Headlight restoration tools/kits?

Bearcats98

Bearcats98

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I searched around but didn't really see what I wanted. Maybe I just have horrible search skills. :D

My mother in laws 2010 Camry headlights are atrocious. They could barely be used for DRLs with main beams on. High beams on would not bother you either. Very hazy. Quality buckets with reputable lens/optics are 200 shipped (give or take a ten spot).

So my thought was that I could try to do this. Worse come to worse I eat my failure by purchasing new buckets. But I am also seeing this as a chance to buy new products or tools. I could also be bitten by the fact that the haze is also on the inside as well.

I have been looking around but really don't see much as to pros/cons of small polishers (Mighty Mini is all I really see?). Would it be worth it to pick up a Mighty Mini Extreme Headlight Restoration Kit kit or something similar?

The alternative is to pick up a 3M kit at a box store and use on a drill (I need a new one there too...lol). I am invested in the Milwaukee M18 system and their cordless drills spin up to 1800 RPM. Would that spin enough?

I hope this topic hasn't been beaten to death and wasn't able to find the threads.
 
I can't speak much about the mighty mini but I use the 3m kit with a Milwaukee m18 drill and have done several of those Camrys. It seems to be a common issue on Toyotas

The drill works great and can spin way faster than you need it to. If you buy a new drill try to get a bigger battery than the one provided or a second one. The 1.5AH battery will only last about 1 headlight (maybe less if they are very bad) whereas the 5AH battery will easily do both headlights.

If you hold the drill with both hands try not to cover the vents around the motor or else you'll get it really hot and it'll need to cool down before you can keep using it. Not that I would know nothing about that :)
 
Perfect! Thats the kind of answer(s) I was looking for. And on top of it Autozone is selling "refill" kits for the 3M kit for 5 bucks!
 
I started polishing headlights with a corded drill, and they came out fine, but be sure to put lots of tape on the paint and trim around the lights. Just keep the drill moving, and add more polish when it starts to dry out.
 
Spikey Mike said:
If they are absolutely terrible, you will need to wet sand them first, and then polish them out. I use this kit Mirka kit available through Autogeek on my Flex Pixie with 3mm orbit. Sand 500-4000 and then buff out with your preferred polish like Blackfire Polish. Make sure you tape off the headlight to avoid sanding the outside area.

MIRKA Abralon 3 inch Assorted Sanding Discs - 10 per box
BLACKFIRE Scratch Resistant Clear Finishing Polish
Click to expand...

Excellent advice Mike! And if you do wetsand, when you tape the area, make sure you tape a larger area than you think you need, and you may need to retape after a round or two of sanding, as the water will loosen the adhesive on the tape.

I found out the hard way on my friends black Cayenne GTS. I polished the car first, but sanded & polished the headlights later. When I was applying the coating to the headlights I noticed a sanding mark on the bumper under the lights. After the coating cured, I got the sanding paper back out and had to sand that spot, then polish it. Luckily for me (but not him), a year later his wife backed into the front end and it had to be repainted.

After that I always tape well outside of what I 'think' the work area will be - tape is cheap, repainting is not!
 
I have restored several different headlights. Some as bad as the ones you describe. I have tried a bunch of different kits as well as home-made remedies. (Toothpaste, baking soda, etc..)

Some used drills, some just used wipes, some were quite involved some were simple.

The best results were achieved using wet sanding and taking my time making sure to use lots of water and wiping down often to make sure that I had an even coverage. You need to start with a 600 grade to remove the oxidized layer. That is the surface that has yellowed and turned opaque from the Sun's UV rays. Do it in a circular motion and make sure to spend enough time to get it all off.

When you have a smooth surface to the touch, you are ready to go up to 1200 to remove the 600 scratches. Use plenty of water and you don't need much pressure, just time. It should start to look a bit clearer.

Switch to 2400 and repeat the process. If you want, you can go 3200 but, I usually don't.

Once you have sanded it all smooth, you now need to put a new protectant layer on the lenses.

Meguair's makes a great spray coating that works well for a year or two. There are others out there. You can even use a clear gloss spray coating that is UV resistant and is approved for use on exterior surfaces. Just use a bunch of light coats and build them up instead of fewer heavier coats. Of course, your results may vary.

On NEW lenses, I am using PPF. I bought LensGard from WeatherTech and got it on one of my lenses with no problems even in colder weather. (The other dropped on the ground, whoops~!)

For best results, look on AG for recommendations.

As for drills, some of the kits I looked at, required a higher spin rate than some of the corded drills I had. But, the cordless Ridgid drills I have were just fine. Just make sure that you have them in the higher speed setting.
 
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