I was gearing up for a 1500 kms + road trip over the sandy stretch of the Middle East. The sand, mostly on the road, and fine particles suspended in the air, is the biggest issue vehicle owners face here. Driving at a steady 130+ kmph for long duration, makes the sand act as a abrasive, that wears out the paint finish, windscreen glass, headlight plastic, chrome and everything that it impacts. For a regular road going sedan, the parts that are exposed to such treatment are the headlights, front bumper, forward portion of the bonnet, rear view mirrors etc. It is best to get some kind of paint protection done on your vehicle, before embarking on a road trip. The difference between protected and un protected headlights can be as much as this, in little over 2 years - The above image is only for illustrative purposes. sourced from - 320 * Sycamore: diy headlight restoration The headlight protection that was being offered was a plastic protection, akin to vehicle window film, that would be put all over the headlights, fog lamps and indicators. The film cannot be heated much to match the curves, so it is a bit of a pain to install. This offers protection from sand, grit, small pebbles owning to the 0.5 mm thickness of the sheet, and also supposedly protects from UV ray. UV could possibly damage headlights by yellowing the clear plastic. The amount of sunlight we get here, I would pretty much believe them. Here are the installation pics - Starts off by cutting a sheet the rough size of the headlight. Cleans and soaps up the headlight. Applying the sheet like any other window tint. Using a Squeegee to ensure the film matches the curves of the headlight. A lot of soapy water was sprayed in the process, ruining my freshly polished vehicle. Had to clean it up again after that. Trimming the edges with a cutter. Finishing touches. Working on the top of the headlight as well. Impressive. This area is seldom exposed, but some wind/dust might enter. Applying the film on the top half. All in, just squeezing the water out. Finished result. You cannot tell the difference that the film is installed once it dries out (above). They offer a 5 year protection guarantee (no peels). So I assume the amount of effort taken to put it up was necessary to ensure it stays on for so long. All in all a tad pricey at about 1800 INR for both headlights + Fogs + indicators, but nothing compared to the price of new headlights, or yellowed, worn out headlights. Hope this inspires fellow car lovers to carry out something similar for their beloved machines (if not already done so)
