Headlights dirty on the inside

[Lyn]

The outside of the plexiglass cover of my 2003 Boxster halogen headlights is smooth and without pits or scratches. The inside is dusty and looks grainy when the light are on. Is it reasonable or possible to clean the inside of the headlights, or am I doomed to replace them??

Thx, Lyn

[mikefocke]

Often because extra-wattage bulbs were used.

I've heard stories of people polishing through a hole they cut in the back. About 5 years ago, when Litronic upgrades were priced reasonably, base headlight assemblies were commonly available. Not so much now though you might try the wrecking yards.

[Porsche Pilot]

As a professional luxury and sports car Detailer, it is near impossible to polish the insides of a lens effectively. Are you sure the issues are inside and not out? The lens may still be smooth to the touch but still have fogging and hazing on the outside. Porsche's are certainly prone to this over time due to the exposure angle of the lens to the sun. I ave rarely seen the insides to be the problem unless, like stated above, a higher watt bulb may have damaged the plastics inside.

I recondition many Porsche lights every year...mine included. You can try an over the counter polishing kit and do some test spots. The proper method is to wet sand them and then re-coat with clear coat. These light housings aren't cheap so I would try to polish the outside first. You may be really surprised at the results. If the car s not a daily driver you could always send them to me for polishing.

[Lyn]

Thx for the feedback. Yes i'm sure that the problem is on the inside of the lens and I have used one of the commercial polishing kits without success to verify it. I guess it's possible that the previous owner had used the incorrect bulbs at one time and hadn't considered that aspect before now. I've had the car for 5 years and do mostly daytime driving and it hasn't been a crucial issue before now. Life changes are giving me more time for longer trips to include night driving, so i guess it's time to replace them. I'll look around a while for xenons at a reasonable price and if i can't find them just replace with halogens.

Lyn

[Highlander]

I just finished polishing my headlights and was a little dissapointed at the results. Upon close inspection, it appears I have exactly the same problem you have. It looks like grime on the inside of the plastic that I could simply wipe off if I could get to it.

[dragonflyoh]

If the problem is on the inside of the lens, removal of the lens is possible. I did it by heating the assembly to 200 degrees for 30 minutes in my oven. The finesse part is prying the lens off without scratching the underside of the lens. I did some searching and found some instructions that helped a lot. I cannot find the link I used. I did the open and closing about a year ago and have not had any moisture problems. I used some automotive sealant to reseal the assemblies. I wish you well.

[Porsche Pilot]

I forgot to mention one thing. If you wet the lens and the hazing disappears, it's on the outside. If it remains, it's inside. Just a quick tip to pass on.

[Highlander]

If the problem is on the inside of the lens, removal of the lens is possible. I did it by heating the assembly to 200 degrees for 30 minutes in my oven. The finesse part is prying the lens off without scratching the underside of the lens. I did some searching and found some instructions that helped a lot. I cannot find the link I used. I did the open and closing about a year ago and have not had any moisture problems. I used some automotive sealant to reseal the assemblies. I wish you well.

Wow. I'm not that brave! All of the plastics on the front of my car have become extremely brittle. I'm going to have to glue the little orange triangles back on as the mounting tabs on both of them broke off as I was - very carefully - removing the headlight from the fender.

I guess if I ever decide I can't live with them as-is and sm ready to buy new assemblies, it would be worth a shot to try to take them apart to clean the inside.

Thanks for the tip.

[R Clark Stewart]

I just polished my 2002 headlamps w/a cheap TWax kit. The top 1/4 gets crazed and holds dirt in. The body of the lens has what look like chips, but polish won't do a thing.

I have no before pic, but a haze of tar came away when the rough crazing on top was polished.

Yeah, I did a lil DIY cheapo mod to the amber too.