Headlight lenses glass or plastic?

[Beakerz]

I thought they were plastic, but I read that they were glass. Does anyone know for sure? I looked at mine, but I can't tell...

[Mops@Nemesis]

Mine are plastic.

[ActivS5]

Mine are plastic.

+1

[mxrz]

It's optical polycarbonate.

[Mops@Nemesis]

Yea, should have said polycarb not "plastic" haha

[bknewtype]

no way it would be glass. if a rock hits it, its gonna shatter

[Huey52]

The good news it that there are dedicated polycarb polishes available to bring them back to near-new clarity, if that's the impetus of your question.

[Mops@Nemesis]

no way it would be glass. if a rock hits it, its gonna shatter

You tell em bk ....

[Beakerz]

no way it would be glass. if a rock hits it, its gonna shatter

You do realize that there are vehicles that have glass headlight lenses, right? And I'm not just talking about older vehicles with sealed-beam headlights.

[Beakerz]

The good news it that there are dedicated polycarb polishes available to bring them back to near-new clarity, if that's the impetus of your question.

That's part of my concern. Plastic (polycarbonate) lenses will degrade over time and yellow/cloud up as the factory protection breaks down and the lenses oxidize. I know they can be polished to perfection, but I'm looking for a way to provide UV protection now while they are still new so I can get as much time as possible before they break down and start to cloud up/yellow on me.

Maybe some good wax with UV protection is what I really need, but I'm not so such how much that will help.

[Mops@Nemesis]

Yea, seems like my B6 did but could be wrong.

[Mops@Nemesis]

Oh, just seal/wax them Beakerz....I have done this with all my vehicles quarterly or so and never any dulling/yellowing.

[Beakerz]

Oh, just seal/wax them Beakerz....I have done this with all my vehicles quarterly or so and never any dulling/yellowing.

Yeah, but how long did you own those vehicles? I like to keep mine for a long time. My 4Runner is now 7 years old and the headlights are starting to cloud up on me. I never waxed the lenses because it wasn't something that I even thought about.

[Mops@Nemesis]

yeeeaaaaa, im a bad example. Never more than 2 years and always garaged....but it will work trust me. They also make sprays thats a plastic cleaner/protectant in one. Either will work. Hell, apply once a month since it only takes a couple minutes.

[Huey52]

There are also 'clear bra' films for headlights, but really, just sealer/wax will do fine. Heck, I detail at least the front end of my car after almost every evening commute anyway. Turtle Wax Ice goes over the polycarb effortlessly with no residue.

My daughter's Mazda6 is now 8 years old and the polycarb headlights are fine. I did recently polish them due to stone chips, but not yellowing.

[bknewtype]

You do realize that there are vehicles that have glass headlight lenses, right? And I'm not just talking about older vehicles with sealed-beam headlights.

for some reason, when u said glass, i was thinking of window glass hahahaa i retract my statement.

[Beakerz]

There are also 'clear bra' films for headlights, but really, just sealer/wax will do fine. Heck, I detail at least the front end of my car after almost every evening commute anyway. Turtle Wax Ice goes over the polycarb effortlessly with no residue.

My daughter's Mazda6 is now 8 years old and the polycarb headlights are fine. I did recently polish them due to stone chips, but not yellowing.

Yeah, but once you polish the headlights, you are removing the original UV-protective coating, which will then speed up the process of oxidizing the lenses.

I'll probably just keep some wax on mine, in an attempt to extend the life of the protective coating. I'm not sure if that will help much though...

[Huey52]

Aerospace 303 has excellent UV protection. I use it on my dash in particular. It can be used on most anything, including polycarb.

[Mops@Nemesis]

Here you go Beakerz...this is the spray referenced earlier, great stuff! I use on lighting, grills, rear valence, etc.

http://www.detailedimage.com/Blackfi...P252/14-oz-S1/