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Recommendation for headlight protection

bajaDean

New member
Location
LaVentana BCS Mexico
Car(s)
mk4s TDI, MK7 TDI
I could not find other threads on headlight "protection" my protection I am looking for is polishes to prevent the yellowing of the plastic. I am not that interested in the films. I have this interest because I own 2 MK4s and got tired of trying various remover/restorer and polishes with them that worked for a year or three. So I finally bought new aftermarket and those were low cost. My MK7 i am guessing will have the same problems unless someone can chime in that VW changed and addressed this issue. As a 40 year windshield motorcyclist these seemed to never yellow, guessing a different type of plastic. But we used specific plastic polishes and "sealers" so wondering if this is a direct crossover. I see on amazon there are so many headlight polishers like I used before. I am looking for UV protectors is my guess. I see with specifically UV protection 3M sells one, Meguiars does, turtle, anyone have any knowledge on these, the Meguiars one has 20,000 ratings at 4.5 average, once a year application. But these may not have the years of use on a VW who has a reputation of yellowing headlights.

Meguiar's G17804 Keep Clear Headlight Coating, 4 oz. – Maintain the Clarity of Your Headlights​

https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-G17804-Clear-Headlight-Coating/dp/B01M4RVVX6

 

SonicBloom

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Bay Area, CA
Car(s)
2017 GTI S
I could not find other threads on headlight "protection" my protection I am looking for is polishes to prevent the yellowing of the plastic. I am not that interested in the films. I have this interest because I own 2 MK4s and got tired of trying various remover/restorer and polishes with them that worked for a year or three. So I finally bought new aftermarket and those were low cost. My MK7 i am guessing will have the same problems unless someone can chime in that VW changed and addressed this issue. As a 40 year windshield motorcyclist these seemed to never yellow, guessing a different type of plastic. But we used specific plastic polishes and "sealers" so wondering if this is a direct crossover. I see on amazon there are so many headlight polishers like I used before. I am looking for UV protectors is my guess. I see with specifically UV protection 3M sells one, Meguiars does, turtle, anyone have any knowledge on these, the Meguiars one has 20,000 ratings at 4.5 average, once a year application. But these may not have the years of use on a VW who has a reputation of yellowing headlights.

Meguiar's G17804 Keep Clear Headlight Coating, 4 oz. – Maintain the Clarity of Your Headlights​

https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-G17804-Clear-Headlight-Coating/dp/B01M4RVVX6


The only long term solution for you is a real clear coat. I don’t think the ones that come with the headlight restoration kits last more than a year or two. I saw something called a 2k clear coat mentioned on the Autodetailing subreddit. You can probably also find videos on YouTube.
 

bajaDean

New member
Location
LaVentana BCS Mexico
Car(s)
mk4s TDI, MK7 TDI
I read through the 2k clear coats and am not "clear" about them. I am not sure if they are saying their coating will not degrade from UV or they protect the plastic also from more UV damage.

The products I have found now specifying UV filtering expanding on the trusted name brand Meguiars I have used for motorcycles for 30 ish years are some other major brand names.

and I do not want to sand my headlights as VW may have a coating on them already. so the below I believe I can apply without sanding.

This one claims 2 year efficacity.

Philips Headlight Restoration Kit with UV protection - Complete Kit to restore headlight lenses​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009NOZ5B8

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079QL8BYK

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KIVYE6G

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KMYYTD8

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M4RVVX6
 

StorableComa

Autocross Champion
Location
SoCal, USA
Car(s)
17 GSW S FWD
I wouldn't use lamin x as there have been reports of spiderweb cracking of the headlights as it ages.

I went with weatherTechs mk7 headlight film. Easy install, still looks great almost 2 years later.
 

SonicBloom

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Bay Area, CA
Car(s)
2017 GTI S
I read through the 2k clear coats and am not "clear" about them. I am not sure if they are saying their coating will not degrade from UV or they protect the plastic also from more UV damage.

The products I have found now specifying UV filtering expanding on the trusted name brand Meguiars I have used for motorcycles for 30 ish years are some other major brand names.

and I do not want to sand my headlights as VW may have a coating on them already. so the below I believe I can apply without sanding.

This one claims 2 year efficacity.

