Will sanding remove this from headlights?

[pman626]

don't let the dealer "restore" them. They're going to sand and buff it, and make it worse, with premature yellowing and hazing.

I made that mistake with my lexus, and they did a s### job.

They want to restore it because the lights cost an arm and leg to replace.

I wish car companies would make replaceable outer lenses so people wouldn't have to spend a fortune to replace the whole headlight assembly.

 

[allenk4]

I wonder if the New Meguiar's Headlight Restoration Kit would fill those cracks

It has a spray Clear Coat/UV Protectant

 

[WA.Detailer]

I have sanded down and compounded dozens of those and most of them older Bimmers, with a Rotary and several 3" foam pads, sometimes, purple foam wool at the onset of the process..

If you ever sanded down enough to go through, you would have to be the first person ever to do that..

Its plastic, not a metal panel with 150 microns of material on it..

I would just sand it down wet with a block or a hard rubber square to keep it all flat, and finish with highest grit you can get - 3000 grit??

And compound it carefully not letting it get too hot, and eventually you can get it back to normal...

Lots of tape on all the painted edges around the lens, or if you really want to get crazy, remove the entire headlight from the car, find away to hold on on the bench, and do the same thing...

They make clear plastic UV protected coatings now that would be good to put on top of the perfectly cleared lens if you get to this point..

Or, Door-number-2 - let BMW do it - but first making the Dealer tell you that if you are not perfectly satisfied with their work, you will have them replace the lenses or the entire headlight assembly..

I know for sure on the lights in the early '2000 years, you could separate the lens from the light that you would buy from Hella who made them..

It is not an easy job because on some early lights, they have a plastic light adjuster inside there too, and they always break or will break if you have to mess with them so you have to buy those parts too..

Good luck with this !
Dan F

 

[rquino2000]

Thank you all for the feedback. I am looking at my options. If the dealer does not budge I would have to try removing them myself, and then apply a protective coating like the ones mentioned here.

 

[dmayer]

It looks like crazing, which can also be caused by a chemical reaction. It can't be repaired. Here is some information on chemicals that can cause crazing:

"The following chemicals may cause crazing, cracking, discoloration, or dissolving of acrylic articles and are generally not recommended:
Acetic, Acid, Butyl, Alcohol, Sulfuric Acid, Turpentine, Acetone Chlorinated Solvents, Toluene, White Cap® Cleaner, Aromatic Solvents, Lacquer Thinner, Lysol® Spray, Xylene, Benzene, Disinfectant."
Could it be they were cleaned with the wrong type of chemical?

 

[MD Detailing]

I'd be afraid of the cracks being too deep and you'll thin the plastic too much and it will simply crack again.

If your the original owner, I'd keep going back till they fixed it. That way if they do sand it too far, it's on them.

If there are cracks in the lens it's pretty much done, time for a new headlight unless you just want it clear like new. If the headlight is yellowish or cloudy to any degree sanding will pull it. 400 to 600 to 1500 then compound with xp compound threw auto magic and use a wool pad with a buffer like Makita, then use your buffer like Makita and put a medium cut foam pad with mothers cleaner wax. Now depending on how bad the lens is will tell you where to start with your paper; usually 1500 wet sandpaper will do it. This is the only way to truly restore a headlight for years. Yes and make shore to get painters tape and tape off around the headlight. One more thing, protective coatings are the worst thing to ever put on bc after a while just like plastic it will weather out and yellow bc the sun is a very very powerfulling thing lol. I love having cars that come to me with protctive coating on bc it breaks down and yellows unevenly and is very hard to remove so I get to charge for me time. If the plasic is restored in the way I mentioned, leave it alone, it'll last two or three more years, then just do it again.

Menders Detailing
Michael Oberfell
128 Girod St, Mandeville, LA 70448
[email protected]
Online Store

 

[SameGuy]

Those are... Interesting comments.

 

[cardaddy]

If it is indeed crazing within the polycarbonate, it is certainly unacceptable on a three year old luxury car. Unless they can prove some form of negligence or unintentional damage caused by improper care, it is most certainly a defect.

:iagree:

@OP:

The 'crazing' can, and often is, caused by heat INSIDE the lights as well. And of course is also inside more so than outside. Short of sanding through from the front till there isn't any plastic left and all you're left with is an open hole, you'll never get to the inner cracks.

For a dealer to be saying that those are NOT a defect is ludicrous!

While not a manufacturing defect, they are certainly 'defective'. Were they not... they'd not need REPAIRING! Headlights (or at least the outer housing) are not a serviceable part.

Yes, in years of late there have been made available "reconditioning kits" or "repairing kits" to both the jobber and end user, (of various quality and substance). That does not mean however that the original headlight hasn't failed to some degree. (If not totally and should be replaced.)

It's like being "A little bit pregnant". You either ARE or you ARE NOT.
There is no in between!

Those are... Interesting comments.

I was thinking EXACTLY the same thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[MD Detailing]

:iagree:

@OP:

The 'crazing' can, and often is, caused by heat INSIDE the lights as well. And of course is also inside more so than outside. Short of sanding through from the front till there isn't any plastic left and all you're left with is an open hole, you'll never get to the inner cracks.

For a dealer to be saying that those are NOT a defect is ludicrous!

While not a manufacturing defect, they are certainly 'defective'. Were they not... they'd not need REPAIRING! Headlights (or at least the outer housing) are not a serviceable part.

Yes, in years of late there have been made available "reconditioning kits" or "repairing kits" to both the jobber and end user, (of various quality and substance). That does not mean however that the original headlight hasn't failed to some degree. (If not totally and should be replaced.)

It's like being "A little bit pregnant". You either ARE or you ARE NOT.
There is no in between!



I was thinking EXACTLY the same thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:iagree: The cracks can't be sanded out unless you want a whole; it's time for a new lens once this happens. lol sanding like skin exfoliation cuts back all the weathering and open pores getting to a new surface with smaller pores and from that you get the length. the compounding and cleaner wax are just there to smoothen out the scratches from the sanding and give the lens its like new finish.

I'll be making a documentary soon to show the results from start to finish with two types of headlights: cracked and severely weathered and just severely weathered.:hungry: