Headlight help!

[LSHOWARD]

So i recently picked up my first lincoln.
ive had it for a couple weeks and i love it!
its a 2003 LS V8
the headlights on it were a bit foggy...so i used my meguires plastics on them and they looked better..but a few days later kinda foggy again so i decided to do it again and they looked good..now i notice they dont look as clear...

what can i do to get these headlights as clear as some of your cars on here!?

 

[Alax7]

You can wetsand and finish with that plastic polish

http://digmyhonda.com/wet-sanding-your-headlights-diy/


or use some pads with a drill or DA with some polishes.

I like his videos, "brother and his garage productions".

YouTube - Headlight Haze Removal - Part 1
YouTube - Headlight Haze Removal - Part 2

 

[bearsfan39]

that stuff looks like it works pretty well

 

[ViC]

so i've had a similar problem and i've gone to work 3 times on my headlamp (one is new so you can really see the difference) and i've had limited success. it looks better, but it's not like the other one. maybe i'm expecting too much...

but, here's the thing. if you used one that has the sandpaper on a drill bit (i used the 3M one the very last time and i kind of wish i didn't), then you need to be careful of 'smearing' the plastic. it's really easy to do, and unless you have experience, i'd suggest to skip these restoration kits (like the 3M one). it happens because of heat buildup.

so... do you have a hazy appearance because you 'smeared' the plastic? or is it because you have moisture leaking into the lens? if you suspect the moisture, pull the bulb out and put a hair dryer to the inside. if that's it, then just get some good sealant and redo the seals around the headlight.

o/w the only thing i can tell you is that i've been told you need to be REALLY patient, and take your time with this. as you can see in the video, and i've heard from alax7, it does work.

good luck!

 

[Alax7]

+1

The drill kits just sand the headlights, not wetsand, so be carefull with those like vic said.

The first time I did my wetsanded my lights I did my passenger side first and was tired from only doing that one. It took me a good 45min to do I think. My arms were tires but decided to try the other one really quick and rushed at it. I did the driver's side headlight in like 10 min and it looked worse than when I started. The passenger side looked great thought.

Just take your time with what ever method you choose

 

[rwurst918]

Try This

I have had multiple success stories and no failures with this process. It takes time, but is far better than these junk kits they are trying to sell. What you are going to need is 800 grit sandpaper, 1,000 grit sandpaper, 2,000 grit sandpaper, a polisher that fits on a grinder, and plastic polish for a wheel buffer (it looks like a crayon). Take the headlamp assembly off of the car and clean thoroughly. Wet sand by hand with the 800 grit until the headlight's roughness has gone away (about an hour). Then move on to the 1,000 grit and wet sand it until it is smooth and does not catch anything on your skin when you move your hand across it (about 30 to 45 minutes). If anything catches, wet sand again with the 800 grit. If needed, sand again with the 1,000 grit. Then wet sand with the 2,000 grit until it feels as smooth as a baby's ass (about 1 hour). Careful attention must be adhered to to make sure you do not burn the plastic and waste time sanding more or ruining your headlight. Attach the polisher to the grinder. Make sure the grinder is secured. Turn on the angle grinder. Apply the polish to the buffer until it seems as if it has covered the contact point of the polisher. Take the headlamp assembly and starting from the left to the right (or vice versa) press the headlamp lens against the polisher until you get the results you want. Make sure you keep moving the headlamp assembly at all times or you may burn the headlamp lens. Make sure that the polish is always coated on the polisher. When you believe that you have a clear lens, wipe off the excess polish on the headlamp lens. Repeat this step over until you have achieved the desired results. This does make a mess but will show that doing it this way will save you from buying new headlamps and last about 5 years (My fathers 2000 camaro headlamp lenses just started to fog up again after I did this exact process to them in 2005. I will be doing this process to my 04 LS also. It took me about an average of 4 hours for each headlamp to be done correctly.

 

[oddball]

I used a kit from the parts store that had three sanding pads (for wet sanding), a polishing compound and a sealer. I only spent about 30 minutes per headlight. So the results are not as good as what rwurst918 talks about, but they are a lot better than when I started!

Note that the headlights need to be sealed. If you sand/polish and stop there, then it will oxidize (although not necessarily within a couple of days). Need to use a wax or a sealer. Use the search - there's some good threads on processes and products others have used.