Is there an easy way to clean up headlights ?

[bcraig]

I have a 2013 Ram 1500 That has a few scratches and smears on the headlight lens.
Looking for some suggestions on how to easily clean up these old healights.

 

[RoadRamblerNJ]

Just did the plastic covers on my wife's Avalon. They were pretty bad. I use wet sand paper starting with 400 grit and progressively go to 500, 600, 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, 4000, 5000, 8000. You have to remove the oxidized plastic, not just buff it. Use lots of water. Yeah, it takes time (lots of time) but they look amazing now. Then use a high quality wax to seal it.
There are faster ways but none better.

 

[20IndyRam]

I have a 2013 Ram 1500 That has a few scratches and smears on the headlight lens.
Looking for some suggestions on how to easily clean up these old healights.

4th Gen headlamp lenses are mostly vertical, so they don't normally oxidize that badly. Unfortunately, they have a crap ton of surface area and none of it is flat. The lens is also "tucked in" to the body work making it difficult to finish without affecting the surrounding panels.

I'm not sure what a "smear" is, but it doesn't sound good. Depending on the depth/quantity of scratches you may be able to get away with an light polishing compound. If the scratches are deep you will need to wet sand as @RoadRamblerNJ indicated. I normally stop at 2000 grit and use a polishing compound afterward. I basically treat a headlamp like a black painted body panel.

If sanding, I normally remove the headlamp assembly from the vehicle so I can get to all the corners without damaging the bodywork. It's a bit on a pain on a Gen4 - https://duckduckgo.com/?q=2013+ram+...i=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRaWwnCuFeU

Last (and maybe most important), use a good sealer. I started using Rejex on my 5th gen back in 2020 to keep bugs off the front end. It's wonderful stuff. Lasts over a year on the front of the truck, and allows me to wash/wipe bugs off without scrubbing. I used Rejex on the headlamps of my 2006 Chry 300 2+ years ago. They are still looking great. I can't wait to get my daughters 2004 Taurus back in the garage to clean/seal the lenses.

 

[bcraig]

Just did the plastic covers on my wife's Avalon. They were pretty bad. I use wet sand paper starting with 400 grit and progressively go to 500, 600, 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, 4000, 5000, 8000. You have to remove the oxidized plastic, not just buff it. Use lots of water. Yeah, it takes time (lots of time) but they look amazing now. Then use a high quality wax to seal it.
There are faster ways but none better.

Good information
Thanks

 

[bcraig]

4th Gen headlamp lenses are mostly vertical, so they don't normally oxidize that badly. Unfortunately, they have a crap ton of surface area and none of it is flat. The lens is also "tucked in" to the body work making it difficult to finish without affecting the surrounding panels.

I'm not sure what a "smear" is, but it doesn't sound good. Depending on the depth/quantity of scratches you may be able to get away with an light polishing compound. If the scratches are deep you will need to wet sand as @RoadRamblerNJ indicated. I normally stop at 2000 grit and use a polishing compound afterward. I basically treat a headlamp like a black painted body panel.

If sanding, I normally remove the headlamp assembly from the vehicle so I can get to all the corners without damaging the bodywork. It's a bit on a pain on a Gen4 - https://duckduckgo.com/?q=2013+ram+1500+headlight+oxidation&t=ffab&atb=v343-1&iax=videos&ia=videos&iai=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRaWwnCuFeU

Last (and maybe most important), use a good sealer. I started using Rejex on my 5th gen back in 2020 to keep bugs off the front end. It's wonderful stuff. Lasts over a year on the front of the truck, and allows me to wash/wipe bugs off without scrubbing. I used Rejex on the headlamps of my 2006 Chry 300 2+ years ago. They are still looking great. I can't wait to get my daughters 2004 Taurus back in the garage to clean/seal the lenses.

The smears I am talking about are my fingerprints that are there because of my repeated handling the headlight's as I put new Headlight bulbs in and the while there are some scratches they are not deep and I need to put the lights back in so I can use the truck again.

I think that I will try the light the light polishing route as there are just a few scratches and very shallow scratches.

I do most of my buying from walmart
What would be a good light polishing brand to buy ?

Thanks for the links and good information

 

[20IndyRam]

Sorry - haven't been online for awhile...

I used many Meguair's polishes over the years (swirl removes and the like). My goto is the Turtle Wax polishing compound - Turtle Wax Polishing Compound

 

[johnsiii]

Including a picture of mine on my 2012 Ram. I've tried working on these several times, using wet sanding techniques, polisher, etc. Basically every suggestion I've read about. I've never been able to get them looking new. I'm wondering if I should just replace them. If so, anyone have suggestions on what to order?

 

[20IndyRam]

I have never had good luck with aftermarket headlight assemblies. The reflectors always seem to be subpar - poor focus. OE assemblies appear to be $355 a side. If the oxidation is on the outside, you should be able to wet sand and remove it. If the discoloration is on the inside (condensation) that's a bit different.

You could try taking the truck to a detailer to see what they say.

 

[ppine]

There are some good products now to remove oxidation of the plastic. Even tooth paste will work.

 

[hubbard]

Watch the videos of Scotty Kilmer. He usually has some videos on these kind of things with a vast amount of years of experience. He recommends Meguiar's PlastX and it works.

 

[Just Bob]

I use Mother's mag wheel polish (about $9.00 a jar) and then a good wax! Turned yellowed lights on my wife's Infiniti shiny clear in minutes. It was lying around the garage and I was out of Meguiars...

 

[duckman631]

Turtle wax headlight restoration kit is always my go to. Just did my daughters 2004 corolla.

 

[aszumilo]

Including a picture of mine on my 2012 Ram. I've tried working on these several times, using wet sanding techniques, polisher, etc. Basically every suggestion I've read about. I've never been able to get them looking new. I'm wondering if I should just replace them. If so, anyone have suggestions on what to order?

These are what I put on my 2011. They look good, especially with the gray truck

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CBSF8WTF?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details