Is it worth polishing your headlights? - LIGHT OUTPUT TEST
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- Опубликовано: 1 июн 2024
- Hi guys! In this episode we'll test if light output is improved after polishing your headlights. Let's go!
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Made a typo on the video at 3:54, the reading before polishing was 763LUX, not 753 as seen in the top left corner 😤 Sorry about that.
Don't be hard on yourself
We all make typos😉
Polishing headlight=illegal in Germany. It can destroy the headlight faster and murkier in short time when the protective layers diminished. We may polish it in some other countries and use a real good kit that can coat it with new coat.
@@rondhole Why would polishing it be illegal? if you clearcoat is afterwards, the lamp would be safer to use then all fogged up and yellowed.
@@Bowtie1972 i disagree with the Law too. But polishing headlights is ilegal only in Germany as far as I know. I also polish and clearcoat my headlights before with a good results. Some clearcoat are great with a good refractive properties. Some clearcoat have weird light refractive pattern and may reduce the light patterns although it needs stupid thick coating. Germany cars lobbiest are very strong and make such law that we have to get a new OEM headlights when it gets yellow. Even aftermarket without TÜV approval will not be legal.
I think the biggest problem is the scattered light that dazzles other drivers
I see that old ChrisFix PT Cruiser headlight fix!
Who cares
@@Viggggggr i do xD
The difference between him and that guy is enormous.
One year ago I polished my headlights, it was in a really bad condition, the result is obvious/outstanding.
What I want to mention is that I chosen to apply an UV absorbing film, not varnish . This film has some elasticity and it is very effective against chipping or sanding.
For example, I can apply pressure using my finger nail, afterwards the film is going back to its initial shape.
Another advantage using the film layer is that you can change it without polishing again.
Many thanks for your videos, keep cool :D !
Applying the UV protective layer is essential to keep the headlight in good condition.
Wich brand did you use ?
@@dimmacommunication I just went to a professional work shop and I asked for best solution
You could get a varnish and then put on a layer of film. Easy replacement but no microscratches.
@@Wyatt_James good point
I'm very pleased that you're looking into this important subject. You might want to also mention human perception of light intensity and how well we are able to recognize differences.
Love your videos, you answer and test all those questions I keep asking myself but never actually go test! Amazing! Thank you!
Thanks for sharing.
These aren't dull and cloudy, so I can imagine how big the difference is going to be on such headlights..
HUGE , my aunt couldn't see at night by didn't wanna bother me , with a bit of heavy polish ( like Sonax cutmax just to do an example , easy to find worldwide )
Was expecting a full fledged video on this topic😅, was shocked a bit when the video was about to end....trust me you explain the topic so nicely, waiting for update on the very same
I wasn't really planning on making this video, but having the opportunity, I decided to film it.
Excellent review Sergiu, congrats!
Good video! And even though the brightest part of the beam only increased by 4%, it looks to me that the lower part of the beam is much brighter after polishing. Maybe it allows for more light on the roadway, rather than a brighter hot spot. Just my 2 cents. I enjoy your videos and your scientific approach. Keep up the good work!
My guess is that a 1% increase will be cleaning headlight interior but from my experience I will say that changing the projector will improve lux output up to 60-70% - I will love to see a projector's test morimoto hella evox2 etc - in my case I changed original 20years projectors with hella evo x2 and the difference was literally night and day :) Great video!
awesome video, love your work
Man you are a gem in youtube. i just got hooked after one video. great topics.
Thanks a lot.
Peace from slovakia.
very good video! I've been thinking about polishing my headlights to improve the light output. You saved me from doing some unnecessary work. thank you!
Awesome. Good information in the video! I like your content!
Hello Sergiu, nice video. Regarding the light output, I believe that the real reason for such a low output here is the bad projector, as by age, the chrome plating inside it can dull out significantly, most often seen on Renault Megane 2 and Vel Satis, at least in Eastern part of Europe..
I think that it happens to Hyundai sonata too. My friends car had a headlight totally clear except there was basically no distance to the light beam. Was dangerous
Subscribed .... Very detailed video
Try cleaning the inside of the projector to see if that makes a difference :)
Not related to this video topic but i'd really love to see a video about turn signal LEDs similar to reverse or brake lights that you did! keep it up
Well thank you , You cleared my mind about polishing headlights.
