Automotive manufacturers have always used distinctive styling as a means of differentiating their vehicles from the competition, and now we’re seeing different styles in headlight design (Figure 1). Advances in lighting technologies such as LEDs, the desire for unique designs and the ability to incorporate color are coming together to create lighting assemblies with bold new looks.

Outer lenses for automotive headlights are predominantly formed from polycarbonate resin, and this engineering plastic is being used increasingly to form inner lenses as well. The versatile polymer is well-suited for automotive lighting applications because of its thermal stability, impact strength, clarity, heat resistance and ease of injection molding for complex lens designs. New grades of polycarbonates are meeting the challenges of today’s automotive lighting designs that incorporate LEDs...