Foggy Lenses

The OP does not state which particular type of headlight lens in the post. Restoring acrylic vs. glass makes a big difference.

Many aging acrylic lenses fog throughout the thickness of the once clear lens. Buffing off the surface is only a temporary fix. Also, if moisture gets inside the lens assembly, the reflector inside the lens oxidizes over time so the assembly loses the sharpness of the beam pattern/focus and the light generated goes all over the place instead of where its needed. Look at the back of the assembly at night with the headlights on to see if this is the case with your particular headlight assemblies. You should not see any bright spots and the back of the reflector should not glow. If it does, often replacement is usually the only fix that will restore full performance.

Chum lee

Strabo wrote:

eDUBz wrote:
1200 wet sand and 3M rubbing compound with a buffer, or wet sand with 600 and re clear coat which will last the longest everything else is just temporary.

Did the same.

Yup, you have to do something to put back the UV protective layer or the clear plastic will quickly break down again.

eDUBz wrote:
1200 wet sand and 3M rubbing compound with a buffer, or wet sand with 600 and re clear coat which will last the longest everything else is just temporary.

Did the same.

Get a quote from a body shop to polish them. Mine were $80 for both, but I brought them the lens ass'y. They looked new.

Just get the 3M kit and quit playing around. It has several grades of abrasive, round drill head and masking tape. There are plenty of headlights that you can't get to with a ball (I've tried, I have 5 of them) and if you do use it could rub off the paint adjoining, or simply not get to the edges. Flitz works as a polish as long as you can get to the lens. I'm now using headlight polish that supposedly has UV retardant in it but grinds as good as Flitz

1200 wet sand and 3M rubbing compound with a buffer, or wet sand with 600 and re clear coat which will last the longest everything else is just temporary.

Twomed wrote:
Flitz... polishes but will not scratch the plastic.

Yup! Flitz and a power ball will work great

There's a pretty good youtube video on how to do it with fine grit sand paper and clear coat paint that supposedly makes it permanent where some other methods apparently don't last.

I've tried a number of things, including a couple of those $20 a pop kits. But the very best I've found is a pack of 2,000 grit wet or dry sandpaper (for if it's really ugly) and an 8 ounce bottle of "BlueMagic Headlight Lens Restorer," which I got at Advance Auto 3 or 4 years ago for like $12. That 8 ounce bottle is like a lifetime supply, as it takes maybe a teaspoonful to do both lenses, and it works like a charm. Of course, you do have to redo it every 6 months or so, but it only takes about 5 minutes per lens. When I get done, the lenses look brand new.