Headlights Peeling (help)

About a year ago i bought the GTR carbide headlights for my 2021 4runner. I've noticed that the outer layer of the headlights is peeling off and is getting worse every day. From the looks of it, GTR lighting has rebranded to Headlight Revolution. I emailed them but haven't heard anything back. Even if they responded I dont think they can do anything because I bought them second hand from TRD Jon but i thought it was worth a shot. Does anyone know if theres a way to fix this or am i screwed?

 

cut and stick piece of (color) vinyl on top

 

I didn't watch the video Borracho attached but Im going to guess it's the same process. Sand, polish and reclear?? After you've finished the reclear, let it completely dry and find someone to add PPF to the headlight. This will prevent you from doing the sanding process again down the road. If it ever fades, just peel off PPF and reapply.

 

You've found the big issue with aftermarket headlights. The clear is always where corners are cut. Yes, the OEM's suffer from the same issue on these vehicles (as was our case). If you want to do it right and not do it again, you want to sand off ALL the clear currently on there, starting with a rough grit (300 ish) and working your way to around 800-1k grit. Any finer and the new clear doesn't adhere well, any more coarse and it won't completely fill.

Once you're done with that, take it to a body shop and have them hit the lenses with the 2 part clear they use for body work. There are UV inhibitors in the clear. Don't bother with the 1 part clear on the shelf at parts stores. It'll just fade again. Or chip and flake. With the right PPE, you can do the 2 part clear yourself (SprayMax 2k) but you have to be sure you're fully protected, 2 part clear is NASTY stuff. But that is the best 2 part in a can you can get.

The other option as mentioned, is the vinyl on the top. I did this to our 4runner since it wasn't that bad, and the vinyl will keep it from peeling more. In your case, if it's already gone "around the corner" of the headlight, the vinyl won't do much for stopping it anymore.

That flat surface of the headlights and tail lights exposed directly perpendicular to UV wasn't exactly the smartest design and definitely accelerates the peeling and wear, but aftermarket lights to begin with just don't have a great clearcoat to begin with.

I've done a lot of retrofits as well as fixed a lot of headlights with this issue. Even if I'm building headlights, depending on what someone wants, I'll suggest to them when the housing is new, to sand down per the process above and re-clear with a quality 2K.