A cloudy headlight fix recommendation
As you know, we bought a used car last year for our kids to learn on/use for commuting to work. It's a 2007, and the headlights on it were rather foggy/dim.
While Joshua was cleaning the car the other week, he tried the toothpaste fix I'd read about on the internet (you scrub the headlight with traditional, not gel, toothpaste) and it's supposed to make the headlights glossy again.
At first we thought this had worked, but nope. As soon as the headlights dried, they were back to being pretty dull.
So, Mr. FG did a little poking around online and found this highly rated headlight restoration kit for less than $20.
We ordered it, and Joshua followed all the directions to a T. There are a fair number of steps, and the process does take some elbow grease, but his headlights are significantly clearer and less yellow than they were before.
Joshua says he notices all the cloudy headlights on other cars now, and he wishes he could tell people they could fix it for $20 + a little effort!
Clear headlights make even an older car look far newer, and the light output is a lot better when the bulb isn't trying to shine through hazy plastic.
So.
If you've got cloudy headlights and the toothpaste thing hasn't worked for you, definitely give this kit a try.
Buy it here on Amazon for $19, or you can check a brick and mortar auto parts store as well (we got ours on Amazon.)
Woohoo! Way to get those headlights looking new again. 🙂 I used to have a car with foggy headlights and it does make driving at nighttime a lot less fun. Being able to see is awesome, especially for a sweet 'n' low $20. 🙂
$20 is definitely awesome! I haven't noticed any problems with my headlights (probably because I didn't even know there was such a problem as Joshua pointed out). Now I need to go double-check mine.
ours is on the inside and taking it out is like a horrible chore 🙁
YES! My mom has this problem. They clean the outside, but it doesn't help because the majority of the issue is that it's inside 🙁
I think Walmart now does them for $25. I paid my detail guy 40 to do my sons and they are like brand new.
I just checked their prices on their auto services and it was $29.88 for the headlights on a vehicle- but I think my Walmart is $25 because I saw it when I was in for one of their cheap oil changes (16.88). I guess you can call your local Walmart Auto Service for pricing since it probably varies according to where you live in the country.
Thanks so much for this recommendation. I'd been thinking about trying the toothpaste version, but ordered this instead. _And_ when I checked out, there was also a 20% off coupon available for this item, so it came to less than $15. Sweet.
Yes! We have this kit and it works wonders. My husband has to do it every few months but it's so worth it!
Oh, really? It has a lifetime warranty, so if his headlights are clouding up, you should be able to contact the manufacturer and get some help!
My son-in-law recently used this kit on our daughter's 2005 Civic, and the lights look great. It really does act like "youth serum" for the car, making it look newer and nicer. And of course, making it easier to see at night.
Plug here for the Civic, itself, too, which we bought new for her. Twelve years and NO repairs except for routine maintenance. It is driven every single weekday.
Sonia should set up an Etsy store or something. I would 100% buy a tiny stuffed otter from her if she did. Her little knit animals are too cute and she is so talented.
Wow! That's an impressive difference between before and after! I'll have to take a look!
I got hit by another car and so my left headlight had to be replaced during the repairs. It's really obvious that my right headlight is very clouded over, so I think I will give this a try. My Toyota Corolla is 17 years old and going strong. I have a 16 year old just learning to drive and I will probably pass it on to her in a few years and get a new "used" car for myself--trying to decide on one with great fuel efficiency but also one that gives me comfortable seating and good visibility (I'm short) is a challenge.
I also tried the toothpaste trick and while it was still wet it was totally clear. I was so disappointed when it dried and was cloudy again. I may have to try this kit since it seems like it works pretty well.
Toothpaste does indeed work well, but you cannot simply hand-scrub. To do any decent headlight plastic restoration, you really need to use mechanical means (a foam pad on a drill, for example). Make sure to not let the area you're polishing dry out, and don't linger on one section (which can burn/melt that location).
You do not need to get specific "headlight" kits -- most automotive plastic polish (NOT Armor-All or any surface treatment) will work. Meguiar's has a great plastic polish.
If you need to polish glass, Bon-Ami works well, or for more serious cloudiness removal, cerium oxide is recommended. Again, this is for glass only. As with plastic, use mechanical means.
I should add that the wet/dry sandpaper used in the mentioned kit (400, 1000 & 2000 grit) can be obtained at many hardware stores and auto body supply shops (the latter will also have handy flexible sanding blocks and the aforementioned plastic polish and foam pads), but unless the headlights have a really bad surface finish, you might not need the sandpaper (if your fingernail catches on the headlight surface, you definitely need it). You absolutely must keep the surface wet when sanding, preferably with a slow stream to flush the sanding debris. The flexible sanding blocks are very helpful in ensuring even pressure on the sandpaper, preventing you from sanding finger grooves into the plastic.
Good to know! I'll keep that in mind should we run into cloudy headlights again.
Hi Kristen,
$58 on Amazon.ca
Hi Kristen,
We just used the product from Amazon and amazed of the difference. The headlights look brand new!
Thanks for the information.
Arghhh, wanted to get the headlights restauration kit, but for us canadians it's 55$. Too bad 🙁
Someone spent $55,000.00 (Yowza!) on a brand new Infiniti 20 years ago. 2 owners and 13 years later we buy the car in great condition, and the only thing showing it's age were the cloudy head lights! We bought a similar kit at the local auto parts store and they look brand new! We've had 2 strangers offer to buy our hard-to-find luxury car.
Unfortunately, someone failed to yield in an intersection and crunched my fender when I hit them a few months back 🙁
On a frugal note: While now boogered up, my car is still drivable. Their insurance paid for the damage and we pocketed the cash to go towards our next car.