There are a plethora of videos using various techniques from 30 second spray-and-wipe miracle solutions to day long slogs with multiple grades of sanding/polishing/coating/buffing.

Frankly, I'm lazy and am HIGHLY unlikely to spend more than an hour working on such a project myself. In fact, it's very likely indeed that I'll just pay a detail shop to do it for me.

At the moment, it's just the Tundra with it's 11 year old headlights that needs some love. Not horrible, very little yellowing and a half hour with some Meguiars plastic polish yielded visible results but there's a ways to go yet.

What products do you use and how much effort is required?

Toothpaste, water elbow grease. You can use a buffer if you have one.

Have you priced new aftermarket lights? just wondering, looks like they are around $80 a pair. Bought some for my Silverado that were more than that a few years ago, holding up fine, don't have to redo every couple years.

I used a headlight specific product and it was easy. Mother's or Meguires brand probably. From the local auto parts store.

Used a battery powered drill and several abrasive disks. I believe a bit of water was used during 5he process.

I don't remember the details, but it wasn't difficult. Sitting or kneeling to do the work was the hardest part.

Amazing results, like new.

There is a bunch of YouTube videos on stuff that temporarily clear it. The problem is they're temporary. You're going to hear stuff like use Deepwoods Off to chemically remove or toothpaste to abrasively remove.

The better approach is to look at the root cause of the hazing/yellowing. Headlights have a clear coat over them to protect the plastic and it's failing when it gets cloudy or yellow. If you just use chemicals or abrasives (compounds, sand paper) to remove the hazing you still have the unprotected plastic which will rehaze. Often times the rehazing occurs in 6 to 12 months.

Therefore, the solution is to BOTH remove the hazing/yellowing and apply a coating that will protect the plastic. A few options:

Wet sand and spray with clear coat (longest lasting)

{What I did} Use Cerakote's kit which includes wet sanding paper and a ceramic coating. Ceramic coating should last a couple years and be a lot less work than masking and taping for spraying clear coat. The Cerakote headlight kit is $16.88 at Walmart and YouTube detailing channels that do head to head it places 1st or 2nd. You can spend a lot more money on kits and get a lot less longevity. I'm over a year in on my 2016, and there has been zero degradation visually or water beading.

Use compound and remove the yellowing/hazing and then apply a sealant (lasts about 6 months).

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Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity

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@tatortodd - exactly the sort of information I was looking for. Thank you.

The headlights on my Mazda I’ve been getting hazy and I’m too cheap to pay someone $200 to sand and seal them.

I did the following and it worked just fine. They aren’t crystal clear like brand new but pretty clear and good enough:

1. Use a baking soda toothpaste, water and a polishing pad on a drill

2. Do above as needed by hand with microfiber towel

3. Rinse headlights off with hose well and allow to dry

4. Mask off headlights

5. Apply 3-4 THIN coats of Meguiar’s Headlight Coating. Comes in a small spray can, you can order it from Amazon. I believe it’s a clear coat plus UV protection.

I did this sometime ago and the headlights are holding up pretty well. I’m thinking I may have to do it yearly.

I also had success using the CERAKOTE Ceramic Headlight Restoration Kit.

It will take a bit longer than an hour to complete the process, but in my opinion worth it.

The process includes cleaning, wet sanding (with different grits), and applying a single coat of Ceramic.

I did the headlight lenses on my 1999 Tacoma about three years ago and they still look great compared to what they looked like.

I would suggest the 3M headlight restore kits with sanding disks/compound. 1 kit per headlight. Followed up by the new 3M Quick Headlight Clear Coat.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: DonDraper,

I used a collonite metal polish with a DA buffer, orange pad followed by a coat of fleet wax for UV protection. Took longer to mask off the lights than polish them clear again

I used the 3M kit on my wife's car, followed up with 2 applications of clear coat, looks great after 16 months.

quote:

Originally posted by rizzle:
Have you priced new aftermarket lights? just wondering, looks like they are around $80 a pair. Bought some for my Silverado that were more than that a few years ago, holding up fine, don't have to redo every couple years.

This is what I did, since the polish and shine kits work for about a year once the hazing gets going, Amazon had them, not factory replacements but clear and fit perfectly...

Link

I had this issue with my 2004 Silverado and my 2010 Tahoe. I jsut bought new headlights through a GM dealer's website. On the positive side they also came with new bulbs, which took some of the sting out.

I bought the 2004 Silverado last fall and considered aftermarket. The reviews of the light pattern were less than impressive.

Just go with an OEM replacement, IMO. I've had good results from Olathe Toyota.

Olathe Toyota

Project Farm did a test this year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyVCEbfrU-c


He liked the Sylvania and the Cerakote kits best.

Short of replacing the Headlight Capsule (THE Best Solution!), this post in the following thread by 'ScreamingCockatoo' (there's even a short video!) details what is likely the best/most thorough solution for headlight restoration:

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...860091205#8860091205

I myself am getting ready to use a 3M Kit to restore the headlights on my '09 Volvo S60 w/ 230K+ miles on it. I'd really like to spray something like what was recommended by 'ScreamingCockatoo' rather then the wipe-on solutions that come with most kits, though I may need to settle for something in the middle (in a spray can) as I don't have a Spray gun and have no plans to get one.

I bought replacement lens kits for our ‘06 Odyssey off Amazon for maybe $200, after reading that cleaning the old ones would only last for about a year. Installed them myself. It’s been 3-4 years and they are still clear.

Consumer reports rated the sylvania kit the best.

I used it on our Subaru with outstanding results.

Take it to Sam’s if you have one.
$35 and a 3 year warranty last time I checked. May be more now as that was a few years back.

If replacements are less than $200, that is the most logical solution.

The cost of the materials to do it correctly, and the labor will be so close to that $200 on one side or the other, that the decision makes itself.

I can do anything but brain surgery, and what it takes to recondition clear plastic*.

Most of these plastic components not only haze and yellow, but the plastic crazes and pervasive minute cracking means all that time and effort only buys a small return on continued use of them.

*(on parts that are not available, such as classic car parts, that require vacuum forming, and where tooling is more effort than reconditioning)

As others have said, the Sylvania kit (I bought mine at a local Auto Zone) is outstanding and always gets top reviews. Takes about an hour-ish to do. Includes sanding discs and a clearcoat-like solution that really is nice.