Headlight finish issues

[swynn97]

Hi,

I've just noticed that the surface finish of my 2004 C2 996 headlights have a bunch of rough spots, and in areas almost looks like a surface coating is peeling away. Any advice on how to fix this issue and restore my headlights?

thanks,

SImon

[Loren]

Do you mean the clear plastic covers?

A picture would be good too.

[swynn97]

Yep - the plastic covers - see attached.

SImon

[Loren]

You could take them out and try one of the commercial lens cleaning kits (3M) if the scratches are not too deep.

[Dennis C]

I had mine professionally refinished by www.drheadlight.com. The results were good. The lights look much, much better. They aren't perfect, but they are better. I'd recommend their service.

[swynn97]

Upon further inspection it is the UV coating that is peeling off - bummer. I guess I'll look for a refinishing service.

Simon

[wvicary]

I have used many of the restoring kits and found 3M to work the best.

[Dennis C]

How about the Sylvania kit? It looks pretty good.

[Porsche Pilot]

Those will clean up just fine. My process is to dry sand then wet sand. Final step is polish and re-clear. The kits in the store will work pretty well. The failure point of the kits is the sealant or coating. It will not last very long. Once you abrade off the factory UV coating it will yellow and haze eventually. I use actual clear coat on my clients lights...and my own 996. Give the kits a try.

[jyoteen]

I would promptly refinish the headlights and put a clear bra type product on it that shields it from UV. i had Premier clear bra guys refinish my headlight and do a cover. There are other pre-cut solutions available.

[Interbay]

My 996 has just had the second refinish and I am very pleased. Take them out and go to a really good body shop that specializes in high end cars and have them tell you how thay would refinish them. They need to polish them, then fine polish to a near perfect and smooth finish and then the most important part is to have them clear coated just as it came to you new. I had them polished and did not have them clear coated - nobody told me to - and within 3 - 4 months they were in the same condition and you can only polish them a few times. Do it right the first time and use a professional body shop so as to get the clear coat done properly. The best thing you can do is to raise hell with anybody and everybody at the NTSB and maybe they can get the OEM people to offer replacement lens at a reasonable price instead of having to do the polish or worse yet, replacing the complete assembly. This will continue to be a problem until manufacturers and made to change a terrible product. Surely they love the resell especially Porsche which gets near $5000 for a new set. Look around at all the cars out there with this problem and 98 percent of them are going to do nothing about it. Ed ibay@earthlink.net

[MiamiC70]

I second Dr. Headlights they did mine 2 years ago and still look great the UV coating the apply really helps.

[David Clarke]

ANy particular clear coat to recommend?

[Neb33]

I have the same issue, refinished using the 3m kit. Likenew again, applied a 3m clear bra.

[stevencr]

Resurrecting an old post.  Have the same issue on an 2014 model.   I applied some tape to my headlights to "protect" them during a DE event.  Removing the tape after the event apparently lifted off sections of the UV coating so now I have multiple defects across the headlights.  Will the sanding kits remove the remaining coating so that I can apply a real clearbra or Xpel type product?  Thanks.

[mffarrell]

Resurrecting an old post.  Have the same issue on an 2014 model.   I applied some tape to my headlights to "protect" them during a DE event.  Removing the tape after the event apparently lifted off sections of the UV coating so now I have multiple defects across the headlights.  Will the sanding kits remove the remaining coating so that I can apply a real clearbra or Xpel type product?  Thanks.

How about your warranty?

[stevencr]

Taking it in next week to ask but I'm not very optimistic.

[judgejon]

Again resurrecting this old post:  I've just noticed this happening to my C4$ headlights.

What is the point of this UV coating?  It appears to be coming off near the top of both headlights.  55k miles on the car.

Does it really matter, other than it obviously looks pretty bad?  Both headlights appear to be functioning correctly.

Is this worth bothering with?  What happens if the headlights are simply left alone?  

Thanks in advance for any answers.  

[JFP in PA]

2 hours ago, judgejon said:

Again resurrecting this old post:  I've just noticed this happening to my C4$ headlights.

What is the point of this UV coating?  It appears to be coming off near the top of both headlights.  55k miles on the car.

Does it really matter, other than it obviously looks pretty bad?  Both headlights appear to be functioning correctly.

Is this worth bothering with?  What happens if the headlights are simply left alone?

Thanks in advance for any answers. 

Without the UV coating, the lenses will fog or become milky over time from the effect of sunlight  on the plastic.

[ghetto_996]

The longer you wait, the harder it will be to refinish them and worse they will get.  A good marine store will have the best products for slowing the deterioration of your finish if you want to do nothing. 

 

If you want to refinish them, I would vote for the 3M lens kit WITH TRIZACT technology.  I've worked extensively with the these pads in the past and they are outstanding for glass and plastic  polishing (I work in the optics industry). 

[judgejon]

thanks.

[jz993]

I recommend the 3M kit. The trizact disc is great. I also added a couple steps, hand wetsanding with 1000 and 1200 grit. They came out almost like new. I did not clearcoat them since my car sits garaged mostly.