The headlights on your BMW are crucial safety components, allowing you to see the road ahead and navigate safely in conditions with lower visibility — such as rain, fog, or night. Over time, the lenses on the headlights, or the headlights covers, can get hazy or foggy, drastically reducing visibility and making it harder to see what’s ahead.
Headlights are also crucial to let others know about your location in poor weather conditions. Whether there’s another vehicle in front of you or coming at you in the opposite direction, well-illuminated headlights could be the first thing they notice when visibility is low — like in heavy rainfall or when it’s dark.
While there are methods that you can use to restore your headlights, they aren’t guaranteed to work in every scenario. They’re also a temporary fix and will require constant maintenance. A more permanent and effective solution is to replace the foggy headlights with a new set that will restore their full functionality, reducing the risk of an accident. Check our catalog of BMW headlights for good replacement options.
What Causes Foggy or Hazed Headlights?
If you have owned a car for long enough, you will have to deal with foggy or hazed headlights at some point. In most cases, fogged-up headlights are a result of regular wear, but there are instances where they can show these signs of aging prematurely. Here’s a detailed look at some of the most common causes of foggy headlights:
Moisture Buildup
When moisture enters the headlight cover, it can result in a layer of condensation inside the headlight assembly. This cloudy film will hinder the headlights’ brightness and efficiency. You might face this if your headlights have a crack through which moisture can seep in or if it was replaced or reinstalled incorrectly.
Luckily, if this is the cause of your fogged-up headlights, letting the moisture evaporate and then sealing any cracks or leaks should rectify the issue.
Environmental Factors
However, the most likely reason you have to deal with foggy headlights is that they have been affected by environmental factors over time. Most modern-day cars feature a polycarbonate headlight cover that can oxidize and turn yellow.
Sunlight, or more specifically UV radiation, is one of the main contributors to its deterioration. A car that spends all its time parked under harsh sunlight will develop yellowed and hazy headlights much sooner than one that’s not as exposed.
This is why most modern cars, including your BMW, come with headlights with a UV-resistant clear coat on them. This reduces and prolongs the effect that sunlight will have on them.
Can You Drive with Foggy Headlights?
As you might suspect, there isn’t a firm yes or no answer to this question. If your headlights’ brightness has been compromised by a foggy cover, you’ll only be putting yourself and others around you at risk. Sure, you can drive with cloudy headlights, but if conditions aren’t optimal, you experience lower visibility.
Can You Restore Foggy Headlights?
Since foggy headlights are a problem that nearly every car owner deals with, many choose to restore their headlights to restore their clarity instead of replacing them. While restoring your headlights will reduce how foggy they are, the process is unlikely to bring them back to near-new condition. Additionally, any results you get won’t be temporary, and it won’t be long until you start feeling like they require another restoration.
There are several methods to restore foggy headlights, some more efficient than others. You can use a purpose-specific headlight restoration kit or have your headlights restored by a detailing shop.
A headlight restoration kit typically includes sandpaper or some form of abrasive pad and a chemical solution that you work into the headlight. They’re the most effective route if you want to restore your headlights and will get rid of scratches and yellowing to some extent. These chemicals can also be harsh on the UV-resistant coating on the headlights, making them even more susceptible to discoloration down the line.
Taking the car to a detailer who knows how to restore headlights is a better alternative. They will sand the headlights down with different grades of sandpaper, then polish the surface using a rotary. Finally, they will apply a layer of UV protection. While this solution works, the UV protection most detailing shops use isn’t nearly as good as the stuff that’s applied to the headlights at the factory. In other words, don’t expect this to be a long-term solution.
Why You Should Replace Foggy Headlights
A well-functioning headlight should adequately illuminate the road in front of you, even in suboptimal driving conditions. A foggy headlight lens can reduce the amount of light coming from your projectors, making it more challenging to see and putting you at risk. As we mentioned above, restoring your headlights is only a viable solution if there’s been a crack that’s led to moisture ingress or if there’s minor discoloration. Nevertheless, having to repeatedly restore your headlights will be time-consuming, and eventually, you’ll face diminishing returns.
If your headlights have already developed a thick cloudy finish, we strongly urge that you have them replaced. Replacing foggy headlights can also enhance the appearance of your Bimmer and make one aspect of it look new again.
At Bimmers.com, you can find high-quality headlights for your car. We carry everything from entire headlight assemblies to individual components like brackets, bulbs, and sensors, you can find all of them stocked and categorized based on the model and year of your BMW. Head to the shop section now and find exactly what you need in just a few clicks.