Philips Headlight Restoration Kit with UV protection - Complete Kit to restore headlight lenses​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009NOZ5B8

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079QL8BYK

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KIVYE6G

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KMYYTD8

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M4RVVX6

That kit comes with sandpaper. Sanding is required otherwise the coating will have a hard time adhering. I suggest headlight film (not Lamin X brand) if you don’t want or need to sand. I bought 3m film from Invisible Mask.
 

bajaDean

New member
Location
LaVentana BCS Mexico
Car(s)
mk4s TDI, MK7 TDI
Correct, Ya the jury is out on that for sure. "I believe" the sanding may be for removing the yellowing. Some of the others i listed do not come with sandpaper and you apply yearly which is fine for me. I am personally not a fan of films, as I have done my trucks windows myself as well as home windows. The truck window ones were precut and came out decent, not perfect. My windows in my house i had to cut and did not come out so good. So on a non-flat surface and my lack of precision (kinda know my limits are there) I with lack of precision/patients would not want to do them with pre-cuts. And where I live I am confident I cannot find someone with experience for 1000 plus miles.

Where I live in the home depot parking lot they have guys there every few weeks that will sand your headlights down and put whatever polish they have for about USD$5.00. It was funny before I changed the light housing with new, my car well we all know how well the VW clear coat did not work on the MK4s, so they came up to me assuming my car needed the headlight sanding polishing, and to explain what they do they went up to my headlight to point, but because they were new they were incredible to their shock. It was very funny if you were there.

I am also shortly going to be adding UV a and b as well as infrared film to my windshield, side windows, and sunroof, but will have a pro do those with as clear as they have.
 

hooville

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Marietta GA
My experience with & without headlight film:
I have a 2000 MK4 Golf TDI that had Laminex on the headlights when I bought it in 2014 from the original owner (he installed the film shortly after he purchased the car new), and the headlights were perfectly clear when I removed the film as it had started to release from the edges. I replaced the Laminex with 3M and after 8 more years the headlights remain perfectly clear. They have never been polished or sanded, but you can see that the outer 1/8" around the perimeter is "frosted" where the Laminex had released from being left on too long. I used the 3M film on both of our MK7s within a couple of months of purchase and the headlights are perfectly clear with no crazing, so in my fleet film has a 100% success rate. The Laminex film from the MK4 was really thick, literally 2-3mm IIRC, so ditto the thermal expansion stresses over time theory. No issues with the 3M thin & stretchy stuff, but no experience with any other brands either.

Our 2003 Jetta wagon got nothing until the headlight cataracts were so bad I could barely see the bulbs... I polished and coated them with a kit and they were great, for 8-9 months. Then they fogged fast (the aftermarket protective coating is apparently not as robust as VWs). Each subsequent polish & coat lasted less time until I replaced the units with some well-regarded aftermarket housings and they looked great but the light dispersion was crappy: flashlights taped to the hood would have been just as effective. I replaced the lenses in the original housings with glass ones and put film on to mitigate stone damage.

Moral of the story: Install film as soon as you buy the car, polishing headlights does not need to be routine maintenance!
 

bajaDean

New member
Location
LaVentana BCS Mexico
Car(s)
mk4s TDI, MK7 TDI
My experience with & without headlight film:
I have a 2000 MK4 Golf TDI that had Laminex on the headlights when I bought it in 2014 from the original owner (he installed the film shortly after he purchased the car new), and the headlights were perfectly clear when I removed the film as it had started to release from the edges. I replaced the Laminex with 3M and after 8 more years the headlights remain perfectly clear. They have never been polished or sanded, but you can see that the outer 1/8" around the perimeter is "frosted" where the Laminex had released from being left on too long. I used the 3M film on both of our MK7s within a couple of months of purchase and the headlights are perfectly clear with no crazing, so in my fleet film has a 100% success rate. The Laminex film from the MK4 was really thick, literally 2-3mm IIRC, so ditto the thermal expansion stresses over time theory. No issues with the 3M thin & stretchy stuff, but no experience with any other brands either.

Our 2003 Jetta wagon got nothing until the headlight cataracts were so bad I could barely see the bulbs... I polished and coated them with a kit and they were great, for 8-9 months. Then they fogged fast (the aftermarket protective coating is apparently not as robust as VWs). Each subsequent polish & coat lasted less time until I replaced the units with some well-regarded aftermarket housings and they looked great but the light dispersion was crappy: flashlights taped to the hood would have been just as effective. I replaced the lenses in the original housings with glass ones and put film on to mitigate stone damage.

