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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

How to clean your vehicle's headlights - Use toothpaste

11:44 AM  , , ,  51 comments



Before

After
For the longest time I have thought that my headlights looked very dim and that I could probably clean my headlight covers to remedy this.  Yesterday I decided to do something about it.


There are many products you can buy to do this. I am cheap and lazy so I decided to do it another way.

This is actually super easy and relatively quick to do.  Searching on Google, I found people using toothpaste doing the same thing here and here and here and here and here and here.  So I figured it would be worth a shot.





Get a rag or two you don't mind getting dirty, and some cheap toothpaste.  This is what we will use as our abrasive.  If you have a buffer, go ahead and use it to get faster and better results.


My car is about 13 years old. I don't know if the headlights have ever been cleaned.


Apply the toothpaste and vigorously rub the toothpaste over what needs to be cleaned.  Then wipe off the toothpaste with a clean rag (or clean part of the rag).


The results should come pretty fast and easy! Warning:
Toothpaste is an abrasive.  You are essentially sanding away the haziness.  If you have a lens protectant, you will be sanding this away as well and may want to replace it after doing this.

51 comments:

  1. Using toothpaste is cheaper way to clean your Headlight Bulbs.

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  2. Seriously this worked! Because I have been trying to figure out what to buy to clean my headlights and what so much stuff out here I just do not know what is best or will work.

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  3. I did this with useing baking soda and dishwashing detergent also can't tell weather it worked or not but hopefully it did thought it would have done a better job though did not use a buffer though

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  4. I tried and tried were I'm from its hot I found that breastmilk and rolax works great

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  5. Is this for plastic headlight covers as well or just glass?

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  6. My headlights are plastic. It works as an abrasive, so it would work on any surface that can use some deep cleaning.

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  7. just did this by hand on my altima and it worked!!! Crazy!

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  8. I just used it on my 1997 Grand Marq. Awesome!

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  9. $1 bottle of toothpaste & $1 cloth= clear headlights! Thanks for the tip. My civic couldn't look better!

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  11. i used my tears and it looks brand new

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  12. i got chuck norris to look at them and they unfogged

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  14. i like turtles, but also tried this and it worked

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  15. I used a pleco from my aquarium it sucks algea and more.

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  16. thank you for sharing this. I have also used baking soda and toothpaste. Both are useful house remedies for foggy headlight.

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  18. I tried this and it worked great. My only concern is this: why are there so many asinine comments being made here? Why don't you pismire minions get a life, or better yet, try using this toothpaste to buff out some of the stupidity from your head

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  19. ^^^like^^^

    HAHAHA Minions!!!!

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  21. what if I have a gel toothpaste will that work also?

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  22. It would seem Gel Toothpaste would not have the abrasive in it to do much good.

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    You cann't believe just how a lot time I had spent for this info! Thanks!
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    ReplyDelete

  24. I’ll take your word for that. It’s impressive how the toothpaste was able to remove the yellow stains, probably an effect of aging on the cover. If only people knew about this easy procedure, accidents due to headlight glare would be greatly reduced. On another note, I think this cleaning technique will work for other glass fixtures, right?

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    Also visit my web-site :: Seized Cars

    ReplyDelete

  26. Going to try toothpaste. My lights seem so dim from this crappy plastic car makers use.

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  27. After applying toothpaste, sweeping around Headlights & finally, using a Damp Rag to wipe off the toothpaste & cleaning the Headlights, then it will be shinny.

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  28. Just tried it and it worked great!! Only used a sample size tube of toothpaste which cost .50 at wal mart. Cheap fix. Thanks for the tip

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  29. Have you guys tried soap and water first????

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  30. Will this work with my Colgate SpongeBob Mild Bubble Fruit toothpaste?
    Thanks
    Huckleberry

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  31. Toothpaste fix teeth yellow. Toothpaste fix headlight yellow.

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  32. you should compare toothpaste and pledge its about the same

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  33. To the person asking about soap and water above- stop being a smart ass. Soap and water will not clean headlights. The problem is oxidation, not dirt.

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  34. will rubbing compound work or it is too abrasive

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  35. WOW... This toothpaste polishes everything! After using it on my headlights, I polished my toenails. Then I tried it on my bathroom mirror. Right now I'm using it to polish my knob!

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  36. An expensive fix, no? Why not just a $2 rubbing compound, then you clean the headlights 10 times.

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  37. Thank you for the information. I tried it and it looked like it worked. I'll find out when I drive tonight lol.

    Debbie:)

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  38. Brilliant! This can save us a lot of cash! We always spend a lot on cleaning materials, for my husband is really meticulous on our car. And when I say that, I mean he cleans it twice or at least three times a week! I’ll definitely show this one to him and we’ll try this out ASAP. Thanks for posting!

    Nicole Vickers

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  39. TO THE ONE POLISHING HIS KNOB......GROW UP !!!!!!!!!!!

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  40. Toothpaste... yay!
    I thought I'd have to go out and get special products... just took 30sec trip to my hand basin, and 5 mins of cleaning... I'll never doubt the internet again.
    and the guy at the garage was gonna charge me $10. Douchebag!

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  41. if I was to use mothwash and toothpaste together... would I see a brighter future?

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  42. I was a little hesitant to try the Colgate toothpaste I had because I just read on another site that using the minty or whitening toothpastes could damage the headlights. But after seeing several websites pictures of Colgate being used I decided to try it out, and it worked fine, doesn't look bad at all. Thanks for the tip and the pictures! :)

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  43. It also prevents plaque buildup for 24hrs after each clean

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  44. Yep its works. Just tried it on my Benz.

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  46. amazing results, thank you so much!!

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  47. works great..really easy

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  48. Replies

    1. Just tried it snd it works. Saved close to $100.

      Delete

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