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Old 10-24-09, 12:25   #1 (permalink)
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CarCleanO is offline
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2000 Corrola Headlight Restoration

Taken with my cell phone so the quality isn't the best

Before:





Close up of a headlight


Aaand the afters




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2000-corrola-headlight-restoration-2009-10-24-13.39.24.jpg  2000-corrola-headlight-restoration-2009-10-24-13.39.38.jpg  2000-corrola-headlight-restoration-2009-10-24-13.39.55.jpg  2000-corrola-headlight-restoration-2009-10-24-14.34.21.jpg  2000-corrola-headlight-restoration-2009-10-24-14.34.44.jpg  

2000-corrola-headlight-restoration-2009-10-24-14.35.10.jpg  
 
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Old 10-24-09, 12:30   #2 (permalink)
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Re: 2000 Corrola Headlight Restoration

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Old 10-25-09, 05:06   #3 (permalink)
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Re: 2000 Corrola Headlight Restoration

Care to share the process?
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Old 10-25-09, 05:30   #4 (permalink)
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Re: 2000 Corrola Headlight Restoration

Sure!

These lights actually weren't particularly bad compared to others that I've done. You can use a heavier grit when wetsanding if necessary

I used:

IPA
Wetsanding paper, #1500 grit (all that was necessary)
Meguiar's Sanding Block
Spray Wax
Transmate "Fast Cut" Compound with a yellow wool pad on a DeWalt rotary.
MagnaShine paste wax

Cleaned the lenses with IPA and masked down the surrounding area with tape. I used the spray wax as a lubricant for the wetsanding process. I wetsanded until the headlights were smooth to the touch and were no longer producing any sort of grime in the uplifted plastic. You can tell by the color - if it's yellow you're still removing contaminants. Cleaned the headlights again and buffed to clarity with compound and buffer. Applied paste wax, waited about ~15 minutes and wiped them down with a MF.

Only thing I can think of to note is that you have to be just as careful when buffing plastic as with paint. I have certainly burned a headlight in the past :P.
 
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