Moral of the story: Install film as soon as you buy the car, polishing headlights does not need to be routine maintenance!
thank you so much for your literally and figuratively detailed "clear" testimony. I did not think I would get that good of historical information. I will go to film and I noticed some companies allow you to buy low cost insurance if you do mess up, I hope it was the 3M ones.

Ya my replacement to my MK4s have terrible light distribution too but I had converted to the high power bulbs so I can see but oncoming traffic on a 25 miles two lane curvy mountain road are not happy with me. In general that road is the only road from my small town to a town with major stores. And because of the open range cow situation I have only driven it at night about 30 times at night in 23 years, so was not a significant issue for me. I have not taken the mk7 sel with much better lights on that 2 lane curvy mountain road yet. A truck I had 23 years ago i put some major lights on and ya I was comfy driving at night down the entire baja.
 

whizznbyu

New member
Location
Waxhaw, NC
I wouldn't use lamin x as there have been reports of spiderweb cracking of the headlights as it ages.

I went with weatherTechs mk7 headlight film. Easy install, still looks great almost 2 years later.
I did the same thing. If I remember correctly WeatherTech uses 3M. Pretty easy to use. Heat gun with plenty of soap water spray. Don't wait until ambient temperature drops. And do wax the finished product a month later; the wax does offer some protection.
 
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bajaDean

New member
Location
LaVentana BCS Mexico
Car(s)
mk4s TDI, MK7 TDI
Is this the weathertech you guys are referring to? does not appear to be a 3M filmat that thickness.


https://www.idparts.com/weathertech-lampgard-fog-light-guard-mk7-golf-lg1106-p-12017.html

Weathertech LampGard & Fog Light Guard (Mk7 Golf)​

Protect your expensive headlamps, before it is too late! Introducing LampGard(R), an incredibly tough 40 mil. thick, double-polished urethane material that is optically clear and applies (peel and stick) directly to the surface. This product has built-in ultraviolet inhibitors that help prevent the material from drying, hardening or discoloring. We custom die-cut to fit your specific vehicle for a precise, perfect fit. LampGard(R) comes with easy-to-follow instructions and applies to headlamps, fog lamps, turn indicators and parking lights (when applicable) to protect them from scratching, cracking and pitting. WeatherTech(R) LampGard(R) is an incredibly tough 40 mil. thick, double-polished urethane material, is available for most vehicle makes and models. Some applications are built to order, please allow 14-21 days for delivery.WeatherTech(R) LampGard(R) is guaranteed against defects in materials or workmanship for 3 years from the date of purchase. Exclusions to this warranty are wear due to severe abrasive conditions and chemical contamination, such as spilled gasoline, bleach, etc.

  • Built-In Ultraviolet Inhibitors
  • Custom Die-Cut To Fit Your Vehicle
  • Easy To Follow Instructions
  • Peel And Stick To The Surface
  • Protect Your Expensive Headlamps
  • Tough 40 mil. Thick Urethane Material
 

whizznbyu

New member
Location
Waxhaw, NC
A remember getting 2 headlight films from one vendor. The first one was for Ed's headlight upgrade which didn't do much for me ( may have been HID low beam and wimpy halogen high beam), the 2nd one was for an LED lo and high beam upgrade also from Ed. Ed no longer sells these parts last time I checked. The first order came in perfect. Pretty sure it was a film that had the 3M imprint on the waxed backing. Second film I ordered from the same vendor they sent one that fit a Jetta. Took a while to resolve this because the vendor insisted they were correct... Turns out their websites' program that selects brand, make, and model of my car was incorrectly programmed. But finally got the same thick film. I recall vaguely that these films are for paint protection but I didn't care because all I wanted was something thick to protect the lenses. Also vaguely remember some chatter in the forums about how PPF is not recommended for headlight protection. But as I said, didn't care and I'm still happy
 

D.Gage

Autocross Champion
Location
Virginia
Car(s)
17 Gti
My buddy owns a shop that does high end detailing and Stek PPF. He cut me some product and shipped it to me and walked me through the installation and it came out pretty good. Local shops to me wanted $250 to do both lights.
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