Tip #91: Cloudy headlight lenses cut your light, so restore or replace them
Headlight lenses on most modern cars are plastic, and sun exposure turns them yellow and hazy over time. Hazy lenses reduce how far you can see at night; a restoration or new lenses brings the light back.
Tip #91 in one line
Headlight lenses on most modern cars are plastic, and sun exposure turns them yellow and hazy over time. Hazy lenses reduce how far you can see at night; a restoration or new lenses brings the light back.
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Call nowWhy lenses go cloudy
Most headlight lenses today are made of polycarbonate plastic with a protective coating. Years of sun, road grit and car-wash chemicals wear that coating away, and the plastic underneath oxidizes. The result is a yellow, frosted lens that scatters light instead of throwing it down the road.
You may not notice it day to day. The test is simple: look at the lenses in daylight. If they are noticeably yellow or foggy compared with a newer car, they are costing you light. Glare for oncoming drivers can also get worse, because the scattered light goes in every direction.
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Call nowRestore or replace
Mild haze often comes off with a restoration kit or a professional restoration, which sands and polishes the lens and adds a new protective coating. Without a fresh coating, the haze usually returns quickly. Heavy haze, cracks or moisture inside the lens usually mean the housing should be replaced.
After any headlight work, have the aim checked. A lens that is clear but pointed at the trees or into oncoming eyes does not help anyone.
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Call nowSeeing and being seen
Good lights matter most when something has already gone wrong: a dark shoulder, a deer on a county road, a stopped car with no hazards. If you break down at night, pull as far off the road as possible, turn on the hazards, and stay belted inside if traffic is passing close. New Jersey's Move Over law requires drivers to slow down and move over for emergency and service vehicles with flashing lights, including tow trucks.
Call (908) 444-0129 any hour. Our roadside assistance handles jump starts, flat tires, fuel and lockouts on the spot, and emergency towing gets a car out of a dangerous spot. The roadside assistance guide has more on staying safe while you wait.
Check the bulbs while you are at it. Walk around the car with the lights on: headlights on low and high beam, parking lights, brake lights with someone pressing the pedal, turn signals and the license plate light. A burned-out brake light is easy to miss from the driver's seat and makes it harder for the car behind to react. Replace bulbs in pairs where the manual allows, so both sides give the same light.
On many newer cars the headlights are LED units that cannot be replaced with a simple bulb; the manual or the dealer will say what is involved.
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Call nowMore on maintenance
Keep reading, or go back to every post on the blog.
- Tip #8: Rinse the salt off the underside, or it will reach your brakes
- Tip #9: Use winter washer fluid and replace streaking wipers before the first storm
- Tip #10: Check coolant only when the engine is cold, and never open a hot radiator
- Tip #88: A brake squeal is a warning, and a grind means stop driving soon
- Tip #89: Check the cooling system before summer traffic, not on the shoulder
- What to do when your car breaks down in New Jersey
- Flatbed vs wheel-lift towing: which does your car need?
- What happens to your car after a police-ordered tow in New Jersey
- All posts
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