02/03 Impreza headlights hazing up ... PLEASE read

Sorry to hear you got "stuck" with a Subaru. The site you posted above says it all. Another good one to look at is

For the most part, Subaru's are a bag of shit. A poorly manufactured automob ile, built with a dollar sign in mind.They really give the auto industry a black eye. Maybe the people in the UK and other "Euro" countries might find it acceptable, but we put Subaru in the "Eurojunk" catagory, not because it's made there(its not) but it's SOLD there in larger numbers then the USA. In reliability Subaru is right there with KIA, DAEWOO and HYUNDAI. It's a cheap(QUALITY not price) piece of unreliable shit. Crappy plastic(fogging headlights like you already experianced), electrical problems, Fuel system problems, ABS (braking) problems, transmission problems,shitty/cheap paint, soft metal(dents easy).Many complain that the car "Stinks",weird smells inside the car(electrical or?)Add to the list door latches that break,seat latches that don't work, seatbelt problems, the list is huge.Don't beleive it??? read these two sites for starts. We all understand that most car companies will have a "lemon" or two. Subaru seems to have problems with ALL their cars.No car is perfect....but this is surely a "SHITBOX" of a car company. Good luck with yours Steve, your in for the "Subaru experiance"..keep a extra vehicle handy.

Spread the word to all your friends! It's not just Subaru... anyone who has plastic lenses may have the problem, though it seems to be getting better since most mfrs have adopted a projector with clear lens type of construction. Older lenses that were fluted seemed to be worse offenders, especially in warm to hot climates such as where I live in SoCal. And it's not just Subaru who will blow you off on the degradation issue.

In the meantime, get a bottle of Meguiar's Plastx and use it with your regular car washing regime. I used it to bring back Toyota lenses that were so far gone I was sure I was gonna be stuck shelling out $200/side to replace them, so it should work much better as a preventative measure. It both cleans and leaves a protective film on the plastic.

Good luck!

Rick

SNIP

I have an '02 bugeye which developed some hazing around the edges in spite of the fact that I regularly polished the lenses with Meguires cleaner/wax. Then in a moment of brilliance, I figured out why the haze remained at the edges, but not in the center.

I tried my theory out, and voila; no more hazing at the edges! C'mom now, beg me and I'll spill the beans. :^) -Danny

me and I'll spill the beans. :^) -Danny

Please, Sire, we beg of thee on bended knee... :D

Rick

Don't you have somewhere to go and something to do when you get there? I'm sure some here might have suggestions...

Rick

I agree that the dealer should take care of this issue. Might get more help in some of the Subie forums. Check this out:

Ping Danny:

What's the best kept Subaru secret in the Russell household?

Sure, we can all buy expensive plastic polishes and treat the SYMPTOM but we won't cure the DISEASE. If you keep you car a long time you'll end up buying a pair of headlights and for Subarus that is an EXPENSIVE purchase.

These "crystal-clear" lenses were supposed to NOT haze over like the 80s through 90s polycarbonate lenses did. Plymouth/Dodge Neons were so bad we call them "cataracts". These new lenses were supposed to solve this problem but they don't and Subaru knows it. They specifically EXCLUDE "lenses" in any of their factory extended warranties while blowing off owners when they complain about the headlights during the original 3/36 warranty.

Go to the NHTSA web site, file a complaint, and have the DOT get Subaru to explain.

Call 1-800-subaru3 and complain.

Rick Courtright wrote >

Ha, ha, alright Rick & MAC.

Well... acting upon the suspicion that I just wasn't "getting" the edges well enough during the normal polishings, I lifted the hood to give unfettered access to the aforementioned edges and successfully polished them to the same state of shine as the center portion.

I basically just had to put a lot more concentrated elbow grease into the job. Because there's a tendency to steer shy of the edges to avoid getting polish into the rubber strip that surrounds the lense, the haze eventually builds up over time. So the dealer is right.

