2020 Off-Road Grill Emblem Clouding Up

Greetings! The Toyota emblem on the front grill of my 2020 Off Road has developed a nasty patina of haze that's looking pretty bad. It almost looks like the decomposing clearcoat you see on some vehicles. I've tried several different plastic polishing/cleaning products to clean it up, but nothing has worked so far. I'm thinking that the next step might be aa headlight polishing kit.

Has anyone else had this problem? If so were you able to effectively deal with it and what did you use?

 

It is easy to replace if needed.

 

I was hoping to avoid that expense if possible. I've seen prices ranging from $50 for an eBay knockoff or used part to $250+ for the genuine article from Toyota. Also, wouldn't replacing it require a TSS recalibration?

 

Does it look clearer when wet? Maybe a headlight restoration kit?

$18 CERAKOTE® Ceramic Headlight Restoration Kit – Guaranteed To Last As Long As You Own Your Vehicle – Brings Headlights Back to Like New Condition - No Power Tools Required - 10 Wipe Kit

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084RQKLV8?ie=UTF8&th=1

 

My emblem has the same cloudiness. Interested in an easy fix if someone has one. Otherwise I might just plastidip it or something. Mine has no sensor though.

 

That's what I was thinking my next step will be, but I'd like to verify, if possible, that it will work if someone else has gone down this road before me.

 

you could cover it.....

 

I would say buff then wax

 

That's a nice skin. Where did you get it, if you don't mind me asking?

 

I got this one from an Etsy shop called UpturnPrints

 

It's not a hard part to replace but the darn thing is like $265 so if you remove it from the grille be very careful the tabs can be easily broken. I tried one of them wraps on mine and broke one of the tabs. The good was that I was able to super glue it and it has held. I love the wraps but honestly it was one of those things I wasn't able to get on right and after repositioning it aa few times to get it the way I thought it should be I ruined the wrapped decal.

 

3M rubbing compound bro, put it on a terry cloth and polish the plastic. Though, that headlight kit posted above is cheaper than the 3M compound (but then again you’d have a whole bottle of compound….)

 

c_mento_taco used to be a member here. He sold them through Instagram.

 

I see your in Phoenix, I see used grilles on OfferUp all the time. Grab one for 50 bucks and now you have an emblem. You don’t need to recalibrate anything.

 

That'll buff out.







If it doesn't, it's time to part out.

 

It’s the same as headlights. Once the uv clear coat has been buffed off, you can polish it as much as you want but unless you seal it afterwards it’s going to keep happening

 

UPDATE: Decided to try the headlight restoration kit and picked up this "ceramic" product from Amazon:

$18 CERAKOTE® Ceramic Headlight Restoration Kit – Guaranteed To Last As Long As You Own Your Vehicle – Brings Headlights Back to Like New Condition - No Power Tools Required - 10 Wipe Kit

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084RQKLV8?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

It uses a sealer as the final step. Hopefully it will last, because the result was dramatic.

Before:



AFTER:

 

Yes, I used that exact same kit on my 2nd gen OEM headlight lenses and in March 2022, got a similar result, and it has been holding up well since then. (Caveat: only have about 10K miles on the vehicle since then, and 95% of the time it is kept garaged.)

 

Cerakote makes great stuff