I'M BACK......hopefully.......

[Haylands]

Most proprietary leather cleaners/conditioners will remove it, or saddle soap, I usually slather on a thick coat of conditioner, leave it for 30 mins, then wipe on, and off, some more when it has had a chance to soften the stain.... Be careful if you have perforated leather as it's a pain to get out of the holes if you lay it on thick...!!!

 

Mind you some years ago I bought a Grand Voyager to take extended family on holiday as it was cheaper than hiring one for a week, the beige leather seats looked black, I totally wetted them out with Mr Muscle and then scrubbed them with a scrubbing brush, made sure I washed it all off and they came up like new, I fed them once a week for a month... I sold the car to a mate who had it for 3 years and no detriment came to the leather, still looked good when he sold it, so you can go mad as long as you make sure you clean it well off the surface....!!!!!!

 

Lots of kits around to restore headlights, it doesn't last long as the UV protection is the first thing that goes, hopefully Jon can find out what they used...

[Chris Skelton]

Seem to recall that Brasso works on lights....but don't quote me! Someone DID post a series of posts on this on here somewhere (are you there?)

The SC430 is a sleeper, I'd say. Seems to have the same quailty as LS. Was never quite sure about the looks and not a fan of open tops, but I can appreciate it.

Always thought the (Non) back seats were silly. Neil E (I think) fron SC430 section has put in a stupendous hi-fi in this space. I was sorely tempted to buy his car just for that - being a hi-fi fan (before I decided to 'downsize' and drive small, simple car.)

The best SC was the Ser 2 version that came in JUST BEFORE the tax rate changed (from £250 to £500, I think)

Cruise about in character!

[jonthetourist]

15 hours ago, Glover said:

Hi.  two questions one for Jon and one for Peter.

Jon.  What did you use to clean your headlights; they and your car look great

Peter.  How did you get the Jean stain off?  I have the same problem but created by me not a previous owner!

Thanks

I used money!
I have a very good paintshop I have used for years and it is one of those things I happily delegate to people more talented than me. Interestingly, he said the design with all the chrome made it one of the best-looking headlamp restorations he had ever done.

Jon

[sorcerer]

On 30/09/2017 at 12:44 AM, jonthetourist said:

The paint shop man said I can clean them up and they will be the same in 12 months, or I can clean them and give them a new UV coat for a bit more, so I went for that.

Sounds like you took your car to a body shop to have your lights refurbed instead of doing it yourself, so if you don't mind me asking, what did they charge and do you know what they used for a UV-resistant top coat?

[nickd]

Sheffield Headlight Restoration seem to do a very good job.  When i was last at Lex Tek I noticed a RAV 4 that had the lights done and they looked new.  Apparently they charge £35 a side.  I may get mine done..... or just use Brasso!

 

[Cotswold Pete]

2 hours ago, nickd said:

Sheffield Headlight Restoration seem to do a very good job.  When i was last at Lex Tek I noticed a RAV 4 that had the lights done and they looked new.  Apparently they charge £35 a side.  I may get mine done..... or just use Brasso!

 

£35 seems a fair price given how much time it takes to do along with materials. Assuming they UV sealed as well

 I will be aiming to do mine properly next  time, where as about 12 months ago just did a five minute rub down with T-cut, which does make a difference, but without using a UV sea,l the light clouds up again.

Still T-cutting every year may be an answer - if you just need a PoundShop price solution.

[Chris Skelton]

Never had these 21st century problems in the 'old days' of glass lights! (Just the odd smashed one?)

[Glover]

Thanks for the replies Pete and Jon.  I think I was a bit impatient the last time I tried cleaning the stain off; sounds like the secret is to leave the product on to do its work, doh:-)

I've used 3 grades of wet and dry; 1,000, 2,000 and finish with 4,000 grit to clean lenses before.  That worked well but went yellow after a while; I think UV seal is required if its to last.  I also did a quick job with a magic sponge for an MoT; that did a decent job and only took a couple of minutes but again didn't apply UV seal.  I've also tried smokers toothpaste.  It's ok on light yellowing but not as good as the magic sponge and takes much longer.

The key to all of this appears to be that once restored, then whatever you use unless you seal the lens it will go yellow again.

A thought.  Is there any benefit in applying sealant to perfect lenses to keep them that way or is it a waste of time and money

[Malc]

I remember saying before on this forum, somewhere, that my indy tells me that there is a rather permanent solution, well, like new,  and will last for very many years, and that is to have a good body repair shop " do " the lights with the proper trade kit that they use.  It used to cost my indy about £28 for the trade kit and some effort/ work ......  makes a repaired car look like new AND he assures me will last for many many years.

All this buggering about at home is often quite futile .....  pay the £80/100 to the bodyshop but make sure that they know what they are doing

Malc

[dendonc]

3 hours ago, Malc said:

All this buggering about at home is often quite futile .....

Agreed.....

[Cotswold Pete]

12 hours ago, Glover said:

A thought.  Is there any benefit in applying sealant to perfect lenses to keep them that way or is it a waste of time and money

I would think that if the surface of the light is 100% smooth, with no micro scratches then applying a sealant works, though it will break down as UV light (which can be from your headlight, as well as sun) will break down the coating.

If the surface has scratches (even ones you cannot see) then it would probably harbour organics material which would grow under the seal and mean it would break down quicker.

Agree that the professional route is time saving, but eventually the lights would need re-doing as the coating breaks down as part of its natural life. 

Also where you get bigger pitting in the light this probably harbours gunk that works away at the surrounding seal.

I bit or research seem to show polycarbon caoting at manufacture has a lifetime of 10 years before UV breakdown occurs, but the wear and tear on a headlight would accelerate this.

I redid my headlights with T-Cut on Monday, and though not as good as new, I get a way cleaner beam, and night time driving a little easier.  I did not coat, seems to be a bit of a debate on lifetime of coating, anything from 1 year to 4 years! What seems to be clear is that a decent coating is not cheap, so a workshop job would be good value in my view.

The joys of owning a car without glass lights.