How to restore IS250 headlamps?

[MartinH]

On a trip down the A1 in north Notts recently, in dark and rain, I found the headlamps of my '07 IS250 worryingly poor. They have yellowed, of course, and I have polished them several times with a recommended product (Turtle Wax I think). But they dull again quickly. Lighting has improved a lot since that car was built, and I had wondered about replacing them with modern units. I looked at a couple of third-party products (VLAND etc), without much enthusiasm because the car has always had OEM replacement parts. Fitting new OEM headlights is very costly at Lexus main-agent price, but better lighting is one thing this car really needs to restore its all-round likeability.

What does the Owners Club hive-mind think?

[NemesisUK]

After polishing the headlamps did you apply a UV protectant? If not the plastic will quickly go dull again.

Fitting newer technology headlamps can bring all sorts of added complications, insurance and MoT compliance.

Maybe you could source a pair in better condition from a breakers yard?

[MartinH]

Yes, the polishing product was supplied with a sachet of clear finish that I assume is intended to do this, and was applied as instructed.

Your point on compliance and insurance is one that had not occurred to me, and is a further reason to avoid third-party headlamps. Does anyone know where I might find headlamps at a more reasonable price?

[Malc1]

Turtlewax provide two different priced effective products too

Malc

[Vintagesixtysix]

Are we talking standard halogen headlamps?

[is200 Newbie]

I have used a Turtle Wax product on our vans headlights and this was last year - the lights have not faded as of yet, 8 months of use ... (i did however spend a bit of time polishing them with various grades of sandpaper but used the turtle wax as a final process. I can recommend it as it has worked for me 

Turtle Wax Headlight Cleaner & Sealant 300ML | Halfords UK

 

[Herbie]

Headlamps yellow because UV radiation from the sun attacks and degrades the polycarbonate lenses and you have to clean off and get rid of the affected layers, which no amount of potions, lotions or other liquids/solutions can achieve.

The only way to do a good job that will last is to use a sandpaper/grit abrasive, such as those supplied in either the Meguier's or 3M kits (Meguier's video below). Once you've got rid of the damage and got down to 'new' lens, you MUST then use a good quality UV-resistant clear coat or they'll just be as bad again in a couple of months.

 

[MartinH]

Ah yes, it was a Turtle Wax product I used, employing all grades of abrasive pad that came in the box, finishing with the included sachet of 'clarifying' liquid. Is the Meguiar's better?

[MartinH]

New clear headlamp covers are available from PRC: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/175364725815

Does anyone have experience in fitting these? Presumably the old cover has to be pried off and the new one bonded on. Does not sound mad difficult. But a fiddle faddle no doubt.

[Herbie]

1 hour ago, MartinH said:

Is the Meguiar's better?

I don't have any personal experience of either, but according to a lot of detailing people/forums then I'd say yes, by a country mile.

[normski2]

I've read accounts ( on the US forum) of folk attempting a lens change and I don’t think it ended too well. I recall some having to resort to putting the whole unit into a oven to melt the sealant in order to get the old lens off, or trying to use a heat gun on the seam. It’s pretty easy to see what can happen to the main body as a result of this. Bear in mind you are needing to remove the front bumper in order to get the headlight unit out…. that’s a bit of a pig of a job.

I would go the sanding route and uv sealant. I’ve done it twice in the last 6 years on my HID unit lenses. Last time was about 2 years ago and they still look perfect. I also give them a good waxing twice a year. I used the Holts Restoration Kit.

I don’t think it’s a Halogen or HID issue … it’s just degradation of polycarbonate as has been said above. I see it starting to appear on the top edge of the lens on my wife’s Mx5, and they are Halogen.

[Linas.P]

Generally normal polish can get headlights back to shine, I have done that several times and I think I even have topic somewhere what I have used, but it only lasts ~1 year if lucky (last little bit longer for me as car is garaged). If you want long lasting results then the only option is to wet-sand the headlights, something like 600>800>1000>1500>2000 and then clear-coat them (generally automotive clearcoat has UV protection). This would give good 3 years.

The lens replacement is difficult, they basically bonded, but not with soft sealant like windows, but rather hard epoxy. The only way I can see it happening is taking Dremel or multi-tool oscillating saw and cutting the off, but it will be unbelievably messy and you will need to figure out how to fit the new lenses again. I assume using some sort of epoxy as well.

The big problem is that original Halogens are not great on IS250 and there isn't much you can do, even with clear lenses they are kind of weak. Vlands and similar aftermarket lights only look different, they do not shine any better, so kind of waste of money and time.

[Thelongterm]

I used the Meguire kit in Aug 2021 and the lenses still look like new.

[Vintagesixtysix]

I’ve recently redone mine after first doing them three or four years ago.

I reused the original 3m drill attachment kit I bought, they’ve come up fine.

Im going to put new bulbs in also (halogen), try another set of the 200% plus brightness type on OEM.

I nearly took the plunge on some LED conversion type (OSRAM) but decided against.

