Best Headlight Restoration Kit?

[ElectroBoy]

Hey, if your headlights are so bad you’re thinking of replacing them, you’ve got nothing to lose by trying this “3 minute headlight restoration” method. No need to buy polishing kits with successive grit pads and compounds.
I tried it on some nasty Subaru headlights and it really worked well. Then I coated them with a UV sealant.

The essentials:
Clean headlights well.
Scrub headlights with 0000 steel wool.
Clean again.
Wipe headlight in one swipe with acetone-soaked towel.
Let dry.
Treat with UV sealant.

If this link doesn’t work, on YouTube search for “3 minute headlight restoration”
YouTube

 

[bsthe]

A kit can only get you so far. Regardless of brand, water sanding with fine grit sandpaper, high speed buffing, and finishing with UV coating is what's important.

 

[nvestor88]

I used Mother’s polish. Surprised, it came out pretty well! Do two applications.

 

[keakar]

like Invi4drz mentioned, youll want a good clear coat or else these kits or w.e. you do will fade back sooner than you'd like. i used a turtle wax on one of my headlights and it looked kickass after - super clear. about a month later and it deteriorated again or began to anyway. i have tried kits and wax for various vehicles on tired headlights and never found any that worked well for a long period of time. i have rockauto TC replacements that i'll
throw in when i get a chance...a multi step wetsand and buff + clear might work but when all is said and done a replacement light might be a better option.

yep, and even with a clear coat it doesnt last long

just replace the lights with aftermarkets and you are good for 4-5 years

they are made to be replaced and trying to polish plastic back clear again is a futile effort but it can make them serviceable for an extra year or two if you want to spend all day polishing them every 2 weeks

 

[Rocko9999]

Any long term solution short of replacing the entire assembly?

 

[MikeinNH67]

Any long term solution short of replacing the entire assembly?

What do you call long term? I did the Chrisfix restore that you can find on youtube. It's been 3 years maybe and they still look good.

 

[blackjackck]

I have a corded polisher but used the Sylvania restoration kit with the included sandpaper and it worked well on my mom's Sequoia.

The important part is using a UV resistant clear coat or you will be polishing the headlight every year (I speak from experience). The Sylvania kit has this that you wipe on and while it has only been on the Sequoia a few months, it gets awesome reviews on Amazon.

I agree, I used this kit by hand. There's Youtube video that walks you through the steps. I was able to restore 3 sets of headlights with one kit, of course I was very judicious in my allocation of the supplies. After the UV resistant clear coat completely dried, I sprayed Meguiar's G17804 Keep Clear Headlight Coating. I know its over kill but I didn't want to redo the headlights every year.

 

[Rocko9999]

What do you call long term? I did the Chrisfix restore that you can find on youtube. It's been 3 years maybe and they still look good.

2-3 years? The lenses I have restored and sprayed with the Mequiars clear coating all fogged and yellowed in 6 months or so.

 

[MikeinNH67]

2-3 years? The lenses I have restored and sprayed with the Mequiars clear coating all fogged and yellowed in 6 months or so.

I'm at a minimum of that time with the route I went and they still look good. Didn't buy any kits just sandpaper and clear coat like mentioned in the video below. Pretty simple procedure just make sure you do thin coats with the clear coat or you'll get a cracking look.

How to Restore Headlights PERMANENTLY - YouTube

 

[TejasRunner01]

I’ll agree with the poster above, I’ve used a bunch of kits, you can expect 6 mo to a year for all of them.

But my new favorite thing is using the Mag Aluminum polish. It is a one step process, works really good. I use a stiffer foam brush attached to a drill.

There are various ways to keep the headlights protected from UV, but my suggestion is to either wrap them yourself or get a profession to wrap the lights. Those clean uv films are hard to install but so worth it!

 

[MikeinNH67]

I'm at a minimum of that time with the route I went and they still look good. Didn't buy any kits just sandpaper and clear coat like mentioned in the video below. Pretty simple procedure just make sure you do thin coats with the clear coat or you'll get a cracking look.

How to Restore Headlights PERMANENTLY - YouTube

While searching for something else I happened to find my old post on resurfacing the headlights, it was November of 2020 so it's been awhile but they still look good.

Post 34816 on this thread:
https://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-...u-do-your-4runner-today-2322.html#post3565729

 

[Az4runnin]

Wet Sand 1000 grit then Clear Coat. That's what we do at our shop. I thought there was more to it, but that's all we do.

 

[Rice400]

We have good luck with 3m kits at work

 

[Az4runnin]

1000 grit then clear coat before and after.

 

[Ed_C]

1000 grit then clear coat before and after.

What do you use as a clear?

 

[Az4runnin]

What do you use as a clear?

No clue we are a collision shop. Boss is the painter so I'm sure it's high-end stuff.

 

[EdmundGTP]

2K clear, 2 part urethane is the way to go