Update as of 1/4/2011: It's been almost a year, and my headlight lenses are almost as clear as when I polished them last February, and WAY better than before I polished them. I'm still sold on this product, and would gladly recommend it to anyone.
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I think I had pretty much the worst case headlights: they were so cloudy that strangers actually commented on how bad they were. My car's 13 years old, and the headlights have been terribly cloudy for years. I debated between this kit and the
3M Headlight Lens Restoration System, but chose this one because of the sealant.
Bottom line: I was stunned by how great my headlights look now! Wow!
What's in the kit:
· 1 (small) piece of 1500 grit sandpaper
· 1 (small) piece of 3000 grit sandpaper
· 2 foil packages of "Ace Cleaner" (about 1-1/2 tsp per pkg)
· 2 foil packages of "Hyper Shine" (about 1-1/2 tsp per pkg)
· 1 small bottle of "Nanosealant" (about 1/2 tsp)
· 1 poorly fitting vinyl glove
· 4 paper towels
· instructions
What you need to provide:
· painters' masking tape to protect the body around your headlamps from sanding
· scissors (for opening the foil packages; I also cut the sandpapers into two pieces each)
· (large) spray bottle filled with water, or garden hose with light spray attachment
· wet sponge
· dish washing liquid
· towel (for drying headlights prior to sealing)
· more paper towels (optional - you may want to wipe of the lens to check your progress)
· latex / vinyl gloves (optional - the instructions say "Wear vinyl gloves throughout the process", but there's only one glove in the package)
· trash bucket (you will have LOTS of little bits of trash)
I wish the sandpapers provided were each half again as large. Also, I found the instructions to be unnecessarily unclear. They say it's "as easy as 1, 2, 3": 1) Clean; 2) Polish; 3) Protect. That's kind of true, but:
· There are 2 different step 1's, depending on the condition of your headlights, and both step 1's have sub-steps:
- "If your headlamps are deteriorating, yellow or hazy", then you a) sand vertically with the 1500 grit sandpaper; b) sand horizontally with the 3000 grit paper; c) rinse and clean.
- "If your headlamps are new, dull or water stained, sanding is not required," in which case you mix the Ace Cleaner and Hyper Shine on a paper towel and a) polish in a circular motion, b) polish horizontally, c) polish vertically, d) rinse and clean. In this case you skip step 2, Polish.
· Step 2 (only if you sanded your headlights) says "Apply 1/2 the Hyper Shine to a paper towel". There are 2 packages of Hyper Shine. So does "1/2 the Hyper Shine" mean one whole package, or does it mean 1/2 a package? They could've just as easily said "1/2 a package" or "1 package", as appropriate. (I used 1/2 a package.) Also, step 2 has sub-steps, including washing with dish washing liquid, then rinsing and drying completely.
Step 3: I assumed this was sealing only. After step 2, my headlights were better, but still not "like new". Since I had a second package of Hyper Shine (and didn't use the Ace Cleaner at all), I went back and did both headlamps again. They still weren't "like new", but I went ahead with the sealing anyway. The sealing did more than just seal - the headlamps really do look "like new" now. I was stunned after that step.
Anyway, despite the goofy instructions, weird packaging, and having to deal with lots of small bits, I still would absolutely use this product again, and would definitely recommend it. My headlamps really do look like new, after being worst case cloudy for years.