UV damage is an unfortunate disadvantage to the otherwise more durable plastic headlight lenses of today. Sure they don't shatter like the old glass units did when hit by road stones but the sun has got it in for them. Cars that spend most, if not all of their lives outdoors suffer from this condition first. But even cars garaged from day one will eventually suffer from some sort of hazing or cloudiness.

Case in point: my mother's 2002 Lexus RX300 has been garaged since the day we brought it home and even in cloudy Oregon, the elements have taken their eight-year toll on the plastic headlight lenses. I had time to kill tonight so I went about bringing them back to their former clarity and hopefully improving night vision.

Process:
1000 and 1500 grit sandpaper soaked for 15 minutes in Griots Car Wash and water mixture
Makita 9227C
Lake Country Orange
Lake Country White
Menzerna SIP
Menzerna Super Finish
4-Star UPP

The whole process took about an hour for both lights but the result was worth it! Enjoy.

Here we are in the before pictures. Like I said, not as bad as some cars that spend time in sunnier areas (i.e. Arizona and Florida) but still enough to be noticeable.





The majority of the UV damage is at the top of the lens which is the most exposed to sunlight. It is much more visible with the lights on.





The 1000-grit paper creates a very foggy lens. To compare the haziness that it gives, look at the turn signal and fog light lenses below as they were not sanded.



It is important to keep the surface lubricated during the sanding process. The bottle I am spraying contains a car wash soap and water mixture.



And....the AFTER PHOTOS!!!!







Thanks for looking!

 

I should add that this was my first wet sanding attempt and I'm very happy it turned out as well as it did.

 

Looks great!

 

Wow-what a difference that makes.

 

I did this on my TL and also on my moms 97 Dodge Intrepid and it made a huge difference! The light output was almost doubled.

 

Sweet, i need to do this too.

 

 

Damn, thats a huge difference, good work Andrew!

 

Thanks, guys. I took it out for a drive on a dark, unlit road and the improvement was most noticeable with the high beams on. It's like having new lights at a fraction of the cost. Plus I made $30 off the deal.

 

You polished them without taping off anything? You are good

 

Nice work, difference is huge!

 

FAIL...

just kidding, it happens

 

But won't they just haze up again over time because you wet sanded off the UV protection?

 

Yes, that will happen again but I'm going to try to stay one step ahead of it by maintaining a coat of 4-star UPP sealant on the lenses.