I will be restoring my faded headlights soon with wet sanding and polishing but I don't know what to protect it with. At first I was going to buy a cheap can of clear coat from bunnings for $13 but realised it probably won't provide me with UV protection to stop the oxidation again.
Any ideas? Thanks very much.
Not quite. After a sealant.
eBay appears to have every kit under the sun available - I'm interested to know feedback on particular brands as well if anyone has experience. Without a recommendation I'd be tempted to go with Meguairs (one would hope they would know their stuff)
http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601…
I've used Meguiar's PlastX Polish for years. Removes any light oxidation and small scratches really well.
I know they sell Meguiar's headlight protection kits as well but I can't comment on how they work as I've never used it.
I don't know if there's any sales on at the moment but it's usually around $19.95 at Supercheap Auto.
Do you put any sort of sealant on after you polish it? If not, how regularly do you polish it?
I'm by no means an expert so I'm only commenting on my personal experience.
In answering your question above I guess it depends how bad your headlights are and if you're opening them up?
The headlights on my previous car were very hazy/yellow. I had to bake them in the oven to open them and gave it a good clean with water/light sandpaper, used Meguiar's PlastX and resealed them carefully. Continued to use Meguiar's PlastX every couple of months on the outside to keep them crystal clear.
Still use it on my new car every 3-4 months to keep the headlights looking like new.
Start with 400 grit wet and dry sand paper…bump by 200 and go till 2000 grit.
Keep spraying water while you sand it in circles by hand…work on small areas instead of the whole headlight
Once you are at 2000 grit the headlight will be full of micro scratches
Mix Brasso with Autosol metal polish and Scratch X, apply in circles over the entire headlight.
Keep it away from your paint.
Get an orbital buffer, start buffing the headlight with the above mixture on it. (You can put little bit on the buffer's pad as well).
Make sure you have few extra buff pads. I use 1 to apply the mix, and a separate for each headlight to polish and buff it after applying.
Wash your headlight with water, make sure all the mixture is gone.
Apply a sun protection film, grab one from supercheap/auto barn. You either get films or liquid solutions.
It takes me 6+ hours to do both the headlights on my cars and they look brand spanking new.
Toothpaste and toothbrush?