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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Wash, Wax, Detailing and Cosmetic protection/repairs > Headlight restoration w/ long term fix. 3+month update



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      03-30-2018, 10:23 AM   #45
6ixSpd
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Sand. And. Wipe. New. Then. Put. 3M. Film.

I'm not sure how many more times this has to be reiterated.

It's been almost two years since I did mine and they look just like new:



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      03-30-2018, 10:37 AM   #46
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 6ixSpd View Post
I'm not sure how many more times this has to be reiterated.
Well, the only mention of a film anywhere in the thread is a passing reference to Xpel, which I've never heard of and which definitely isn't made by 3M, so at least once or twice more before I know what you're talking about.

So, like, what film is that, can you link it? Because it appears to be important to the longevity you're seeing.
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      03-30-2018, 10:43 AM   #47
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3M/Xpel/Whatever they're all just paint protection films. Get one that has UV protection. That's all that's needed. Whether it's more "important" to longevity or not is highly debatable, as a few others have used just Wipe New and it has held up beyond one year and counting. I just applied the PPF as extra insurance against fading. Whether standalone Wipe New or used in conjunction with PPF, the bottom line is the combination of sanding/polishing/WN actually works.

There are multiple threads on this very topic pertaining to Wipe New. Myself and a few others have stated this solution works more than just once.

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...light=wipe+new
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      03-30-2018, 11:05 AM   #48
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 6ixSpd View Post
bottom line is the combination of sanding/polishing/WN actually works.
The bottom line is that sanding, polishing, wipe new, and protective film works, and that's what I'm getting at. You can't replicate only part of a known-working process and expect that to also work. I'm reading other wipe new reviews that suggest that lights start to yellow again after something like a year, which would make sense if the resulting coating isn't super mechanically durable.

My suspicion is that users who try Wipe New in particularly dusty or salty areas, or perhaps who normally wash their headlights thoroughly with the rest of the car, end up wearing it off mechanically relatively quickly, causing subsequent headlight yellowing even though the in-tact coating is pretty good at blocking UV.

I also bet that a plastic film can be made with both better UV blocking and better mechanical durability than an end-user-applied coating.

This is why I'm driving hard at the particulars of your working process and what film you used specifically.

Anyway, sand paper and wipe new are both cheap, where films are not, so in the name of science I think I'll go with just wipe new and take notes on how it holds up. If it wears out in a year, I'll get some x-pel instead.
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      03-30-2018, 11:21 AM   #49
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The PFF is fairly cheap as well. It cost me $100 to have it installed on top of the lenses. All in, that's like $130 in parts which is easily cheaper than new headlights.

Another poster just used sanding, polishing, and WN and it has held up for a year, because he hasn't updated the thread since. So the take away is that this process actually does work, the benefits of adding film are debatable but it doesn't hurt other than the minor cost of having it done. Scientifically speaking, this is simply because no one has tested WN alone vs. WN + PFF for beyond 12 months to see the effect. All we know is that WN alone has held up for at least a year and we have no data beyond that. WN + PFF has held up for at least a year, and we have two data points beyond that. Take from that what you will.

So if you REALLY want to ensure the longest lasting solution, use WN and PFF. Another guy in that thread has had this combo for a few years and they still look great. Otherwise just do WN and see how it goes as it's been proven to last at least a year already.

Look up what Wipe New is composed of. It is not just a "coating" like with all these other surface protectants. This is where you're missing the point that it will just wear off quickly with washes, etc. It's not a top layer additive. A thread on Reddit explains this in more detail.
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      04-16-2018, 02:22 PM   #50
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So I gave this a try on my E90 LCI. Unfortunately all the damage I was trying to get out was on the inside of the lense. Spent 3 hours on one headlight and it basically looked like the other one that was not touched.

The process worked great on my fog lights though.
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      06-04-2018, 01:34 PM   #51
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Meguiar's now sells a post-polish headlight coating that's supposed to last. This sounds similar to wipe new.

https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-G178...dp/B01M4RVVX6/

They also sell a two-step restoration kit with some pads, a polish for step 1, and step 2 is this protectant spray.

I don't have any yellowing on my e90 headlights but they are pitted so I am going to try sanding with various grades of sandpaper and then finish with this two step kit to see what happens. I'll do the foglights too - they aren't pitted or yellow, but are very cloudy.
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      06-14-2018, 10:55 AM   #52
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It may sound crazy, but bug spray and a rag does it everytime
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      02-23-2022, 09:29 PM   #53
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Resurrecting this thread as I just noticed that my 2013 E82 headlights look like shite - very bad on the upper brow but overall not clear by any measure.

Don't these headlights come from the factory with a film installed? My 2007 E90 headlights have the factory film and you cannot replace it. So my question is, when you sand/polish/WN, are you doing that to the factory film? Or are you removing the factory film first and doing it directly to the headlight?
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Last edited by NGEE; 02-24-2022 at 05:47 AM..
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      03-22-2022, 10:21 PM   #54
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Swear by Sylvania

https://www.e90post.com/forums/showp...&postcount=122
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