Aftermarket Headlamps February 21, 2016, 11:13:25 am Yahoo Message Number: 158884My '95TK suffered from yellow faded headlamps. I ordered what appeared to be a good deal online for a pair of new ones. I can't remember the website but they have lots of headlamps. Anyway...I hooked them up and they are terrible. I suffered with them last trip. Fortunately only limited night driving. The diffuse terribly with no focus. Almost not useable.Should I just bite the bullet and pay retail from a dealer?
Re: Aftermarket Headlamps Reply #1 – February 21, 2016, 12:40:18 pm Yahoo Message Number: 158887I will add that NAPA has them for about $55 each. They said I could return them if they didn't work.
Re: Aftermarket Headlamps Reply #2 – February 21, 2016, 12:44:48 pm Yahoo Message Number: 158888Why not try a headlamp restoration kit? I used one a few years ago on an old Honda. As I recall, it seemed to do the trick. They are available on Amazon and at Walmart for less than $20.Ray '97 TKAmazon.com: 3m headlight restoration kit As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Re: Aftermarket Headlamps Reply #3 – February 21, 2016, 12:48:15 pm Yahoo Message Number: 158889I should have tried that Ray on the old ones before I replaced them. The current ones are not faded they are poorly constructed and do not focus the beams.
Re: Aftermarket Headlamps Reply #4 – February 21, 2016, 01:14:53 pm Yahoo Message Number: 158891I have bi-annual head light restoration BBQ's with my family. We help each other tape off each others body work (paint) and polish the plastic lens then buff them out. Works great. Gets the job done well for 6-8 months and we cook up some nice food as a reward for all our hard (not) work. Quick and easy. Cheap too. Much better than paying someone $100 to do the job.Next time, huh?Kent
Re: Aftermarket Headlamps Reply #5 – February 21, 2016, 01:18:34 pm Yahoo Message Number: 158892Someplace in the Photos Tessa Hill posted a set of photos when she changed out the headlamps on her older LD. She has before and after photos of luminosity.Chris
Re: Aftermarket Headlamps Reply #6 – February 22, 2016, 10:43:20 am Yahoo Message Number: 158923Polished a few headlight and this is my experience Polishing headlights is the last stop before replacing them. When yellowed, the ultraviolet surface coating is worn out. You can polish the lamp but will, within months or a year, turn yellow again, due to the lack of UV radiation protection. Another problem with polishing is the outer surface looses its Factory smooth face, producing micro defect that distort the light beam. You will loose the sharp low beam cutoff and introduce a lot of scatter.With the above in mind, I don't bother polishing headlights anymore, preferring to do the job once by replacement. Headlights housing are not expensive, I get them at Rock Auto.Larry