Can i make my headlights clear again?

[Street $layeR]

hey guys
was just wandering if its possible to safely remove the rust from inside my headlight and as well clean the inside one time to make it look clearer, it has a faded yellow brown colour now as most old cars do.

[eddie926]

If you actually want to clear the inside of the headlight you'd have to bake it open, then clean it then put it back together and seal it shut.

If you just want to clear the outside, that's a much simpler matter. I'd start there first (unless you've already done that), and see how good I could get it from the outside before I'd mess with baking them open, etc.

Outside can be cleaned up substantially by using Meguiars PlastX or a similar abrasive polish. If you want to get more aggressive you can start with 2000 grit wet sand paper and sand them first, then polish them after the sanding.

Here's a video on the subject. The guy in the vide uses a rotary polisher which speeds things up a lot, but you can polish them by hand too. Also, he starts with 800 grit sand paper which seems pretty aggressive to start with to me, but hey, it appears to work for him

http://youtube.com/results?search_qu...e&search_type=

[Street $layeR]

Originally Posted by eddie926

If you actually want to clean the inside of the headlight you'd have to bake it open, then clean it then put it back together and seal it shut.

If you just want to clean the outside, that's a much simpler matter.

Are you sure it's the inside you want to clean?

yeah eddie i do, plz help

just that my bro says it can be risky opening up,,something to do with resealing it

i just wana take out the rust and the layer of dirt buildup

[eddie926]

Try some searching in the GEN3/GEN4 Camry forum. Somebody posted a thread there awhile back on how to bake your headlights open. I've never tried it. Looked like too much hassle to me. If mine were bad enough to warrant doing that, I'd just buy some new ones off eBay.

[Pb]

I'd just buy a new set on Ebay or something. The rust has probably stained the inside of the light.

[Street $layeR]

Originally Posted by Pb

I'd just buy a new set on Ebay or something. The rust has probably stained the inside of the light.

there not that easy to find man like corolla lights,, i dont think even have them for sale
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[Street $layeR]

Originally Posted by eddie926

Try some searching in the GEN3/GEN4 Camry forum. Somebody posted a thread there awhile back on how to bake your headlights open. I've never tried it. Looked like too much hassle to me. If mine were bad enough to warrant doing that, I'd just buy some new ones off eBay.

can u help me please find this thread i cant seem to find it

[eddie926]

Originally Posted by Street $layeR

can u help me please find this thread i cant seem to find it

Yeah, let me take a look. Also, what year is your Corolla?

[eddie926]

Here's the thread I was thinking of.

OFFICIAL Gen. 3 Clear Headlamp DIY Thread

Unfortunately, it looks like the pictures are no longer posted, so all you get is the written instructions. If you search the Gen3/Gen4 forum for the word bake or baking, you'll come up with more threads.

Couple of things....

1) I notice reading over it, that the author recommends preheating the oven to 300-400 degrees. I've seen several other posts that say you should only heat to 200-275 degrees, because you may melt the plastic at higher temps. Being on the safe side, it may be better to go with a lower temp.

2) If you're going to attempt this, you may want to make sure you have some source for getting replacement headlights in case you trash yours trying to fix them.

3) Don't be angry at me if you try this and it goes south. I'm not recommending that you do it. I've never done it myself and personally would not mess with it. The only way I might mess with it is if I already knew I could get a replacement in case I messed it up. So, you're on your own if you try it.

Here's another post I found in Google with a DIY

http://www.jlevisw.com/Bake.pdf

You should be able to find more info with further Google searching. Try searching for "baking headlights" or "clearing headlights", etc. You may also find other sources for replacement lights.

Again, I don't know what year your Corolla is, but there are a bunch of Corolla headlights for sale on eBay.

Good luck.

[Street $layeR]

Originally Posted by eddie926

Here's the thread I was thinking of.

OFFICIAL Gen. 3 Clear Headlamp DIY Thread

Unfortunately, it looks like the pictures are no longer posted, so all you get is the written instructions. If you search the Gen3/Gen4 forum for the word bake or baking, you'll come up with more threads.

Couple of things....

1) I notice reading over it, that the author recommends preheating the oven to 300-400 degrees. I've seen several other posts that say you should only heat to 200-275 degrees, because you may melt the plastic at higher temps. Being on the safe side, it may be better to go with a lower temp.

2) If you're going to attempt this, you may want to make sure you have some source for getting replacement headlights in case you trash yours trying to fix them.

3) Don't be angry at me if you try this and it goes south. I'm not recommending that you do it. I've never done it myself and personally would not mess with it. The only way I might mess with it is if I already knew I could get a replacement in case I messed it up. So, you're on your own if you try it.

Here's another post I found in Google with a DIY

http://www.jlevisw.com/Bake.pdf

You should be able to find more info with further Google searching. Try searching for "baking headlights" or "clearing headlights", etc. You may also find other sources for replacement lights.

Again, I don't know what year your Corolla is, but there are a bunch of Corolla headlights for sale on eBay.

Good luck.

thank you so much man!!! they're both great lol i had no idea there were so much procedures involved.

oh and the car i'm drivin is a sprinter marino

thx again!