How to: Clean your headlights! - Ford F150 Forum

drmcstford · 10-18-2009, 05:50 PM

Since there are alot of people with Yellow Dulled Headlights and buying new headlights is an arm and a leg . This guide will show you how to due it for cheap !

There are alot of kits you can buy online for this I Bought the Flitz Kit that come with a ball to attach to a drill to buff, tube of Flitz Metal and Plastic Polish, and A piece of sanding wool. I prefer to use 1500 and 2500 grit wet/dry paper.

1. First thing you want to due is mask around the headlights so you don't scuff your paint when sanding. Make sure you due a good job! Like so :

2. Get a bucket of water and dip your 1500 paper and start sanding lightly. work you way in circles from left or right or any way you choose. Then after 4 mins or so, get the 2500 paper and dip it in some water and start doing the same thing. Make sure you keep the papers wet at all times!

3. Dry the headlight really really good and get your polish and microfiber towel out and start applying it to the headlight in a circular motion just using a bean size amount of polish at a time.

4. When your all done with it get your drill and attach your buff ball and get to work. Start from the bottom or up or up down. Take your time and make sure your drill isn't more than 2500 RPM! Work it and you should start to see a big difference like so :

5. Congrats your all done!! If you however still see it dark repeat the polish process till you get it how you want.

fastford04150 · 10-28-2009, 08:23 PM

good write up, i just did this two weeks ago on the wifes focus. Turned out great. The kit i got i did it all by hand. I took the lazy way, removed entire headlight (four bolts and a connector - i was also replacing headlight bulbs too), cracked a beer, sat down in front of patriots game on hi def, and proceeded to start w/ 1000-2500 grit wet dry paper, as i changed grit i changed direction, polished the heck out of it - took four or five polish cycles (really really dull) the headlights looked like candle sticks....put headlight back and repeated process! - what a difference i'll tell you.

G13 · 10-28-2009, 10:06 PM

very helpful, thanks! will be doing this over the weekend

gritz · 10-31-2009, 07:15 PM

3M makes a kit that does this same thing and works really well. It's about $20 from AutoZone and comes with all the sanding disks and polish. I did this on my Jeep and the results were absolutely amazing. I did a write-up on jeepforum. com, butI'm too tipsy to go looking through Jeep stuf right now. I'm still a little heartbroken about the Jeep thing.

1996 Redneck F150 · 10-31-2009, 08:15 PM

theres a cleaner called "soft scrub" with bleach in it.... put that on your headlights, and rub it in with a fairly rough sponge....the sponge that i bought is dark blue (rough) on one side, and light blue (soft) on the other side.... use the dark blue side and rub the soft scrub in real good, and then wipe it off.... my headlights on my truck were YELLOW and now they're clear

**kozal01** · 10-31-2009, 08:23 PM

good work! i had some deep scratches on my headlight from barbed wire (long story) wetsanded with 400, than 1000 and polished using 3M rubbing compound with a buffer and they look like new again.

1996 Redneck F150 · 10-31-2009, 08:36 PM

gotta be careful with a buffer.... my buddy used the soft scrub on his headlight, but he decided not to listen to me and used his dad's "high tech" buffer.... in the end, his headlight lenses looked like rainbows lol

**kozal01** · 11-01-2009, 01:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1996 Redneck F150

gotta be careful with a buffer.... my buddy used the soft scrub on his headlight, but he decided not to listen to me and used his dad's "high tech" buffer.... in the end, his headlight lenses looked like rainbows lol

the trick is to keep the heat down. buffers can heat up too quik if you go at it to hard.

**AZFX4** · 11-01-2009, 03:33 AM

Great write up. I'll try this when I got time.

The difference is night and day.

jamiedubs · 11-01-2009, 04:12 AM

using a hard comound wax or clay bricks of wax if you let it sit and use a buffer while you use spray wax works great too... lessens the chance of swirl marks