# 2004 Mercedes-Benz S-Class - Dim headlights **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** mercedes-benz\ **Created:** [September 26, 2021, 2:52pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591 "2021-09-26T14:52:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![davemc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davemc/32/26229_2.png) [@davemc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davemc)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2021, 2:52pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/1 "2021-09-26T14:52:58Z")
My 2004 S430 suffers from really dim headlights (not the brights, they are really good). They are so dim they honestly keep me in the dark. I know I need to fix them but cannot find out any info on doing that. Is this a mechanic or dealer only type of thing and what would this cost me? ---
**Author:** ![Cavell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cavell/32/43396_2.png) [@Cavell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cavell)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2021, 3:57pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/2 "2021-09-26T15:57:19Z")
![image](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/3X/8/b/8bdd24df4bf79d72d989b54549749ae2025c73bc.jpeg) So, what looks wrong? Cloudy? ---
**Author:** ![davemc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davemc/32/26229_2.png) [@davemc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davemc)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2021, 4:10pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/3 "2021-09-26T16:10:56Z")
The outside casing looks crazed, not really cloudy. I can’t tell about the low beam projectors themselves they kind of look cloudy but I’m not sure they were ever meant to be completely clear ---
**Author:** ![Cavell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cavell/32/43396_2.png) [@Cavell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cavell)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2021, 4:48pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/4 "2021-09-26T16:48:16Z")
Lens is supposed to be clear. Is the exterior housing plastic? I assume the backside is.im talking about the front facing “housing”. ---
**Author:** ![davemc](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/davemc/32/26229_2.png) [@davemc](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davemc)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2021, 4:49pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/5 "2021-09-26T16:49:45Z")
It’s clear plastic ---
**Author:** ![Cavell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cavell/32/43396_2.png) [@Cavell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cavell)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2021, 4:50pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/6 "2021-09-26T16:50:34Z")
So, it’s like new? As in see thru clear? You can include pics ya know. ---
**Author:** ![VOLVO-V70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8e8cbc/32.png) [@VOLVO-V70](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VOLVO-V70)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2021, 5:35pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/7 "2021-09-26T17:35:22Z")
> [@davemc](#): > > Is this a mechanic or dealer only type of thing and what would this cost me? There is no way to give you a cost because we don’t know where you are or what facility you might use to solve this. Is this a new problem or did you just aquire this vehicle. Many detail shops can polish the lenses to like new and make the dim lights work better. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 3:04am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/8 "2021-09-27T03:04:49Z")
Take pictures and post them. The lenses might need to be polished. You can do it yourself, or find a car detailer to do it for you. Maybe we can confirm with your photos. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2021, 3:09am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2004-mercedes-benz-s-class-dim-headlights/179591/9 "2021-09-27T03:09:48Z")
It’s probably going to be cloudy lenses or dulled reflectors. The former is fixable sort of but may need a redo again at some point. The latter is not; at least not without a lot of head banging. Just look through the lenses and see if the reflective surface is tarnished.