Any car enthusiast knows well that various pebbles can fly from under the wheels of a vehicle in front while driving. They can also cause a broken or damaged headlight. To reduce the risk of such consequences, you can increase the distance between the cars. But this is not always possible. Another thing is to try to protect them. And for this there is a special film for the headlights.
What is it
Headlight film is a protective coating for vehicle lighting. It helps to prevent not only the appearance of scratches and chips, but also the breaking of glass. Outwardly, it looks like household scotch tape, with which everyone is well acquainted. The difference from it is that the film is much thicker, and it does not stretch.
Composition
The protective film for the headlights is made of polyurethane, which is a polymeric material. It has excellent strength and wear characteristics. But, unfortunately, it has a significant drawback - a narrow range of operating temperatures. This material can only be used in the range of -20 to +80 degrees Celsius.
Efficiency
The film for headlights perfectly protects against chips and scratches that can occur as a result of a blow with a small stone. And this is already an important factor, because on many car models it will not be possible to replace only glass, but you will have to buy the entire kit assembly. With more significant blows, the headlight, of course, will break. But at the same time, the film will not let the glass crumble.
disadvantages
Unfortunately, the headlamp film has a very serious negative aspect. It weakens the luminous flux. So, a protective coating with a thickness of only 0.5 mm reduces light transmission by 2%, while 1 mm - already by 4%. But these indicators look much better than conventional plastic, which will reduce the light flux by 15%. For side lights and dipped beam, such losses will be uncritical. Visibility while driving, such a decrease in performance will not hurt. Things are completely different with high beams. It should illuminate the path at a distance of 300 meters. With a decrease in luminous flux of only 2%, the distance will decrease to 250 meters.
How to glue a film on the headlights
It is most convenient to carry out this operation on dismantled lighting fixtures of the vehicle. But removing headlights is often difficult because additional labor-intensive work may be required. For example, dismantling the bumper. Then the cost of effort and time to complete all the work will increase significantly. Therefore, the application of a protective coating can be carried out on installed headlights.
First you must complete the workpiece. To do this, the film must be attached to the headlight and with the help of scissors cut the desired piece. It can be done with a small margin.
Before pasting headlights, they should be thoroughly cleaned and washed. If this is not done, then under the film will remain dirt, which can not only ruin the appearance, but also negate all the difficulties. After that, the entire surface to be glued should be degreased.
Next, the headlight should be moistened with soapy water, separate the film from the substrate and attach it to the glass. After that, it should be rolled out with a squeegee. That's all.