Restore Faded Plastic Headlights and Taillights

Faded Plastic Restoration
Plastic headlights will eventually fade and yellow. This is how to restore them to like new condition.

Required Products:

400 or 600 grit wet or dry sandpaper

2000 grit sandpaper

Clear spray paint that is UV resistant

Total: $20

Faded, oxidized plastic.

Introduction
If you plastic headlights or taillights are flat, faded, or yellow this will restore them to like new condition.


Preparation
If possible remove the lights from your car. This depends on how easy it is to do, but it will preempt the preparation of taping off the car to wet sand and masking it for clear coating.

If there is any rubber trim on the plastic you'll want to tape it off with masking tape so you don't sand it.

First clean the lights with dish detergent while wearing gloves. You want to strip any oils or grease from the light. This ensures you don't grind dirt into the plastic during sanding. You don't want to touch the light with your bare hands as that will contaminate the lights.

Sanding
Wet sand with 400 or 600. This depends on how crusty the plastic is. Either will work, but it's preferable to go from 600 to 2000 to ensure you aren't left with sanding scratches. Keep the plastic wet as you sand so the sandpaper doesn't get clogged.

After sanding. The surface is clearer, but the finish is flat.

Keep sanding until you no longer see the water turning yellowish. This is the oxidized plastic. Once the water on the surface of the plastic looks relatively clear/white, rinse the plastic well. The plastic will have a dull finish. It should not be yellowish. If the plastic still has a yellow hue, you're not done sanding. Once the plastic has a dull finish and is rinsed well, move to 2000 grit sandpaper. You want to sand the plastic thoroughly so that all of the sand scratches from the 600 is removed. The plastic will have a dull finish, and it should.

Clear Coat
Clean the light one more time with dish detergent to ensure there are no contaminants. If the light is still on your car, use trash bags to liberally mask off your car and around the light to avoid overspray. Make sure the light is completely dry before paint.

UV resistant clear coat provides a glossy finish and sun protection.

Start with a light mist coat. You will build up the paint as you spray successive coats. Each coat will be slightly heavier. Do at least three coats, I did four. On the last coat spray it a little thicker. The paint droplets from an orange peel type finish. You want to spray a little heavier to smooth out that finish, but not so heavy the paint runs.

If the paint runs, you will need to sand it with 2000 and respray. Somehow I had moisture on the surface of one of the lights. I realized this after the clear dried and I had one white cloudy spot. I used 600 to sand through the clear and remove the contaminant. Then I sanded with 2000 and resprayed.

Finish
If you removed the lights, it's time to reinstall. Check the paint can for handling instructions. This paint was dry enough to handle in an hour, fully cured at 24 hours. It took many years for the lights to look this bad. I hope with a UV resistant clear coat the finish will last many more years.