When you first get your car, your headlights are nice and bright, and you can see quite a distance. However, as you use your vehicle, your headlights start to dim. It's not that the bulbs are beginning to burn out; it's because the lenses of the headlights take a beating. Just think of all the pebbles, salt, sand, and other road debris thrown up against your headlights daily. That doesn't even count what the weather can do to your headlight lenses. One way to get your headlights back to full brightness is to restore the lenses. This is something you can do yourself, or you can hire a professional to do it. No matter who is doing the restoration work, it happens in about the same way.
Wash the Lens
The first step in restoring your headlight lenses is to ensure they are nice and clean. You want them to be clean because you don't want to add any scratches to them while trying to restore them. Washing with soap and water and drying with a clean, soft cloth is quick and easy, and it will make sure your headlights are clean.
Sanding
Once your headlights are clean, you will need to tape them off. Get some painter's tape and tape around the edges of the headlight, covering the paint next to the headlight. You don't want to run the sandpaper over your paint. Then get a bowl of water and your sandpaper and dip your sandpaper into the water. Gently start sanding the headlight lens. Use the flat of your hand so you don't have just one point of pressure because that can thin out the lens or add more scratches. Dip your sandpaper into the water periodically because that will help keep the dust from sanding down and help keep your lens from being damaged.
Polishing
After you have sanded, gradually moving to finer and finer sandpaper, it's time to polish. You will want to use a microfiber towel and a polishing compound. After you have spent some time polishing the lens, it should look nice and clear again. Turn on your headlights and see how bright the light appears to be.
Having dim headlights can be a safety issue because you can't see, and people can't see you. You can restore your headlight lenses so your headlights will be nice and bright again. You can also take it to a professional detailer and pay them to do the job for you if it feels like something you can't do.
For more info about headlight lens restoration, contact a local company.
Have you ever noticed how similar with words "car" and "care" are before? This could just be a coincidence, but it is also helpful. The similarity of the two words serves to remind you that your car requires care. You should take it to the auto service shop regularly for oil changes, to have the tires rotated, and to have the brakes serviced. Neglect this care, and your car may not keep working very long, and it may not even be safe to drive. We invite you to read more about auto service and auto care on this blog, where we delve into such topics in more detail.