Don't feel bad, it took me three years to figure this out myself. :^)

What do you have against the Korean cars? They've made amazing improvements in quality and reliability over the last decade.

You must have Subaru confused with Ford.

I see a lot of Fords with the same problem. My friend has a 2000 Escort with very yellow headlight lenses.

Hey Steve,

I had a Dodge do this to me. When I went to sell the car it would not pass Maryland's safety inspection because not enough light would pass through the lens. To the point-- it looked like oxidation on the exterior surface of the lens to my eye. I was quoted a couple hundred bucks to replace the lens, which I did not want to spend. I figured the lens were shot, I had nothing to loose-- I started wet sanding with 600 grit, went to 1200 and finished with plexi-glass polish. They turned out pretty good. A little pitted because the oxidation was so thick (close to half a mm I would guess.) but the light coming through was clear and bright and the lenses looked good except some swirl from the sandpaper.

For your situation all can imagine you needing is to use the plexi-glass polish because the car is not very old and the oxidation should be very thick. I would not try this until you are certain Subaru will do nothing to help you because once you do you will be on your own as far as the lenses are concerned

Understood... but I don't consider a $6 bottle of polish completely out of the question vs putting over $400 into two new headlight assemblies (Subaru has no monopoly on the overpriced parts market--that's the best OEM price I could find on my Toyota. Some dealers went up to $500!) and it's gonna take a while to get this situation resolved. If this were a computer issue, we'd call it a "workaround" and everyone would bitch for a while, then end up shrugging their shoulders and doing whatever it takes to carry on.

I've found life to be far less disappointing since I dropped "supposed to" from my everyday vocabulary!

I don't have any good comparative experience between different mfrs and their clear lenses, but I do know my g/f's Honda, parked outside 24/7, and washed as seldom as she can get away with it, has "perfect" lenses after four years. Yet I doubt Honda warrants their lenses, either. Too many things can happen--around here if the gravel trucks don't get you, a sandstorm will. Glass, plastic and paint all suffer tremendously. Mfrs would go broke calling damage of this nature a warranty issue, so I can see the hazing of the lenses coming under the same "environmental damage" kind of heading.

Definitely! Just don't hold your breath waiting for change.

Rick

Add Volvos to the list.

Rick

Rick Courtright wrote in article ...

The right stuff to use for the longest lens life is about $22 (not unmanageable) but the lenses won't last indefinitely if polished often enough to keep them clear. Long term owner's will probably have to buy replacement light assemblies and I'm being told about $600 per pair.

In my mind "supposed to" do it's job is a synonym for "manufacturing defect" and that should be covered under warranty.

EVERY manufacturer does not have this lens problem. It is not DAMAGE. It is a choice of material not up to it's intended job with a realistic lifetime in service. Some manufacturers do stand behind their products but Subaru chooses not to. Replacing headlight assemblies is not routine maintenance in my 40 plus years of driving and if it is NOW then sell replacement LENSES and not $600 assemblies.

Takes 5 minutes to file a complaint on the NHTSA web site and it's a toll-free call to Subaru. If nobody complains then it's certain Subaru will do nothing.

The Dodges and all Chrysler products had a different problem. Chrysler chose a polycarbonate plastic that yellowed all the way through after time. 1995-1999 Neons are famous for this malady and they are called "cataracts" among their owners. One can buy Diamond clear replacement lights for Neons at $150/pair and resolve the problem.

My $22k Subaru has the problem and it's under warranty (the car not the headlights).

If you can spare the time to file a complaint or call Subaru that's great. It's a cinch Subaru will do nothing as long as they can.

SuperPoo wrote in article ...

It makes me miss the old days when you bought a headlight, the lens was part of the assembly you bought........

We get a lot of wind here that blows sand. Bug-eyed headlight lenses are not the only items affected by this. My paint job also has a number of very small chips due to this same phenomenon as well as my windshield has a "sparkly" look to it for being "sand blasted".