2020 test7 productsCar Care & Detailing
Which Headlight Restoration Kit Brand Wins?
We compared 7 headlight restoration kit options head to head. Sylvania Headlight Restoration Kit came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
Winner
Sylvania Headlight Restoration Kit
Price shown in test: $19.99
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Runner-up
3M Headlight Restoration System
Price shown in test: $14.43
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | Final clarity comparison | Deep scratch removal | Sandpaper quality test | Deep scratch removal vs Meguiar's | Sandpaper starting grit | Coating cure vs Visbella | Final comparison vs Meguiar's | Vs 3M sandpaper | Vs Turtle Wax | Final comparison |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sylvania Headlight Restoration Kit$19.99 | Sylvania is the only product that returned the polycarbonate to a like new appearance | The Sylvania kit did an amazing job removing the deep scratches and the protective UV coating filled in the very fine scratches. The fully cured top coating is not sticky or oily and looks amazing | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 23M Headlight Restoration System$14.43 | not tested | 3M did an amazing job with all deep scratches removed and only very scratches remaining | check out how quickly the 3M sandpaper is removing the material... the sandpaper is doing an amazing job... by far the best sandpaper we've tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 3Mothers NuLens headlight renewal kit$14.70 | not tested | not tested | not tested | Mother's definitely did a better job at removing the deep scratches. The protective coating for both brands seems about the same | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 4Meguiar's headlight restoration kit$23.99 | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | the challenge I'm finding with this Meguiar's is that it starts off with a 1000 grit sandpaper where all the other brands had somewhere between a 400 and up to an 800 grit as the starting point | the big difference between the two is that the protective coating on Meguiar's is not sticky and is fully cured | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 5Visbella DIY Headlight Restoration Kit$13.96 | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | while the Visbella did not remove the protective coating, definitely did help. However, even after several days of cure time the protective coating remained sticky | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 6Pittsburgh Deluxe Lens Renewal System (Harbor Freight)$13.99 | not tested | not tested | unfortunately, this Harbor Freight sandpaper just clogs very easily | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | you can see it's already clogged up and quite frankly it really didn't do much as far as removing material... the product is actually sticking to the Harbor Freight | Pittsburgh definitely did a better job than Turtle Wax but deep scratches remain and without a protective coating the headlight lenses will become damaged by UV exposure in under a year | not tested |
| 7Turtle Wax Like New in Minutes$5.59 | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | the tiny pieces of sandpaper in the Turtle Wax just didn't last long enough to remove the yellowing or deep scratches and the protective coating remained sticky even after several days of cure time |
How it was tested
- sandpaper grit removal comparison between Harbor Freight Pittsburgh and 3M at 800 grit
- sand, polish, and UV coat restoration of yellowed simulated polycarbonate lens sheets
- post cure coating tackiness and clarity inspection versus new undamaged polycarbonate
- side by side deep scratch removal comparison across all kits
“Sylvania is the only product that returned the polycarbonate to a like new appearance.”