Nice Video!
For me the goal is the better looking of the car then the Light improvement.
Great content. I just watched snow Sox and subscribed.
I wait to see your videos back!
Greetings
Sometimes you see so badly yellowed headlights, that their light output must have decreased by 99%
Agreed! In those cases polishing really helps.
@@SergiuGabor Those worth polishing anyway, they are horrible with that Onychomycosis look :)
I just polished my aunt headlights like 2 hours ago :)
I used a heavy cut compound ,by hand ( I don't have the polisher )
Elbow grease rulz:)). I did the same thing on my headlights, the sand paper method. Lots of elbow grease:))
Cel mai mare beneficiu este ca ai mai putina lumina reziduala datorata refractiei din acele crapaturi. Practic e mai bine concentrata. Problema e ca folia aia e naspa, cu cat polish-ul e mai bine facut cu atat este mai greu sa vezi pe unde anume trece lumina prin plastic. Daca te uiti atent, se vede cum lumina de la semnalizare se reflecta in sticla farului. As face o comparatie si intre cu/fara folie si apoi lac (dar lac aplicat profesional, fara orange peel. Overall dezamagit putin de imaginea la microscop intre inainte si dupa.
Multumim de video-ul de calitate, asa cum ne-ai obisnuit!
Good video! Still waiting for the turn signal led video!
I dont know exactly about the light output, but that doesn't look like a good polishing/regeneration job to me... It actually looks like this guy (1:17) did your headlight and not a professional :D
Hi Sergiu. Did you do the video about cleaning the inside of the headlight?
Thanks!
I love the subliminal subscribe message in the background hehe
Thank you for testing all these things!
The biggest failure of projector lights is the reflector deposition layer degrades leaving little option for improvement other than replacement.
Have you taken voltage into consideration with the headlight tests? Many cars do not even get close to the 14.4v most alternators out out these days, but a mere 12 or 12.4.
Very interested to see if the LED's get a bigger advantage, if any at all, at lower voltages.
Most vehicles 10 years old and newer have the alt. output controlled by the ECM and BCM. This voltage can be as low as 12.5 and as high as 15.5 with a average of around 13.2.
Usually the inside of the projector is toast after 8-10 years. People rebuild those as well but it's a lot more expensive.
Can you do some test about premium vs normal diesel for carbon buildup? :D
I think chaning the lens of the projector or the projector alltogether will yield in best results these old xenon projects tend to burn the inner reflection surface of the lightbowl.
any chance to your video for infitary led headlight bulbs
Wouldn't think a headlamp in that good of condition would drop the output 4%
@Marko Patreon members has early access on this videos
My Octavia 2009 facelift with 150.000km still has clear headlights with just few scratches, but the projector lens looks cloudy, should I clean it?
Salut, ai putea sa faci in viitor un video despre becurile celor de la morimoto și noile becuri Osram Night Breaker 200. Am auzit multe lucruri despre acele becuri dar nu cred pana nu voi vedea rezultatele tale. Mulțumesc și tine-o așa in continuare.
What a about headlights with projecter?! Can you test with that?!
here in italy if your car has cloudy headlights it doesn't pass the inspection test you have to do to keep the car on the road
that headlight needs a clean on the lens assembly. Or a new lens assembly. Maybe for the future, a diy guide on how to do that ?
I repair headlights alot. Sanding them from P320 to P3000 and coating them with scratch resistant 2K clear coat.
Can you sand and polishing after the clearcoat hardens?
@@wanderingandroid yes. If You have dust particles in your clearcoat or "runners"😁 You can sand them and polish just like in you would do that on the painted pannels of the car
@@rosenfeldclaudia good to know. What is the ideal curing time for the 2k clearcoat before i sand and polish it?
@@wanderingandroid depends on the brand and the tipe. The best is to use "scratch resistant" clearcoat for cars. IT driyes slow but it's resistant in the long term. I used Glasurite on the headlights of my car and after one night it was dry enough to put them back on the car but i had verry few dust particles in the clearcoat so i let them be and didn't polish them. You can use fast driyng clearcoat for spotrepairs but in the long term i think that tipe of clearcoat îs not so resistant to stonechip and sun burn
Сергей, ну надо-ж было на рефлектор тоже померять, у линзы очень концентрированный пучок вот и разница 4%.
