Headlight Thoughts

F

fadyasha

Member
Location
Bahrain
Name
Fady Asha
Hey Guys,
I've been around and about trying to figure out what to do with my headlights. For those that don't know I've got them blacked out on the inside and angel eyes installed. With the extreme temperatures here they've gone real bad in terms of yellowish and sanded like anything. Vision is a nightmare! Took it around to some few shops (seeing i'm not having the time anymore to this myself), and basically they're telling me it can't be done from the inside since we got plastic housings. I know this is Bull but I was planning for the Sport headlights/Tail lights anyways, and about to pull the trigger on them.

Option 1

1- Fix or buy clear headlights (redo the same mod)
2- Buy the sports version (Won't paint the housing but probably do a single Angel eye)

I like change and i'm getting a bit bored with my infiniti LOL!

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This week i am going to get mine painted and install the halos i dont think the weather will effect me as much as it has effected you. If i was you i would go with option 2
 
sanded and yellow?? do you mean the clear plastic part of the housing?

Get some quality compound and buff it, then some nice polish to Polish it, and then coat it with a high quality sealant.
The vehicle being over 10years old the uv coating tends to fail. I do a quick fast wax on my headlights with a sealant type wax every car wash and it is clear as new. For OTC products Meguiar's Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish as it's a decent 2step. Doing by hand takes time and skill, drill attachments can be bought fairly cheaply, or a fairly decent random orbital polisher can be had for under $90 from harbor freight.

GL
 
If it's yellow, it's from the UV exposure and heat. That's all on the outside so it definitely can be wet sanded and polished out. Maybe look into having a body shop do it, the work is the same.

This is a very common problem on all cars since for the last 20 years or so, headlights have to be plastic. Sometime in the mid '90's is when the switch happened I believe. The UV coating wears away and the headlights yellow.

The only way the inside of your headlight would be oxidized or yellow is if you used some sort of paint that off gassed and stained your lens, but that's very, very rare. Most paints are fine.
 
That's a very tough dilemma. Once you start sanding the inside of the headlight lens they are pretty much done at that point, eventually its going to start discoloring again. If you do choose to get another set of headlights and mod them, be sure to make sure you seal them properly to prevent future leaks/discoloration.
 
jbaker1121 said:
get new plastic
Click to expand...

umm, i'm pretty sure that can't be done, you sure about that?

la_fx35 said:
From where/whom?????
Click to expand...

My thoughts exactly, and yeh i've done all the research i could about this. I've asked around and people have guided me to another shop that says he's specialized in Plastic headlights so gonna go over today.

The problem is that seeing I drive plenty of highway miles on a day to day basis between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia yes the plastic is completely demolished. It's not faded and yellowish only, but more of sanded Dots everywhere on the inside.

I'll take a picture of it's current state later tonight with lights on so you could imagine it more lol
 
So passed by the shop mentioned earlier (Philipino guy) that worked magic on my trailblazer and VW Passat in the past. He pretty much told me this is different and can't restore it 100% but maybe around 70%-80%. he said the plastic housing itself from the inside is damaged and that it's not condensation but more of minor cracks because of the heat :( To make it worse he was gonna charge me a good $140 for it too.

Anyways, the way it's going looks like i'm gonna pull the trigger on the sports :D
 
If it's cracking on the inside, it may be from when the headlights were taken apart. If they get heated up too much, it can cause "crazing" where you get tiny cracks on the inside. Or it may be from the heat cycles in your area. I would make sure to not heat up and cool down the lights too quickly if you're taking the new set apart. Not much you can do about the heat in your area though. And maybe look into clear film to go over the lens. You can't see it but it will prevent a lot of the damage on the exterior such as chips and pits from sand and road debris. It will also help with the UV in your area.
 
I wet sanded my new headlights with 100 grit and put 3 coats of UV clear coat, looks like new.
 
^Was reading a lot before doing that, was scary to paint over, but came out great. 1000 grit is recommended for a clear coat to stick well. Anything above 1500 is a no go.
 
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