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Inspired by a couple of the more recent headlight threads such as this and this, I decided it was time to make some changes to my headlights. I'm planning to make more changes down the road, but I thought I would share the photos that I've taken so far for those who would like to see what kind of improvement they can expect.
I had already powered the headlights with relays, and did not take before/after photos. I did not notice a big difference in light when I installed the relays, but suspect this will vary greatly depending on the condition of your wiring. I decided not to do the "all on" mod after reading through the information in the links above - but I left myself the option in the future.
I started with polishing my OEM lenses. I felt that the lenses were a little cloudy, but I didn't expect that polishing would make a noticeable difference. I was wrong. I was very surprised with the results. I started with wet/dry sandpaper progressing through 400 grit up to 1500 grit. I had picked these all up at Walmart for another project. I highly recommend using them wet. They plug very quickly with the plastic if you use them dry.
I finished up with Meguiar's PlastX - though there are lots of specific headlight polish or plastic polish that would probably work just as well. The PlastX made a huge difference from the wet/dry paper so don't skip this step. I spent way less than 1/2 hour per side and $0 since I already had all of the materials.
More to come.
The photos show:
1. Driver's side lens. This is what they looked like before I started.
2. Passenger side lens after 1500 grit paper.
3. Passenger side lens after plastic polish.
4. Front of truck showing driver's side vs. passenger side (kind of before and after)
5. Beam pattern on the garage door showing the passenger side is much more intense and much less scattered than the driver's side. This is a difference that you can certainly see while driving.
I had already powered the headlights with relays, and did not take before/after photos. I did not notice a big difference in light when I installed the relays, but suspect this will vary greatly depending on the condition of your wiring. I decided not to do the "all on" mod after reading through the information in the links above - but I left myself the option in the future.
I started with polishing my OEM lenses. I felt that the lenses were a little cloudy, but I didn't expect that polishing would make a noticeable difference. I was wrong. I was very surprised with the results. I started with wet/dry sandpaper progressing through 400 grit up to 1500 grit. I had picked these all up at Walmart for another project. I highly recommend using them wet. They plug very quickly with the plastic if you use them dry.
I finished up with Meguiar's PlastX - though there are lots of specific headlight polish or plastic polish that would probably work just as well. The PlastX made a huge difference from the wet/dry paper so don't skip this step. I spent way less than 1/2 hour per side and $0 since I already had all of the materials.
More to come.
The photos show:
1. Driver's side lens. This is what they looked like before I started.
2. Passenger side lens after 1500 grit paper.
3. Passenger side lens after plastic polish.
4. Front of truck showing driver's side vs. passenger side (kind of before and after)
5. Beam pattern on the garage door showing the passenger side is much more intense and much less scattered than the driver's side. This is a difference that you can certainly see while driving.
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