Cleaning headlights

I

integraoligist

New member
what could i use to restore headlights on a Mercury Sable?



as far as cleaners go i have:

Mothers Chrome Polish

Mothers Plastic Polish

Meg's Cleaner Wax

Bug & Tar Remover

AIO

#80

#83



ideas?
 
I've used the Mothers Plastic Polish by hand with great results. I've even polished solar light lenses with it with great results. I use it with a MF applicator.
 
well, scratchx nor Mothers plastic polish didnt do anything.... it looks like theres a clear coat of something comming off the headlights, ideas?
 
Oxidation maybe? Cut through it with something more aggressive, then step down the abrasiveness. I had a really trashed set that PlastX wouldn't touch. I started with OCP via wool pad, then OCP via foam, than PlastX via hand. Came out amazing.
 
You can always wetsand plastic if the oxidation is BAD. Since they're plastic, you can followup with a good polish and it should be good as new again.



Does anyone else wax their headlights? I've been doing it since the first day and I haven't had any oxidation problems yet.
 
Heh, by wool I mean a wool pad on a rotary. Now that I think of it, truzoom is probably right. Try 2000 grit paper on it first, that'll cut through anything no prob, and it'll be easy to polish it out. I did a minivan with faded mirrors, and after 2000 grit and PO85RD via cyclo, they looked better than the paint.



Try this, now that I've gotten my mind out of bed :)



2000 grit wetsand

Menzerna IP/SSR2.5/DACP via rotary/cyclo/pc/hand

FPII/#80/SSR1 to finish (same method as above_

PlastX via mf app if necessary (shouldn't be)
 
truzoom said:
Does anyone else wax their headlights? I've been doing it since the first day and I haven't had any oxidation problems yet.
Click to expand...



Yes I wax/seal my headlights just like any other part of the car.
 
themightytimmah said:
Heh, by wool I mean a wool pad on a rotary. Now that I think of it, truzoom is probably right. Try 2000 grit paper on it first, that'll cut through anything no prob, and it'll be easy to polish it out. I did a minivan with faded mirrors, and after 2000 grit and PO85RD via cyclo, they looked better than the paint.



Try this, now that I've gotten my mind out of bed :)



2000 grit wetsand

Menzerna IP/SSR2.5/DACP via rotary/cyclo/pc/hand

FPII/#80/SSR1 to finish (same method as above_

PlastX via mf app if necessary (shouldn't be)
Click to expand...



i've got a few sheets of 2000 grit left too... i'll test it out and use the ScratchX to buff it out in a small area.



i'll let ya know how that goes!





WickedLTZ said:
No one mentioned trying Plexus?
Click to expand...

i've heard of this before, is'nt that the 2 or 3 stage stuff that you find at a bike shop? i can't recall.
 
I just tried a new product that I might be offering. It worked really well. Much better than anything else I've tried over the years.



aspireheadlight.jpg




Supposedly it has a 2 year warranty too.



Sadly though, I doubt I'd ever find enough customers to pay for the kit.
 
well, i attempted to sand a pice down with 2000 grit... didnt do ANYTHING... made the lens nice and smooth though.



after i sanded a piece i scrubbed a little with my finger... i think the etching is inside the lens. dosent seem to be on the outside or the inside... but layered in the middle. never seen something like this before.
 
Headlight yellowing is caused by crazing of the plastic.



Therefore, sanding is needed to restore it.



The product I used is some strange WD40 smelling chemical used to wet sand with 400, then 1000, then 2000. Then a special cleaner (once again, smells like WD40 and something else) is used. Now the headlights look like absolute crap and the step 3 sealant is put onto it. Acts like a varnish or something because afterwards they're glossy and not scratched to crap.



I've tried plastix, I've tried scratchx, I've tried 3m rubbing compound, I've tried Brasso brass polish (worked well), etc etc etc. Might make it look better, but in a month it's back to yellow.





The NXT might mean plastic trim. It's hard to get wax back off of porous plastic. I wax my headlights and stuff whenever I wax.
 
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