When He Covered His Headlights In Toothpaste I Thought He Was Nuts. But Watch When It Comes Off!/watch?v=bj4Dq61-hkQ was not found on this server.AAA’s tests show that your headlights might fall short in safely illuminating a dark road; older, cloudy lenses reduce visibility even more. While only 25 percent of driving is done when it’s dark outside, 50 percent of crashes occur during those hours. Many factors can influence nighttime crash rates, of course, but one constant for vehicles driving at night is the need for headlights to properly illuminate the road ahead. AAA conducted tests recently that compare the illumination provided by the three most common types of headlights—halogen, high-intensity discharge (HID) and light-emitting diode (LED). Driving at 55 miles per hour, you need about 500 feet to perceive an obstacle, react to it, and bring your vehicle to a complete and safe stop. AAA tested the distance illuminated by each headlight type at both low- and high-beam settings with no additional overhead lighting.

Low-beam: 300 feet (leaving 200 feet of dark road where obstacles could be lurking)     High-beam: 375 feet (still 125 feet of dark road) Low-beam: 400 feet     High-beam: 500 feet Low-beam: 450 feet     High-beam: 500 feet When driving at night on an unlit road, AAA recommends you use high beams whenever possible—but never when there’s oncoming traffic—and to monitor and adjust your driving speed to allow enough time to detect, react and stop your vehicle to avoid hitting an object on the roadway. The protective coating used on modern plastic headlight lenses can slowly deteriorate, clouding up or yellowing after about five years. This can reduce light output by half and increase light scatter, which results in glare for other drivers. AAA’s tests found that you can dramatically improve the performance of your deteriorated headlights with a do-it-yourself headlight restoration kit available at most auto supply stores for less than $20. Here’s a how-to video for one of these products:

The restoration typically doubles the maximum light intensity and reduces glare-producing light scatter by 60 percent. Most auto shops—including AAA Approved Auto Repair facilities—perform headlight restoration services as well.air duct cleaning telemarketing AAA Members save 10% on most parts and accessories—including headlight restoration kits—at NAPA Auto Parts. air duct cleaning cliffside park njIf you’d rather have a headlight restoration done for you, visit your nearest AAA Approved Auto Repair shop.total air sanitizer walmart Image credit/source: Thinkstock Video credit/source: Osram Sylvania To ensure you receive the best service, please enter your ZIP code: How to Fix Foggy Headlights

Home > Cars > How to clean cloudy headlights Headlights, like every other part of your car — or any machine or piece of tech, for that matter — will surely get dirty and begin to deteriorate over time without the proper upkeep. No matter how clear the polycarbonate plastic is when you purchase it, it will eventually begin to look foggy and obscure the brightness of your headlights. The fogginess results from a combination of general filth accumulation, and a natural chemical reaction the plastic has to long exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet rays. Related: Don’t trust your local Jiffy Lube? Here’s how to change your car’s oil This buildup can make it more difficult to illuminate the road and your surroundings at night, which increases the risk of unfortunate incidents. Thankfully, there are a few simple strategies one can employ to restore clarity to your headlights, most of which you can employ directly from the comforts of your own home. Before you implement any of the methods below, however, we recommend taping the perimeters of your headlight with painter’s tape.

Doing so will ensure your car’s paint, trim, and other aesthetic facets will remain intact! The simplest (and cheapest) way to clean your headlight covers is by using basic toothpaste to clear and polish the plastic. Squirt a bit of toothpaste directly on a washcloth, then spread the toothpaste over the entire head light. Next, rinse with water and dry with a towel. Since toothpaste is a light abrasive, it will scrape away the gunk while filling in any scratches. It will even lightly polish the plastic in the process. Keep in mind that you want to use toothpaste that does not have any sort of cooling beads, crystals, or similar components,  as these will potentially scratch your headlights. They’re bad for the environment, too. Soap, sand paper, and polish Using some soap and water, wash your headlights and remove as much buildup as possible. Afterward, dry them with a towel and use 400- or 800-grit sandpaper to remove the remaining gunk, sanding back and forth as you do. 

You’ll then want to sand it again with a finer sandpaper — this time from a different angle — and polish the plastic to restore clarity. You can use a commercial polish, such as 3M’s Lens Polish & Protector ($12), or you can use toothpaste like in the method outlined above. If you’d rather fork over some money for a commercial solution, there are plenty of products out there that will get the job done. Most are fairly inexpensive, too, and readily available through online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores in your area. These are a great option, though, in the end, they work about as well as the cheaper methods listed above.Most vehicles today have Plastic Headlights and these are subject to discolouration due to road grime, this can also make your headlights become dull and also dangerous, but this can be cleaned without the task of replacing your headlights. Your local Repco authorised service centre can provide a service that will professionally restore faded headlights. 

Using a three stage process a trained technician can clean faded headlights.  This process will increase the light that can be emitted, improve the overall look and value of your vehicle and help keep you safer on the road. Find your local Repco Authorised Service centre here and ask us about this service today.  Ask us for advice on upgrading the globes in your headlights for additional performance. The this readily avaliable cleaning agent can be found at any supermarket and its called "Toothpaste"! This is also suitable for headlights made from glass.   To clean, simply get  the toothpaste and squeeze about 1/3 of it into a small bowl and add a very small amount of luke warm water onto the toothpaste until it becomes a liquid. Lightly wet your headlights and apply this mixture with a damp (not wet) sponge and rub on in a circular motion (not too hard) and rinse off. You may need repeat this a couple of times.  On the last application, apply, rinse and then dry with a soft dry cloth and you will notice that your headlights have become brighter and safer.