Cleaning yellow headlights.

Any tips/products that you all know of to remove the yellowness from the headlights?
Thanks!

 

[X6StringerX]

Is the yellowing on the inside or outside?

If its on the outside, there are a couple different methods you can use. I've seen kits that sell for around $20 in parts stores, but I've never used one. When I cleaned my Explorer's lights, I used Turtle Wax Rubbing Compound and applied it by hand with a terry towel. I then used Turtle Wax Polishing Compound to bring back the shine. Mine weren't severely yellowed, so your mileage may vary. You can also try wet sanding with 1500 grit sand paper and then move to 2000 grit. You may need to go beyond 2000 to get the results you desire. Finish it up with some polishing compound, not rubbing compound, and that should do the trick if they're really bad. The key is to be patient.

 

[gluciano]

I believe the yellow is on the outside, I am going to try the sanding method to see what results I can get.
Thanks

 

[rama1200]

sandpaper and drill with polish disk....
I just cleaned my wife's avalon's lights... I tried the store kits, but I guess the lights were beyond past that point.... so I did some sanding, then I did use a lens seal, and did some polishing with my drill and a soft/cloth disk...

Also, baked the lights in the oven to open and reseal to cure a moisture problem on the inside.... (I took the opportunity to paint some of the case/reflectors on the inside black...)

I still can some scratches from the sanding, but they look way better than with the yellow dirt (which was on the outside)...

so far no moisture on the inside...

I'll post

 

[r3bl]

i found out you can use collgate toothpaste. i acutally tryed it to see what would happen and it worked. my headlights were not yellow but they were not as clear as they should be. this really helped my fog lights. i dont know how it would work on really yellow headlights but if they are just a tiny bit yellow you might want to gibe this a try. just rub it on with a cloth and rinse off.

 

[matemorh]

Wet sanding is the way to go! But in doing so you are removing most of the UV absorber/film. Your lens will fade/fog/yellow faster!

 

[gluciano]

Lol, I never thought toothpaste would even be considered, I guess it does remove smoke and coffee stains lol..
I'm going to do a light wet sand to see how it turns out. As always, thanks for the suggestions.

 

[eXcali]

I went the wetsanding route and couldn't be more pleased! Once I finished a couple different sanding grits I cleaned it up and put Megular clear plastic cleaner/polish on it and buffed it with one of those Mothers balls and my drill. I have to reapply about once a month, but it only takes a few minutes.

 

[BrooklynBay]

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65938

 

[eXcali]

If you have the yellow cracking oxidation there is nothing short of sanding you can do to fix it. I wish I had taken pictures 3 years ago when I did mine. It looked almost like the scales of a fish.

 

[X6StringerX]

The headlights in the Mustang I just bought are NASTY. Maybe I should do a before and after with those... hmm...

 

[gluciano]

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=65938

That's pretty cool!

 

[Bill Kemp]

Cleaning & polishing the lense can help a lot. Clearing out the yellow is always a good thing.
However, when I considered doing this on my 96 X I also noticed that the chrome reflective surface inside the headlight was very dull looking. And as far as I know, there isnt any help for that. Sometimes new headlights are the most cost efficent solution.