After reading some of the real lame-brain things that people have done to their S, I feel that I am now a not-so-proud member of this "lame clan" .

I purchased headlight protectors - soft plastic cover-ups for the headlights to protect them from rocks/etc. I did this making 2 assumptions:

1) The headlights were made of glass
2) The glass covering was part of the headlight


Well, assumption #1 was wrong and I hope assumption #2 was wrong as well!

I applied the protectors per the instructions, carefully and slowly trying to assure there were no air bubbles. Well, about 3/4 of the way thru the first headlight, an air bubble appeared . Per the instructions (mistake #1), I pulled the plastic sheet back to the air bubble. In doing so, the inch or so that was pulled back became SOLID air bubbles . After realizing that I couldn't repair these constant air bubbles, I decided to pull the whole thing off (mistake #2) . What happened next was unexpected! The adhesive on the protectors peeled off of the protectors and stayed on the headlight as I pulled the protector off. Now I had all of this very thick adhesive on the headlight. I used adhesive remover to soften the adhesive and then used a razor blade to scrape the adhesive off (mistake #3 - the worst mistake!) .

That's when I learned that the headlights are actually hard plastic! The razor actually dug into the headlights in several places before I realized what was happening.

With LOTS of adhesive remover (that stuff was THICK), I eventually got all of the adhesive off. But now I'm left with a scratched headlight - here's were I hope assumption #2 was wrong!

Are these stock plastic headlight covers replaceable??

A lesson learned - headlight protectors obviously are not needed as the car appears to already have them!

 

AFAIK, the cover are NOT replaceable. You'll have to order an enitrely new headlight assembly ...

Don't worry, you can get a pair for around $1000.

 

uhm, that plastic bit is not headlight covers, they are actually part of the headlight. to call them headlight covers would imply you can use the headlights without them, which you certainly cannot. as was mentioned you have to buy new headlights, i hope the scratches weren't that bad.

 

I'd recommend that you buy some Meguair's #10 and (I think) #17 or #18. One is "Clear Plastic Cleaner" to remove mild scratches, the other is "Clear Plastic Polish" to use after the other one. They shouldn't hurt the plastic headlight lenses, and might mitigate the scratching somewhat.

 

Thanks for that recommendation. I just ordered them.

 

and if that doesn't work JDM headlights are very nice

 

Man, I'm so sorry to hear what happened to you. If it were me, I know my heart would be sunk down to my shoes. Try what has been suggested with regards to the plastic polish. You have nothing to lose now. Also, you might consider using an electric buffer with the plastic polish to see if you can make the plastic more clear but be careful not to "burn it".
I'm somewhat surprised that the merchants for these headlight protectors would give such misleading instructions. When installing headlight protectors, one should almost always use a "wet" install. In this fashion, you can eliminate the bubbles and still have "working time" if you need to move the plastic around a bit or lift it momentarily. I've done this with every car I've owned for quite some time now and have never used a pre-cut product. I get the bulk stuff from a roll and I install it on the headlight and then cut to shape once it's on.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Bass
[B]and if that doesn't work

 

I'd like to echo Xviper's advice: some kind of power tool could definitely speed the polishing process. Just be VERY careful: light pressure and low speeds. Better to spend too much time because you were conservative than to make the situation worse. On something like this, a few minutes break from time to time might be a good idea.

When I installed a Rick's full-size aeroscreen in the Honda frame, I got glue on the clear plastic, and scratched it getting the glue off. TOTALLY my bad. I used the Meguiar's with a felt polishing wheel on a variable speed Dremel. I went slow, but eventually I had to look really close to find the scratch, and I knew where it was. Maybe your scratches are no worse than those.

I took a moment to check hondaautomotiveparts.com. They posted what appears to be the Honda parts manual. They only show left and right headlight assemblies, not just the clear front part that you need. Maybe someone else can steer you to just the clear part, but it doesn't look good to me.

Good luck, and I hope you're able to polish the scratches out of the clear plastic.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by RedY2KS2k
[B]I'd like to echo Xviper's advice: some kind of power tool could definitely