Headlight Cleaning On Lucida

[hatpro]

Hello folks,

I have a Lucida and the headlights are very grubby. They are stained brown on the outside and look like they are fairly dirty inside too. I have seen many Estimas and Lucidas around and they all seem to suffer from the same problem.

I have decided to try and clean them. The good news is that I have found a cleaning product that claims to remedy the brown staining. It's available from America and I have ordered some on the internet. There are several different makes but the most popular seems to come with two solutions. The first is is applied with a rough sponge and is supposed to remove all traces of the brown coloured oxidation that occurs on acrylic lenses. The second solution is a UV protection coating to prevent the problem occurring again. I haven't tried it yet but the "before and after" photos look impressive. Whatever happens it's got to be cheaper than buying new headlights and the ones I have now are next to useless on dark country lanes!

While I'm waiting for delivery I thought I might try and clean the insides. Yes, I know, I'll be very careful of the silvering etc. The ideal solution would be to remove the light fitting completely and try and do the cleaning in the kitchen (if my wife will let me). Does anybody know how to remove the lights from the car? I've taken out the grill assembly and found three hex head screws in the light fitting. Two on the top and one in the side. Removing these leaves the light assembly loose and wobbly but still captured in the housing. Am I missing something or does it mean that I'll have to remove the front bumper?

RH

[stefptycia]

Hello folks,

I have a Lucida and the headlights are very grubby. They are stained brown on the outside and look like they are fairly dirty inside too. I have seen many Estimas and Lucidas around and they all seem to suffer from the same problem.

I have decided to try and clean them. The good news is that I have found a cleaning product that claims to remedy the brown staining. It's available from America and I have ordered some on the internet. There are several different makes but the most popular seems to come with two solutions. The first is is applied with a rough sponge and is supposed to remove all traces of the brown coloured oxidation that occurs on acrylic lenses. The second solution is a UV protection coating to prevent the problem occurring again. I haven't tried it yet but the "before and after" photos look impressive. Whatever happens it's got to be cheaper than buying new headlights and the ones I have now are next to useless on dark country lanes!

While I'm waiting for delivery I thought I might try and clean the insides. Yes, I know, I'll be very careful of the silvering etc. The ideal solution would be to remove the light fitting completely and try and do the cleaning in the kitchen (if my wife will let me). Does anybody know how to remove the lights from the car? I've taken out the grill assembly and found three hex head screws in the light fitting. Two on the top and one in the side. Removing these leaves the light assembly loose and wobbly but still captured in the housing. Am I missing something or does it mean that I'll have to remove the front bumper?

RH

Not sure about removal buddy but you won't find a better cleaner than ordinay toothpaste

[holtgizmo]

DONT WHAT EVER YOU DO PUT ANY ABRASIVE PRODUCT ON THE REFLECTIVE PART AS YOU WILL TAKE IT STRAIGHT OFF AND THEN YOU WILL HAVE TO BUY NEW HEADLAMP UNITS.

RAY

[hatpro]

DONT WHAT EVER YOU DO PUT ANY ABRASIVE PRODUCT ON THE REFLECTIVE PART AS YOU WILL TAKE IT STRAIGHT OFF AND THEN YOU WILL HAVE TO BUY NEW HEADLAMP UNITS.

RAY

Yes, thanks for that advice Ray. The chance would be a fine thing.

As I said in my posting, I'll be very careful of the silvering. That's why I want to remove the light assembly. I can then use a soft cotton wool pad on a stick to clean the inside surface of the lens without any chance of scratching the reflector. The trouble is - I can't get the darned thing out!

It has also occurred to me that I can't see how on earth you're supposed to change the indicator bulb either!

If anybody has any ideas at all I'd be very much obliged.

Oh by the way, I tried stefptycia's idea of using toothpaste on the outside of the lenses but it doesn't seem to work. They are still very stained - although they did come up shiny and minty fresh!