On my Miata, the driver's side headlight housing looks crystal clear, and appears to be original as well. The passenger side, too, is original, but has not fared as well. It has a slight yellowish haze on it. Typical UV damage, I've dealt with it before. Usually some polishing compound takes care of it. This is a different beast though.
I tried some Ultimate Polish with a lot of elbow grease, and no difference really. ScratchX made a little difference, but not good enough. Then I removed the lamp from the car and went at it with some rubbing compound (then finished with ScratchX, then polish). This made the lens look pretty good, but still lacking in comparison to the driver's side lamp. I also tried a cerium oxide paste (used for polishing glass) and it made a negligible difference.
So where do I go from here? The lens feels completely smooth, but appears to just be somewhat foggy. If I look closely, I can see faint cracking that looks to be slightly below the surface. Inside the lamp I also see little dirt particles near where the bulb inserts, so I don't know whether to ignore this, or to think that maybe the lens is dirty from the inside... should I try a kit or wet-sanding?
I do have a drill with a polishing pad attachment, if it matters, but I have not tried it yet. I really want to figure something out, since a new replacement costs $300+.
I tried some Ultimate Polish with a lot of elbow grease, and no difference really. ScratchX made a little difference, but not good enough. Then I removed the lamp from the car and went at it with some rubbing compound (then finished with ScratchX, then polish). This made the lens look pretty good, but still lacking in comparison to the driver's side lamp. I also tried a cerium oxide paste (used for polishing glass) and it made a negligible difference.
So where do I go from here? The lens feels completely smooth, but appears to just be somewhat foggy. If I look closely, I can see faint cracking that looks to be slightly below the surface. Inside the lamp I also see little dirt particles near where the bulb inserts, so I don't know whether to ignore this, or to think that maybe the lens is dirty from the inside... should I try a kit or wet-sanding?