Question for those who have polished their headlights

My headlights look awful so I'm going to polish them myself and then apply an Xpel film to protect from future damage. The question I have is, did you remove the headlight washers when you did the procedure or just tape them up? If you did remove it how is that done without destroying them?

Going to do mine this weekend and have the same question! One of my washer covers flew off and I have a replacement I'll put in when done, but for the other side I was thinking of just trying to pop it off so I wouldn't have to worry about it. The other thing I wonder is why people don't just remove the lights for the polish. In the DIY videos I have seen it seems folks just leave the lights on the car and tape up the paint all around. Considering how easy it is to just remove the lights why not just pull them off and do it on a table top or vise?

I taped (WRX) then used 400, 800, 1000, 2000 grit wet sandpaper. You have to apply clear UV coat over the fresh plastic. Takes 10 minutes per light to tape and sand.

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I think leaving them on the car provides additional leverage when sanding. Since they're odd shaped putting them in a vice and securing them might be difficult. I plan on leaving mine on the car myself even though as you mentioned it's easy to remove them. I ended up buying the 3M kit that attaches to my drill. Then instead of a UV coat I'm applying the XPEL film to the headlights which has the UV protectant built into it. Mine are really bad now so I'm looking forward to getting this done. Then next month I'm sending the car to be detailed for the first time in years. Since I've not been tracking the car lately (just had a baby) I figured I might as well try to make it look better.

The 3M kit will not be sufficient if your headlights are in bad shape. You can use the kit after you start with some more aggressive sanding. I tried it initially and end up starting at 1000 grit to get good results.

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What is considered bad shape? I went to the product reviews page on Amazon and found this link: http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/image...Z5HY.02.lg.jpg Not my car but my headlights are in similar condition. Mine can still show light without blockage but you can see that the layer on top is starting to break down. But I've seen some where barely any light comes through - that's not what mine look like. Any idea as to whether this is too far gone for the kit?

I removed mine from the car and also removed the headlight washers. I had to really go to town on my headlights to get them back into shape and I didn't want to risk chewing through the tape and scratching my paint.

If you can dig your fingernails into any of the pits/imperfections on the lense, you're gonna have to start with low grit, possibly down to 400 as someone mentioned. If its hazy and nothing more, you could get by with a 3m kit.

Just got this email from Griot's Garage, seems interesting. http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/...do?code=EMABPB Video http://www.griotsgarage.com/text/con...storation.html FWIW, my headlights were lighted pitted but looks good otherwise, I elected to just install the Xpel film over the lens after a light cleaning, the adhesive fills into the light pitting, and I can no longer see ANY pitting that was on the headlight cover under the Expel film, I'm amazed to say the least, and the headlights are now protected by this thick headlight protection film.

What brand of UV protectant are you guys using? Mine aren't too bad but are developing some crazing. I was going to use my high-speed rotary for starts to polish them before I went crazy with sandpaper or something like that.

Fernando, haven'tseen you at either autocross or DE this year. Hope all is well. A couple of points already mentioned that I want to go back to. When I did mine, I removed them from the car. Very simple and IMO makes getting to the edges easier. Go get a piece of 500 grit wet sanding paper to start the process. Keeping everything wet is key. Do it "north-south" and then "east-west". When you think you have ruined the lens, you are done with the 500 grit. Now start with the 3M kit and follow the directions. You will be stunned at the results after the final polishing compound. Here is what I did and posted over on the other BB. http://tinyurl.com/nycwsg8 Let us know how easy the Xpel film is to apply.

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Any of the high quality synthetic car sealants with uv inhibitors should do. When I seal my car twice a year, I usually do the trims along with the headlights. Haven't had any issues for a few years now.

In re. "what UV protectorant are you guys using"...the XPEL overlays are the real deal. Once applied, they provide UV protection AND protection from rocks, corrosive insect splashes, etc. I think these are far more effective and longer lasting than any spray-on protectorant. relinuca

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Yes there are a couple of raised areas where I believe whatever coating is on there is now causing a rough surface. We just had a baby two months ago so part of the summer was spent preparing and now I'm trying to play the role of the good husband and father by spending as much time as I can at home. I was going to go to the October DE/Club Race but it just so happens I have to fly to San Francisco that week for work and won't get back until Saturday afternoon. But I'll be back next year and then I can hopefully start getting my new son into these cars! Thanks for the recommendations on the sanding. I'll start off with the rougher grit as others have mentioned here then I'll move on to the 3M kit. As for the Xpel I watched the video a few times so tonight I'm picking up a heat gun as that should help a bit. I'll let everyone know how it goes and will document the process with photos. Wow I'm going to have a busy weekend - oil change, headlights, and have to overseed the lawn. All of this has to take place on Saturday as Sunday is reserved for football.

You don't need a heat gun; it takes just a few seconds with a hair dryer.

Removed them. Two person operation one activates the other grabs washer when it pops up.

Another method (worked for me) - hold about 15 psi air on the supply tube while you unclip the chrome cover.

careful "unclipping" the chrome cover part it is easily broken and $48.oo each. Ask me how I know

They look pretty flimsy, maybe I should just tape around them.

Just did mine + the Xpel. Left the washers on with tape. No problem at all. Removed the light assemblies from the car and held them in my lap as I worked on them. Mine were not too bad to begin with, and the Xpel makes them perfect. Make sure you use distilled water with IPA and a drop or two of Dawn for your slip solution. Spray & soak EVERYTHING. Do NOT NOT NOT let any of the dry adhesive side touch any wet adhesive side. You will not be able to get them apart without deforming the Xpel a little, and you will see it in the finished product. Sigh!.

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Thanks for the tips! Tomorrow morning I begin!