Hello Sergiu. Maybe you could test glow plugs. Greetings from germany
My brother's headlights have microcracks (inside the plastic) so no amount of polishing will get rid of them. Tried to order a set of replacement lenses from BMWJakes last November but heard nothing yet.
Did you clean the interior?
if the headlights are starting to yellow then definetly go for a polish
i personnaly had them in this stage and i can now see the diffrence since i had to change the right headlight because of a minor incident
the right headlight is 2-3 times brighter than the left one even trought the it also has a lot of scratches too
il polish both of them today and see the diffrence
Can you test Orion LED Headlights namely: Orion Alpha (white) and Orion Sigma (all weather yellow)
Bravo domnule ! Tine o tot așa ! Sper sa l depășești pe chrissfix in viitor și pe farmproject!
Mă nene, papagalul ăla de chrisfix nu se poate compara cu omul asta.
That doesn't look like a very good headlight restore and the film also looks quite thick so not only has the headlight been poorly restored, but the light now has to pass through a thicker piece of material. I would suggest doing this again, using a better polisher and spray on UV protectant.
do inside cleaning on audi a6 c5 projector headlights, they are old enough
👍
This headlight is dirty from the inside.
And the polishing improve the light output, even here where the polishing from the outside before and after look 99% the same, we can clearly see the improvement on 4:13
What car is it from?
Doesn't look like job is made by professional. It is definitely possible to get lot of better results.
i got 80000 miles on my car and the headlights are crystal clear still. i think the measurement for when headlights get bad should be time, not miles. my car is a year and a half old btw
It also depends greatly on your driving style. If you drive close behind other drivers, debris from their tyres will hit your car with much more kinetic energy. And, not to forget, the road cleanliness in each country is very different 😊
@@SergiuGabor yeah but thats causing chips, versus a hazey film. different type of headlight damage
@@SergiuGabor Quality and storage also matters.
Our Touran from 2007 with 210000km still has clear headlights.
But it sits in a garage.
1:16 pls link 😂😂😂
Looks like that guy didn't do a good job polishing. You would get a much better result with two runs. Using a heavy cutting compound followed by a finishing compound. If it's really bad sanding is a good option to start with.
The idea of polishing is to remove most or all surface imperfections. What may cause trouble are deeper gauges. Micro scratches are never an issue since you can always use a finer compound. If he did it the right way, you couldn't see any of them without a microscope.
The guy made it worse and spread them out.
This test is flawed because it's very particular, and I'll tell you why. I have somewhat hazed headlight covers and poor light output, and after seeing your video a few months ago, I thought that polishing won't change much and didn't do it, but it turns out that in some cases, polishing the headlights can improve things A LOT. For example, in the following video, the light output went from about 920 lux to 1600, which is about +75%; the Ukrainian dude polished the headlight with sanding paper, then acetone polymer vapor and finally applied a film on it: ruclips.net/video/V6jgemKiPkI/видео.html So I'll definitely polish my headlights now.
The headlights from the video you provided are in far worse condition though. It is logical that they will have better output if polished. Wonder how they got in this terrible condition that fast. My headlights are in a pretty good condition with just little dents and scratches, and I was advised by the guy who was going to polish them, not to do it, because I was not going to see any difference. Still it might be a good idea to polish them just to protect them with film or something so the plastic itself doesn't scratch.
Well in this case it seems the projector is at fault
Hi Sergiu, can you please test this product www.osram.de/ecat/NIGHT%20BREAKER%20H7-LED-LED%20lamps%20(street-legal)-Autobeleuchtung-Fahrzeugbeleuchtung/de/de/GPS01_3401765/ZMP_4062000/ ? it is some Osram LED that is supposed to be authorized to be used as a retrofit on reflector headlights ... it also gets authorization in germany. If you already reviewed this my mistake then.
No
Conform RAR, orice folie, chiar si transparenta este interzisa pe faruri.
Don't use pvc films, it's a terrible idea.I know that many ppl are fed lies that if you put clear coat, it will degrade or crack very fast, but that's actually false and if done properly, it lasts much much longer than a film and it ages better in general. It also just looks better.
I head it leaves an orange peel effect, even after polishing the clear coat.
@@DashCamSerbia
No, it's becomes very smooth actually. I guess that's if it's done correctly.