[H3XME]

If it's done right, it will last a while (polished up), but maybe it's time for Vlands? I love the look of them, and after having them fitted I say they're worth just for the light output. Night & day difference! 

[Spock66]

Have you tried better quality bulbs?

Osram Night Breakers are a significant improvement over standard.

Also are the reflectors in good condition or are they corroded / dulled?

[ahmed-abrar]

I've arranged for a local headlamp restoration  firm to visit at home & give my lamps the treatment! lets see how they turn out.

[SeanR]

Bought a kit on eBay a few years ago, think it was about £10.

various sandpapers and a buffing compound, sealer.

Made my old Stype R headlights look brand new.

Was supposed use a buffer but didnt have one, did it by hand.

Took a morning.

Wouldnt pay someone to do such a straight forward easy job

[SeanR]

This

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/353218817544?hash=item523d7b6e08:g:f4kAAOSw2khhEe-l&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAA8JRs7AMW6bucoH19%2FzqlDRwG9rgVrelKu%2FC5l6O65qw2rERkpypHg2F2CscULFNNxMjOL44np%2BS7p3rRzNVaen9UZr%2FRJNMyl2SsRSqMALLOs1R5BO5QlP%2Fk2jl15RU5tCjg5cCHP6Wi9AtCUlEBniW%2FdD%2F0MA8QTVN2DXRuCN9Y62d6WkRC5CiS5vbBlu%2Fu66SBF421osHyhWbAMHx1J8tcsAy4oiuBM2PW8fbcZSiLuCG0scEt3iQzTOBGf%2FyrU01h2uZTiS7JVpFW8MEqjtRVdjJNImW6IySoECP4KjE%2FCdI8EFKATRoORV3w6yDOgw%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR4qK2duvYQ

 

[ahmed24]

If you simply polish them, they will yellow again very soon. The original plastic usually leaves the factory with a layer of UV protection. When you polish the lens, this UV protection is lost. So there are lots of DIY kits that allow you to light sand back the lens and then coat it with a UV protecting clear coat. These are all DIY solutions that won't really last long.

What i've found works best and recently had done to a friends car was my bodyshop sanded back the headlight removing all imperfections and working their way through grit levels and wet sanding for perfect smooth finish. Once finished they finish it with couple of layers of 2K clear coat, then oven bake then machine polish it. The same clear coat that goes on the paint. The clear coat has UV resistance as it's designed for paintwork. The results are amazing. The headlights look brand new again and they will last a long time with the clear coat. And seeing as it's clear coat you have the ability to polish it back a few times without worrying about it yellowing. Below is a photo example of the one I had done on a friends IS250.

 

[ahmed-abrar]

On 1/3/2023 at 8:14 PM, ahmed-abrar said:

I've arranged for a local headlamp restoration  firm to visit at home & give my lamps the treatment! lets see how they turn out.

had the work carried out yesterday & after 2 hour's of work they look as new as they can be. I've dabbled with various DIY options in the past (and failed)but  now rather pay someone who does restorations for a living to do it properly. by the way, he did use various machines, discs, 3M compounds & was finished it off with a GYEON PURE coating

[mk_lon]

I used K2 PRO LAMP DOCTOR Headlight Restorer Cleaner Scratch Remover. 

I have a 07 plate IS250 with bi xneon headlights. I cleaned the lights using flash kitchen spray then applied using a old dirty car sponge. Left it for 20mins then spent literally 1min buffing with an old micro fibre cloth which had not been cleaned or used in years.... It worked with excellent results, just see the picture.

 

 

 

[Sundance]

Looking good Mo. But I'd very much like to see the same picture in 6-12 months time as there seems to be no mention of replacing the UV protection in your product description. As others on here have already stated it is a replacement layer of UV protection that appears to be the key after cleaning, a view that I readily support.

[KamD]

Hello, what I did to mine, when I had to was the following:

Maguiar's Kit with 4 different grits and drill attachment for polishing. The  sprayed 2 coats of 2k super clear UV resistant. 

More importantly replaced all the bulbs. Dipped beams are about 100 quid off of Amazon OSRAM XENARC NIGHT BREAKER LASER D4S, +200% more brightness, HID Xenon bulb, discharge lamp, 66440XNL-HCB, duo box (2 lamps) https://amzn.eu/d/88mmn7O

Then replaced the rest of the lights with LEDs. The difference to OEM is night and day, literally.

[mk_lon]

On 1/7/2023 at 12:31 PM, Sundance said:

Looking good Mo. But I'd very much like to see the same picture in 6-12 months time as there seems to be no mention of replacing the UV protection in your product description. As others on here have already stated it is a replacement layer of UV protection that appears to be the key after cleaning, a view that I readily support.

Thanks Sundance, I forgot to coat it with UV protection then the weather turned bad on me thus I became lazy. When summer arrives I will do it again, this time I will use UV protector too. I suspect it will probably become yellow again by then.