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Car Forum / Chevrolet / Chevrolet Trucks / August 2008Haze on plastic headlight box lens 2003 TrailBlazer
I don't understand why the passenger side headlight box lens decided to develop a haze on the external surface while the driver side remained crystal clear. If anyone can offer an explanation I would love to read it. My guess is driving it through the same car wash over the years is responsible. The brush that does the front starts on the passenger side. I used a paper towel dampened with Acetone to "paint" the lens surface effectively melting the surface haze away to leave the lens ALMOST as clear as it was originally. To someone not looking for it they would never have know it was almost completely covered with a haze as it looks that good. I didn't know how it would turn out and really had nothing to lose but was very surprised at how well it worked. It is important to have the right amount of Acetone in the paper towel. A few strokes of trial and error provided me with the info on how damp it should be. You need to paint it on, not rub it. > I don't understand why the passenger side headlight box lens decided to > develop a haze on the external surface while the driver side remained [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > error provided me with the info on how damp it should be. You need to > paint it on, not rub it. I wanted to add the paper towel was folded several times into a 1"x 3" rectangle and the 1" edge was used to apply the acetone just in case someone wanted to try this. >I don't understand why the passenger side headlight box lens decided > to develop a haze on the external surface while the driver side remained [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > error provided me with the info on how damp it should be. You need to > paint it on, not rub it. I believe that the transparent material used in headlight is Lexan or a very close impact resistant polycarbonate cousin. These materials are specially coated with a UV resistant surface to prevent yellowing from the beating of thew sun's rays...UV light degrades the surface and causes yellowing in the product. I can only assume you got one unit that was improperly treated or from a batch made first thing after Superbowl sunday ;-) >> I don't understand why the passenger side headlight box lens decided >> to develop a haze on the external surface while the driver side remained [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > improperly treated or from a batch made first thing after Superbowl sunday > ;-) OR it's an aftermarket replacement. Could have gotten pranged and replaced. Wouldn't be the first time.  SignatureSteve W. Near Cooperstown, New York One thing I have used is the Novus 3 step scratch cleaner. I know you do not have a scratch but it works great on the headlight lens to remove hazing and yellowing. Jon >I don't understand why the passenger side headlight box lens decided > to develop a haze on the external surface while the driver side remained [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > error provided me with the info on how damp it should be. You need to > paint it on, not rub it. Lexan (polycarbonate) is a very strong material, but the down side it is not very chemical resistant to organic solvents. As you found out by dissolving the surface with acetone. I would suspect that some thing got splashed on the lens which evaporated causing the hazing. Ron > One thing I have used is the Novus 3 step scratch cleaner. I know you > do not have a scratch but it works great on the headlight lens to remove [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] >> error provided me with the info on how damp it should be. You need to >> paint it on, not rub it. > Lexan (polycarbonate) is a very strong material, but the down side it is > not very chemical resistant to organic solvents. As you found out by > dissolving the surface with acetone. I would suspect that some thing got > splashed on the lens which evaporated causing the hazing. > > Ron That's possible but it seemed to happen over a period of a year or two. >> One thing I have used is the Novus 3 step scratch cleaner. I know you >> do not have a scratch but it works great on the headlight lens to remove >> hazing and yellowing. >> >> Jon Thanks I'll write that down. >>> I don't understand why the passenger side headlight box lens decided to >>> develop a haze on the external surface while the driver side remained [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] >>> trial and error provided me with the info on how damp it should be. You >>> need to paint it on, not rub it. >> Lexan (polycarbonate) is a very strong material, but the down side >> it is not very chemical resistant to organic solvents. As you found [quoted text clipped - 33 lines] >>>> towel. A few strokes of trial and error provided me with the info >>>> on how damp it should be. You need to paint it on, not rub it. A while back, I had a black car with 10 years of sun-faded paint. Looked like a good candidate for rubbing compound. After a few hours with my trusty old Milwaukee buffer, the finish was restoring nicely, so I gambled on a few passes over the headlamp lenses. Removed the hazy yellowing and they looked good as new. I've never tried the acetone trick. |
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