96 OB

can anything be done about these to clean them?

Glass lenses have their advantages....

I used a mild fiberglass polish on our's, worked good, not origional but much better.

96 OB

can anything be done about these to clean them?

Glass lenses have their advantages....

 

Try a search on this subject.

 

Generally, 2-3-4 finer stages of wet sanding with a good wax or maybe a clearcoat spray. There are plastic polish kits too IIRC for this.

 

(CAFE standards means getting the weight down - plastic wins over glass for weight. Some European market cars had (still have?) glass while we were getting plastic)

 

Carl

I had the same problem on my 98 Legacy GT. I just cleaned the headlights and fog lights(what a joke) with the two part 3M plastic cleaner and polish. This stuff works very well. It took about 5 minutes a light and they looks like new. It also helps smooth out small pits from rock chips too. It also works great on CDs.

 

Any good auto parts store should carry it.

 

http://www.autogeek.net/3mplascleanp.html

 

I also have had success with Mother's mag and aluminum polish. A friend who is a BMW mechanic recommended it. It works, but takes much more effort then the 3M cleaner.

 

Rob

There were a couple of good threads on this last Fall. Do a search. One method suggested was brake fluid - but it absolutely had to be a fresh bottle of Subaru brake fluid. Look it up, I'm not fooling.

Try reading up on this thread->http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=57486

96 OB

can anything be done about these to clean them?

Glass lenses have their advantages....

 

wow, this has been a hot topic lately

I guess with the sun coming out more often, people have had a chance to wash off the winter crud. That's when they really see how bad the headlights can get - especially compared to the crystal clear stuff on brand new cars (like the new Outbacks.....arf).

Several times a year I'll "wax" the lenses with whatever car paint-care product I happen to have laying around.

 

I've been doing it since the car's been new and aside from the requisite stone pits, the lenses look as clear as ever.

 

Apparently the easiest way to "remove" the yellow is to not let it happen.

 

**** ******!

total newb here, and first post as well. first off i know very little about cars and mobile wiring/engines, so appologies in advance.

 

how does this yellowing occur in the first place? i just got a great deal on a 95 legacy LS, and only one headlight is clouded with the yellow haze i've been reading about.

 

-Thanks.

I believe it has to do with the UV resistance of the plastic used to make the lens. Most older cars with plastic headlights seems to get yellow like that.

 

I found out brake fluid turns them white:mad:

 

You should see some of the crappy old (insert big three auto of choice here) driving around detroit. I they looking like yellow foglights in the dark. It is a good thing there is not vehicle inspection here, or those people would be SOL

 

Rob

Toothpaste. Just take some Colgate, put it on a rag, and buff the lens by hand. It doesn't take that long, you can use plenty of pressure and you are not going to go too far, since the toothpaste is a very fine abrasive. This works on the clear plastic dashboard cover, too, but you cannot push as hard.

 

Meguiar's NXT is fine for treating the lens after you wash the toothpaste off. It seems to help delay the onset of yellowing.

There is also polish available at autoparts stores, the two part system works best.

 

nipper

I got something at autozone over the weekend and did the lights on my legacy and my moms legacy and it was freakin awesome. It comes in a kit and you use a drill to buff them with these special pads. I did a friends 98 Grand Cherokee (you know how they get really bad) and in a matter of minutes they were almost like factory new.

 

oh and what I got at AZ was only $11

It seems on my Outback that the yellowing is on the inside of the lens.

 

I am going to try the toothpaste method tomorrow.

google yellowed headlights, there lots of information out there, as we are not alone.

 

nipper

This kinda makes me long for my 87 GL 1800 with a 2 barrel and dual range.

 

That had glass headlights.

i miss the dual range, i dont miss the 2 bbl with its miles of vacume lines

 

 

nipper

Those HL look good.

 

I am going to fix the HL on our 99 Legacy SUS when I redeploy.

This looks like a nice relaxing project to sit on the back porch and complete.