It’s an everyday occurrence on the road – gleaming smooth-bodied cars, washed and polished to perfection, with yellowed, dim headlights! You see dirty, unkempt, cloudy, scratched headlights on old cars and you see them on swanky new cars. It’s surprising that people go to the trouble of vacuuming their insides and hand-polishing their outsides while their car headlights look positively ugly.
Unsightly headlights are an irresistible eyesore, because your headlights shape the basic character of your car. These are the first observations in a car. They are the eyes of the car and play a huge role in maintaining your car’s good looks. Clear headlights are also a safety requirement. Overcast headlights don’t cast adequate light on the road and can very well lead you into a ditch at night. For aesthetic and pragmatic reasons, it is therefore important to take care of the car headlights regularly.
The good news is that keeping your custom car lights in good condition is easy; and investing some time in it will keep you safe and happy.
Cracked Headlights: If one or both headlights are cracked, replace them immediately. Any crack on the surface lets in moisture and dust, making headlights cloudy and causing more glare to oncoming drivers. If you have to wait for the weekend or a holiday to replace the headlight, seal the crack with resin until you replace it.
Dirty Headlights: Use headlight cleaner to wipe down your headlights. Dirty, cloudy headlights can seriously impair your night vision. So, every time you wash your windshield, make it a point to clean your headlights as well.
Maintenance: Many drivers say they just don’t think about checking the condition of their headlights. That’s wrong. Check your custom headlights for cars annually to make sure they are in good condition and properly adjusted. Replace the light bulbs once a year to keep your headlights in good condition. And it’s important to replace both lightbulbs, even if only one has burned out.
Condensation: Sometimes headlights become cloudy due to moisture retention. To remove condensation, remove the headlight and drill a small hole at the bottom. Drain the water and let the headlight dry. Seal and reinstall headlight.
Headlight lenses: Most newer vehicles have polycarbonate lenses. This makes them easy to maintain and repair if necessary. While tough and resilient, polycarbonate also tends to cloud and yellow after extensive UV exposure. Luckily, there are a number of clearing agents that will help you remove this haze.
For those less inclined to purchase products to clean their headlights, there are headlight repair and maintenance kits. These kits have everything you need to keep your lenses clean.
Keeping your car headlights in good condition is not a difficult task. All it takes is consistency.