Sylvania/Headlight restoration kit with UV clear coat (Review)

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/acc...er=272381_0_0_

Okay here it goes.

I was able to get it at Autozone for $20 +tax, all i can say is wow!

Unlike most headlight kits out there, this one has a UV clearcoat that supposedly last for a very long time.

The other kits lack this critical thing and stop at the polishing step and call it a day. (IE. Mothers headlight kit) which I used before and can personally say FAILED BIG TIME. As the hazing came back within a few months.

The Procedure: summarized for the forum (poorly), since they give you very good instructions

1. Tape off paint or just remove the light and take off the trim.
2. Apply a "prep" spray which removes old UV clearcoat
3. Wash it off, then sand with the grits (370 / 1000 / 2000)
4. Apply "prep" spray once more to remove any leftovers
5. Polish that baby!
6. Make sure it's bone dry and clean
7. Remove all tape or reinstall the headlight.
8. Apply the clearcoat in single wipes horizontally and overlap slightly with each wipe.
9. Let it dry for 4-6 hours. (no touching!)

IMO: When the clear is first applied to looks very shinny & reflective, but after about an hour the shine dims down and it looks decent.

Ill report back on this thread if it stays the same or ever hazes again. 1 month, then 5 months.

Pic 1: before / after (pass side had water in the lense... PITA to get it out)
Pic 2: After (1 hour after applied)
Pic 3: Before
Pic 4: Polished, no clear coat yet (lights on) pass side.
Pic 5: Clear coat applied (lights on) driver side.
Pic 6: pass side clear coat just applied

Very well done!
This kit was rated the best in Consumer Reports...

I've used the 3M kit with excellent results but I agree with Dking078 that it lacks the UV protectant. I will give the Sylvania kit a try.
Thanks for the write up

Originally Posted by aioros

I've used the 3M kit with excellent results but I agree with Dking078 that it lacks the UV protectant. I will give the Sylvania kit a try.
Thanks for the write up

You can buy the clear-coat separately at Auto Zone.

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums...ht-Lens-Sealer

http://bluemagicusa.com/index.php/bl...t_lens_sealer/

http://www.autopia.org/forum/car-det...-question.html

Jason,

Have you tried the Blu Magic sealant?


Steve

We should add this to the list ...

- Headlight plastic polishing & refinishing DIYs (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) & replacing just the headlight lens (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7)

Updated with 2 more cars

The E39 LCI lense was annoying me alot, having one good & one hazed was irritating so i couldn't wait for results on the other 5.
Overall the lense is about 90% oem look-a-like, If you focus on detail from 1 foot you can see minor imperfections, but any further it looks amazing!

The light beam from the xenon before would be "Reflected" on the lense a bit, but after this, it looks near perfect!

The X was the biggest improvement of them all IMO.

E39 pics show the grits, i only took pics of 400 & 1000. (FYI Pass side is still original, driver side is the only one that got redone on e39.)

This is truely one for the list bluebee!

So you did this by hand and without an orbital polisher or drill buffer wheel?

All by hand. I tried to alternate directions with each grit of sand paper (one grit L > R the next Up > down and so for.)

The clear coat is done by towel and hand (single swipes across the light) In this kit, polishing is a minor part, thus by hand is fine. The clear cost is the big finale. There is also a DIY by sylvania on youtube.



1 Month: All 3 cars still in great condition!

5 Months: Still looking great! Pics to follow

Update: Well... throw this one out too, it failed.

The X5 was good for 6 months (it saw rain, snow, ice, road debris, etc) and faded. I reapplied using the wipe method, now it's just peeling again.
2003 540i is still good, not as perfect, and there is some fade in clarity, no yellowing, just fade.
1997 540i, pretty much the same, but it was hardly driven.

Next test will be with a real UV clear any MANY layers of clear and take it from there.

Thanks for the long-term update!

This adds value to our knowledge level!

Thanks.

You may want to try a clear covering, like Lamin-X. I cringed at the price (~$50) when I bought it but figured I really didn't want to have to sand them again as our headlamps & front end get sandblasted here in New England. I've had mine on for 17 mos and 2 winters so far. Headlamps still look good. No new pitting and no haze.

$20 for almost a year still is not bad.. Just a little perfection is all needed. Thanks for the update.

I used the Turtle Wax headlight kit on both a 1993 Camry and 2001 530i BMW, and have enough materials left to do 4 more cars.. the Full kit with everything needed was $10.00 at PepBoys. It would have been almost $15.00 if I had gone to Walmart. It worked great on the cars. I can't see paying more if that kit worked for only $10.00. The only thing I used the kit didn't have was an old towel for final cleanup. Just reseal everything that still has use left in it, for some other day. They give you lots more than you can use.

Originally Posted by EconoBox

So you did this by hand and without an orbital polisher or drill buffer wheel?

The sand pads in the kit are like a fine sandpaper on a small square piece of heavy foam. Just hand scrub and wipe is easy.
you change from one pad to the next, to the next.. etc... until you reach the end of the process.

This job requires an orbital ball. Makes the job 1000x easier.
Those pads are crap.