New Lens Cover

[DavidN]

Gave our RX300 to our son who lives in the desert of Arizona after having the lens cover cleaned at the local dealer. It looked great after the treatment.

Saw the can this last weekend and it is all clouded over again. My wife is concerned that the light is substandard and dangerous. Called the parts department of the dealer and asked for a price for replacements. I did not think it would be inexpensive nor did I think it would be $400+ for each side - driver and passenger.

After the paramedics left I thought how best to solve the situation so, naturally, I turned to Google. The first item was Amazon. A little more browsing and replacing the entire unit is only $80ish for each side and includes the polymer lens cover.

It's clear Toyota has no interest in selling the replacement polymer and I understand why they would not but, the price difference is laughable. I never found out the cost of replacing the entire unit from the dealer but, I'm certain it will not be anywhere near $80. I'm old school, I regard a dollar of revenue a dollar of revenue as long as it only costs $.60 or $.80 to make the item to sell and distribute the item for sale.

Undoubtly, the vehicle is still safe to drive but, the clouding is unsightly. What have you done, if anything to solve this issue?

Thanks.

[cduluk]

The headlight "lens" cannot be replaced by itself- the entire headlight would have to be replaced. What is the year of the RX300? Does it have HID or halogen?

You can buy used or aftermarket halogen headlights for the price you mentioned. That would be my best suggestion if the RX has halogen bulbs. However, if the headlights are HID (xenon) no aftermarket headlights even exist, most used ones will have the same clouding issue, and new ones from the dealer are way more than $400.

I'll assume your RX headlights have halogen (since the dealer quoted >$400). My personal suggestion in that case (having a LOT of experience with Rx300 headlights and the issue you mentioned) would be to get the new aftermarket headlights, either from Amazon or ebay.

[DavidN]

Thanks for this. I have no idea as to the type of light involved, the car is the RX Coach Edition.

I was only interested in obtaining the polymer cover of the headlight assembly (if that is the right word), the lights work fine. The plastic cover is what has clouded over.

[cduluk]

Thanks for this. I have no idea as to the type of light involved, the car is the RX Coach Edition.

I was only interested in obtaining the polymer cover of the headlight assembly (if that is the right word), the lights work fine. The plastic cover is what has clouded over.

Oh a 2002 coach ed? Hmm... is it AWD or FWD?

Most (if not all) all-wheel drive RX300s from 01-03 came with HID headlights (utilizing a halogen bulb in a specially designed reflector with auto-leveling) while most of the front-wheel drive Rx300s came with halogen headlights without the auto-leveling function. It actually does matter if your son's Rx300 has the HID or the halogen, as both headlights are very different in design and in terms of wiring. If your sons Rx300 has HID, you cannot install a halogen headlight. And if it has halogen, you cannot install the HID type--at least without major re-wiring.

Can you find out which type headlight it has? Your son may know. HID headlights are fairly new to cars, only being invented in the late 90s. HID headlights emit a more "blueish" light and the RX300 HID (xenon) headlights have an auto-leveling feature (a motor in the headlight moves the bulb reflector up and down based on signals from a sensor on the rear control arm). If your sons Rx300 has HID, it will have auto-leveling, which can be identified by the characteristic "dance" after start-up with the lights on: the headlight beam will momentarily move up and down within a second or two after start-up with lights on, serving as a self-test. The non-HID headlights use a standard "yellowish" halogen bulb and the headlights do not have this auto-leveling feature.

Unfortunately the lens to these headlights cannot be removed and replaced (i wish they could!). The only solution is to replace the entire headlight. Hopefully your sons Rx300 has the cheaper halogen type headlight so you can get the $80 aftermarket units to replace it easily. However if the headlights are the HID type, aftermarket units do not exist, so you'd have to go the "used" route.

Check back with the type and we'll work from there. I know the RX300 very intimately! :)

[1990LS400]

Whoa there! There is no practical limit in how many times plastic headlight lenses can be refinished and made to look and perform like new again. I've refinished the lenses on my 2000 LS400 three times since I bought it in 2003 - once after someone rammed and badly scraped the right lens with a shopping cart.

Each time the lenses came out looking and performing like new or so close to like new that I can't tell the difference.

Tell your son to go to the nearest auto parts store, Walmart, etc. and buy a headlight lens refinishing kit - price should be between $20 and $30. Some kits require using an electric drill and buffing pad - I don't care for these - too easy to get carried away with a mechanical device and grind through a lens.

I've used a Crystal View kit each time I've done it. I've probably more comfortable with the Crystal View kit since it involves hand wet sanding the lenses to remove the crud - similar to wet sanding automotive lacquer between coats. I can exactly gauge my progress with my fingertips. The most important part of the process is a chemical sealer that prevents the lenses from fogging up again or at least slows down the deterioration until the restoration process has to be repeated a year or three down the road.

The following thread has photos from the last time I stored headlight lenses: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/topic/74083-headlight-cover-oxidation/?hl=crystal#entry456058

Refinishing headlight lenses is easy. Now that I've done it a few times, I've got it down to about a 10 minute job.

[Rogerm]

3M makes a really good kit Auto Zone or Trac Auto... or online