SOUTHWEST FLORIDA - The bright Florida sun leaves behind casualties in parking lots. Yellowed, fogged, and clouded headlights drivers may not notice even after the sun goes down.

"I'm not aware that my headlights are dimmed," Realtor Marsha Asp told CALL FOR ACTION.

Asp and teacher Todd Holappa agreed to help us with an experiment. We compared Holappa's older Kia and Asp's newer Lexus, both with clouded headlight lenses, with a third car with no clouding. With all three car's parked, we asked Holappa's 4-year-old daughter to walk about 50 feet in front of the cars.

Compare what the little girl looks like in front of a car with no clouding... compared to Marsha's Lexus with a little fading.

"Did you feel you could see the little girl very well?" CALL FOR ACTION reporter Melissa Yeager asked Asp.

Asp replied,"Yes. I did. I thought I would. But on the other hand, you know she's there so it's easier to see something when you know its there."

We then compared Asp's view....to Holappa's Kia.

"I was amazed at the difference," Holappa told CALL FOR ACTION.

Reporter Melissa Yeager asked Holappa, "Are you comfortable, if there was a child running at night, you'd be able to see them quickly?"

"Not at all. Not at all. I am really afraid I would not be able to see them," Holappa said.

Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Jim Wells told WINK "That's a crucial element to safety is visibility."

Trooper Wells has helped manufacturers and government agencies determine safety standards for headlights. We asked Trooper Wells to watch our experiment. "It is pretty apparent that the amount of light that's cast by the vehicle does make a difference in how far you can see things or people or other objects that you want to avoid," said Wells.

A spokesman for the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration told us the administration had not conducted an investigation issue, and attributed the problem to the intense sunlight in Florida and other southern states. But NHTSA's on-line database CALL FOR ACTION found hundreds of complaints filed about yellowing, fogging and clouded headlights. Floridians filed the most complaints, but we found drivers from 45 out of 50 states voicing concerns, including northern states like New York and Michigan. Vehicles ranged from low end to high end, from old, to as recent as 2005. One particular car model recorded 117 complaints, and had no record of investigation or recall. Complaints also documented accidents where drivers hit deer and dogs. Others reported near misses with joggers because they couldn't see.

For some complaints, NHTSA sent letters saying the same thing they told us over the phone: "A review of our database relative to problems associated with front headlight lenses revealed insufficient evidence to warrant opening a safety defect investigation at this time."

NHTSA told us it was a matter of consumer responsibility. Meaning pedestrians have to hope drivers like Todd Holappa notice the difference.

"It's really scary how little illumination comes out of my headlights," Holappa told CALL FOR ACTION.

Replacing your headlights will run you between $300 and $600 dollars.

NHTSA constantly reviews their safety standards and reviews complaints for recalls. If you'd like to check out the complaints on your vehicle OR make a complaint, visit: www.SaferCar.gov

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UPDATE
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA - After our experiment comparing headlights, participant Marsha Asp had a lingering question. "I hope that maybe you've got some solutions. In other words, how does one prevent this or how do you correct it in an older car?," asked Asp.

CALL FOR ACTION bought four used headlights at a junk yard to find out if cleaning works.

First, we tried to do it ourselves. The $20 dollar kit said it would only take five minutes. 25 minutes and a lot of elbow grease later, we had an improvement in our lenses.

Next, headlight repair specialist John DeStefano of Mobile R&R, INC offered to clean headlights using his method, which starts at $50 dollars a headlight. As he began the process he explained, " We are going to sand these headlights a lot like we prep a car with bumpers."

After sanding, wet sanding, cleaning, applying primer and a top coat, the lenses were crystal clear.

DeStefano he'll re-do the job if they fade, "Guarantee them for life. We do it once we're done."

But Trooper Jim Wells with the Florida Highway Patrol told us he's skeptical. "There are some polishes that will take the haze off the light. It seems like the more you do that, you get less and less time before you have to do it again. They do work but you're going to have to do it again," Wells told CALL FOR ACTION.

So CALL FOR ACTION will put both cleaning methods to the test. Two headlights we cleaned using each method will go in the sun for six months. The other two we'll box up and keep out of the light. We'll follow up with our results.

Until we finish our test, the only method we know will sure keep your lenses clear is to replace the headlight entirely.