty hard not to find the new Focus much more attractive than the original Escort. We as a society have spoken.

 

[kimberlyanne546]

Turtle Wax Headlight Lens Restorer.

It consists of a bottle of compound that I used maybe 10cc of and probably will never have to buy again, a bottle of some lubricant I didn't use, three abrasive pads that I didn't use, and a sealant sealed in a packet that I didn't open nor use today, but which I'll probably use after I do the optional step on a warmer day.

-Rich

OMG I think I paid like over one hundred dollars to do one of my headlights. Now the other one doesn't match. I will buy that stuff maybe if I want to sell my car but for now I don't mind my lopsided headlights.

 

[RJM62]

OMG I think I paid like over one hundred dollars to do one of my headlights. Now the other one doesn't match. I will buy that stuff maybe if I want to sell my car but for now I don't mind my lopsided headlights.

Hmmm....

I wonder if there's money to made here. Invest a few bucks in a cordless buffer, find a source for bulk compound, and advertise on Craigs List.

Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure in New York, I'd have to get a Motor Vehicle Repair Shop license.

-Rich

 

[AggieMike88]

Hmmm....

I wonder if there's money to made here. Invest a few bucks in a cordless buffer, find a source for bulk compound, and advertise on Craigs List.

Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure in New York, I'd have to get a Motor Vehicle Repair Shop license.

-Rich

I can see the headline...

"Old Duffer Buffer cleans headlights across NY State..."

 

[RJM62]

I can see the headline...

"Old Duffer Buffer cleans headlights across NY State..."

"Film at Eleven."

 

[imQ]

I've heard toothpaste will do just as well. Can anybody confirm/deny this? I know it works well as a poor-mans metal polish, so I don't see why it wouldn't. Guess I'll give it a shot this weekend while I'm not in the tree.

I don't know about toothpaste. I used regular over the counter auto polish on the wifes Intrepid and the neighbors van. Worked great on both. Waxed them with some carnuba. The Intrepid is long gone, but the van still looks fine.