If your automotive headlights get yellow or dirty, try to clean them with some rubbing compound. Just make a past and rub it into the headlight plastic covers and then wipe off. They will come clear like new. I have done this for many of my customers who were going to buy new headlights because the cover is so dim they could not see clearly at night.
The rubbing compound is also great to make old paint look new. Make a paste and wax your car with it and the when the shine returns, use some good wax to keep it looking new.
Here are archived discussions related to this page.
I have a friend who cleaned his headlights on his '72 Chevy with toothpaste and they looked great but when I tried it on my '89 Mustang they just clouded up.
I just recently got my first car. To my surprise, my new car's headlights weren't the best. They were foggy and didn't look the way I thought a new car's should look. My dad shared a tip with me. All you need is to put a little bit of brake fluid on a soft cloth. Make sure you don't get any fluid on the paint. Rub the cloth in circles on your lights. When you're finished, give your lights a good rub down on every area you wiped with brake fluid. It should do the trick. If you want, repeat as desired.
Actually for a small fee, a body shop will polish all the scratches off your headlight covers and they will look like brand new ones. I had mine done and it is amazing. (01/11/2011)