Can it brake the lens? I remembers someone mention it can happed, but no longer find that post. Any link?

If you have clear bra installed, do you put it on the headlights?

 

I had clear bra put on my Prius headlights in 2004 with no ill effects.

 

I have clear bra on my 06 headlamps, fog lamps, and driving lamps, and no issues so far (1 year +)...

 

I has Stongard on the headlamps and fogs of a BMW with no issues (one fog light cracked without it, put film on after replacing) and on the Mini we have Venture shield on the lights and it seems fine.

 

We've had a clear bra installed on our MINI's xenon headlamps for 3+ years now and have never had a problem.

 

DIY'd Expel lense covers on all forward lights a year ago. Noooo problems.

 

I have on the headlights and fogs..
reporting Zero problems...

 

As part of the clear bra package I purchased during my Mini buy (from Flow Mini, Winston-Salem, NC), the installers put 20mm clear vinyl over the headlights and fog lights, instead of 8mm as they did on the rest of the leading surfaces.

Going on 3,000 miles - no ill affects whatsoever.

 

im sure its a typo as 20mm is 2 Centimeters!! that would look rather akward.


I have a question though... whats the point in putting the film on the headlight? based on my experience with modern cars... the headlights are all made of plastic and are rather strong... ive almost never seen a cracked headlight because of a rock on a modern car. if it was included i wouldnt mind putting it on but i definitely wouldnt spend more to get it on.

 

The headlights may not crack easily but they do get pitted from being hit with road debris - its just a way to protect them from chips and wear to keep them new looking

 

I did a DIY install of the 3M aeroguard, and purchased the material to do both lights and fogs. I have not yet done it as I was looking at the headlights in my other 3 cars, and saw no chipping, scratches, or other marks. Because of this I am hesitant to install the film, as its one more thing I can screw up.

 

I have always protected my lights on the front end of my cars.As a result of this,i have never had to replace them.Q

 

I'll second what everyone has said. Well, I guess that means I'll eight it, or ninth it... whatever.

Anyway, clearbra installed on my 06 Cooper for over a year now and no problems. They look as good as new and if I didn't tell you, you probably couldn't tell they were covered, even if you were standing a foot away from the car. Lines are very hard to detect on the clear plastic.

 

Hmmm.. you might be onto something there.. Lemme check the brochure that came with the car.

At the price it costs to replace any modern headlamp, I feel confident that the plastic cover will deflect the majority of stones / dirt that might cause the lense to break.

 

I think you mean 2mm, not 20.

 

actually he probably means 20mil... which is .020"

 

Hmmmmm... could be. After all, that's about the width of a heavy-duty trash bag.

Yeah, now that I think about it, even 2mm would be too thick for clearbra material. :impatient

 

Ok. I see a lot of members installed clear bra on their headlights.

Here is the story. I did it on mine about a month ago. Cover hood, bumper and of course the Lights. But due to my poor installation on one of the fog lights with 15 mil thick clear bar that sold by the adv vendor here. I removed it and found the lower part of the len had a lot of little cracks. Could it cause by the installation? Or hit by road object? or the worst the thick 15 mil 3M clear bra?

I afraid of future damage on the headlights. My Boxster and Cooper S already had them on and they look great. Should I be worry?

 

I have the headlamps and fogs on our cars covered with the same 8 mil 3M film that was used on the rest of the car. About 35,000 combined miles so far with no problems.
My installer did say that he started using the 8 mil film on the lights because several years ago, he had some yellowing/cracking problems with the 30 mil headlight-specific film that 3M used to sell (the 30 mil film was turning yellow and spiderwebbing, not the lights themselves). Since the 8 mil film seems to protect just as well, is harder to see and easier to work with, he just stuck with it. Plus, it's one less type of film that he has to keep in stock.

 

I don't see how the installation could have caused it, unless you soaked your lens in ice water then hit it with a heat gun.

Quite possibly the clear bra kept it from shattering.

 

Due to the poor installation, water was trapped like a finger / water dam, U-shape between the len and clear bra for a month.

I am in Southern California. Car kept indoor day and night. Had not turn on fog light during the night. Do you think the heat from the sun AND water trap inside the clear bra might have something to do with these tiny cracks at the level?

 

I guess I am at the other end. I have not had to replace any lights over the last 30 years, and I have never used a film on them. So who knows?

 

For those with the xenon lights, did you have an extra piece of material put over the chrome headlight washers? I spoke with the shop I'm using today for an appointment on Tuesday. I said go ahead, but I'm not sure it's needed.

 

I didn't have the chrome headlight washers, headlight rings, or grille slats covered. The texture of the clearbra film isn't that noticeable over the factory paint, but I was afraid it would be too noticeable on the chrome and carbon fiber parts, so I left those uncovered. No problems so far.

 

No... in fact, none of my chrome is covered with the film.

My installer made a good point: What's the purpose of chrome ? To be really shiny. And although the film is 99.8% clear and doesn't affect the color of paint even close to enough to be seen with the naked eye, the change on top of chrome IS noticeable and takes away from the shine.

And chrome is cheap to replace, relatively speaking.

Don't cover the chrome with clearbra film.