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Headlights Peeling

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Technical Discussion' started by Rest, Aug 7, 2009.

  1. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    My 2007 headlights are peeling and this is my second car that had this problem. My first was a 2001 Honda Insight. I think it is the UV coating on the plastic that is coming off.

    Considering how expensive these type of headlights are, you would think they would last longer. I wish the industry would just go back to the old glass style that were less expensive to replace.
     
  2. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    I don't know. The foglights "covers" are glass and they crack. Mine are and so are a number of 04 and 05 owners. I'm not sure if they've fixed it because there aren't as many complaints from the 06+ group (that or they don't use the fogs as much as we do lol).
     
  3. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    Fog lights are located much lower than headlights on vehicles. Therefore they are subjected to road debris more easily. But the headlight peeling issue I am talking about effects all vehicles with enclosed lights.
     
  4. firepa63

    firepa63 Former Prius Owner

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    I never heard of this. Where exactly is the peeling occurring, inside the clear lens or on the reflector surfaces?
     
  5. V8Cobrakid

    V8Cobrakid Green Handyman

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    .. i'll assume you mean the clear lens on the main headlamps. there's a headlight posish that's basically a rubbing compound. take the buffing wheel to it and it will be clear and shiny very soon.
     
  6. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    I realise that. I can assure you that the crack is internal because it's smooth on the outside of the cover.
     
  7. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    The peeling is happening on the top outside area of the clear lens. And yes using a polish can buff it out but as I said before, the UV coating is what is coming off. So buffing the rest of the lens would remove more of this coating and you don't want to do that.
     
  8. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    The peeling has gotten much worse now. If these headlights weren't a sealed unit then I could purchase just the plastic cover, but they aren't. So I would have to buy the whole headlight and this makes replacing them very expensive!
     
  9. 2009Prius

    2009Prius A Wimpy DIYer

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    Maybe try to find replacement from local junkyard?
     
  10. yardman 49

    yardman 49 Active Member

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    The coating is already compromised.

    I'd get a headlight polishing kit, polish them properly, then seal them regularly with 303 aircraft protectant. It protects against UV damage.

    I've read here on the Forums that it's quite good.

    Best wishes,

    Frank
     
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  11. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    Actually there IS a thread on PC showing how do take the whole shebang apart, even though it's a sealed unit. I'm heading out the door for nashville in just a few hours, or I'd post the link. If you find it your self, you COULD spray a UV protectant on the inside of the plastic lens. I got this nifty spray I use on our Sunbrella material for market umbrellas, our outdoor grill island, our boat cover, etc. It's actually made to spray on canval/sails ... but i find it's great for other stuff. Good luck !

    .
     
  12. statultra

    statultra uber-Senior Member

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    wow this never happened to any of my toyotas, it sounds very weird. the best thing you can do is remove the lense from the entire headlight assembly wash it down clean and wet sand with 1200 grit sandpaper, then use some good clearcoat to seal it from the UV rays, it will look almost better than new.
     
  13. subarutoo

    subarutoo New Member

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    I recently had a windshield replaced, and bumper and hood repainted due to gravel damage. The body shop listed "headlight polish" as a repair item. I didn't think my '06 lights were that bad, but they sure look good now. My wife's 96 Outback has severe yellowing and hasy lenses on the headlights. I tried plastic polishing compound, and even rubbing compound (rated safe for clear coat), but didn't make much difference. I bought some headlight polish from Pep Boys last weekend, but haven't tried it yet. I got the Rain-x product, which was cheaper than Mother's or Meguier's, but according to the Pep Boy that I talked to, was the best.

    This seem to be a problem with lots of modern cars, but I never noticed a Prius that looked as bad as my wife's light covers.
     
  14. SW03ES

    SW03ES Senior Member

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    When you say "peeling" what do you mean, do you physically see something peeling off of the lens itself or it it just blotchy and yellowed in spots?

    I have heard from some that Toyota/Lexus headlamps do not have a UV coating.

    In any event the headlamps simply need to be polished and perhaps wetsanded if they are really extensively bad. If you aren't comfortable doing this yourself then a competent detailer can do it for you for a reasonable price. I would coat the lenses in a clearcoat afterwards because otherwise they will just yellow again.

    This is really no big deal and the lamps don't have to be replaced. The lamps on my '04 that sits outside 24/7 are just ever so slightly starting to yellow at the top corners. I got out the buffer, a cutting pad, and some compound and the yellow polished up great. Right now I'm just sealing them but if they yellow again I will spray them with a layer of clear.

    And DO NOT use 303 Aerospace Protectant on the headlamps. It is for plastic and vinyl trim...not for clear plastic. It could stain and cloud the lenses.
     
  15. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    My vehicles sit outside in the Sun. So the peeling always happens with plastic headlight lenses. I know there are plenty of headlight restoration kits on the market now but very few include UV protection. Without some sort of UV protection applied to the plastic lens, it will just get brittle, no matter how clean it looks.
     
  16. SW03ES

    SW03ES Senior Member

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    Thats why you need to apply the coat of clearcoat. The clearcoat has UV protective qualities to it. At least one of those kits, I think its called "ClearView" includes the spray can of clear.

    And...eventually they will yellow again. This is a maintenance item...
     
  17. M8s

    M8s Retired and Lovin' It

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    We had 3M clear bra applied to our two Prii and the installer put that stuff on the headlight lenses as well. I wonder if that will keep them from yellowing or peeling. So far, so good.
     
  18. SW03ES

    SW03ES Senior Member

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    That will help too actually.
     
  19. samdaman

    samdaman Junior Member

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    Are you sure your dealer didn't put some after-market 'protectant' on the entire car -- and maybe that's what is coming off?
     
  20. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    No it's not a dealer applied protectant. It is the UV coating all enclosed plastic headlights get from the manufacture. Once this coating is gone, the headlights can yellow and get brittle. There are many aftermarket kits to "sand" the plastic clean looking again but I have not found any that reapply a UV coating to protect them from the Sun.