Rubber Flooring Option - has anyone tried this?

[lespaul]

I hate carpet. I am thinking of deleting all carpet and the back seats from my 78 SC and installing this rubber flooring over all the floor surfaces and resulting back seat shelf.

http://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Plate-Rubber-Flooring-Rolls/dp/B00E7KYKSC


That, plus aluminum floor boards and pedal set would look good, and make it easy to maintain and keep clean. My instincts say just copy the pattern of the existing carpet and install with some 3M spray glue.

Has anyone else tried this? If so, can you post pics and describe how you approached this?

Brad

[NYNick]

Brad,
I'd check the weight against RS type carpeting. Plus, it's 1/4 inch thick? Pretty thick stuff!
Nick

[lespaul]

Good point. I think it is 1/8 inch/3 mm thick though.

[lespaul]

Just did some checking. The 1/8 flooring is 0.67 lb/sq ft. I am guessing that 6 ft x 8 ft would cover the floor and back shelf. That is 48 sq. ft. or 32 lbs. I don't know how that compares to carpet.

[gshiwota]

I like the idea as this should quiet your car down considerably. I remember years ago a friend of mine did this in their wife's 50's Mercedes 220 Cab using rubber tiles they were throwing away from their gym. He said the car was quieter and "felt more solid" than a new Mercedes S-Class.

However I'd be sure to check to see if the rubber smells like rubber. It'd suck if your car smelled like the inside of a tire.

[Pato911]

Why not bed liner? Many of the off-roaders spray the interior of jeeps and similar. Easy to clean 😉

[tirwin]

Have you considered the Rubbertite floor mats by Lloyds? Pelican sells them.

DriveWerks.com - Custom Floor, Trunk and Cargo Mats - Floor Mat Materials - RubberTite

I have thought about a set to throw in for daily driving and coming home from the track.

[lespaul]

I thought about BedLiner, but that is a permanent bond that I think would devalue the car.

I have looked at the Lloyds mats and they may be a nice alternative. However, I like the idea of covering all the floor surfaces with one seamless covering that will prevent water from getting under the mats and, if some floor is exposed I think it will be loud. A seamless rubber floor covering -- as is found in my Honda Element, is very easy to maintain and should even be good for the track as compared to carpet.

BTW - my Honda Element does not have a rubbery tire smell at all.

https://www.skidmore.edu/~pdwyer/e/images/seat_track03.jpg

https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=HN.608037502665097722&pid=15.1&P=0

[Arnoud911Targa]

I've used it for my build. Great stuff easy to work with, you can cut it with a pair scissors in like 30 minutes or less. But make sure you take the PVC version not the rubber stuff. 15 minutes in the sun and the rubber will make your car smell like you are inside of one of your tires. PVC is odorless and has the same texture.

[lespaul]

Arnoud,

Awesome. Great tip on the vinyl.

I am going to try this and even wrap the vinyl up over the hump and rear seat shelf. Going to try to do it with as few pieces as possible.

Did you use anything to adhere the vinyl to the floor?

Brad

[Arnoud911Targa]

No I just used it for floor mats. You can see in the picture that the mats are still a bit curly but they will straighten out pretty quick. I didn’t use any adhesive so I can take them out with ease. For the other parts I used RS carpet to keep light.

My Build

[NYNick]

An entire RS carpet kit for front and rear is about 20 lbs. Your estimate for the rear alone is 32.
Sounds heavy.

[Arnoud911Targa]

Sure it is heave compared to RS carpet, but they are not any heavier than the original floor mats.

[Jack Stands]

Just wish that Weathertech made the molded floor mats for the early 911s! They are great in our daily drivers.

[Algernon]

I've used 'rubber' pool-liner in the frunk and under carpet. It does a great job in quietening, removing draughts, helping AC etc... Putting it down without adhesive also means its easily removable.

[mreid]

I don't think you will be happy trying to cover the rear seat area. The carpet kits require quite a bit of stretching and trimming to fit and look good. That matting does not stretch and will drive you crazy.

[onboost]

Originally Posted by lespaul

I hate carpet. I am thinking of deleting all carpet and the back seats from my 78 SC and installing this rubber flooring over all the floor surfaces and resulting back seat shelf.


Has anyone else tried this?

Brad

Not exactly a new idea guys. The factory offered rubber floor mats back in the long hood days, 69-73 I think. They were an option if I recall.

They were ribbed on the top surface and had leather straps riveted to them to slip thru the little loom that the floor boards slipped onto. However, I think they were just driver and passenger side front only. I still have a set for my early S.

Also, I believe someone was making repos of these and may have offered them in 4 place sets.

[MConn]

I have a set of the Lloyd's RubberTite mats in my DD. they smelled for 3 months and are heavy, but they do protect the carpet.

I like the look of the diamond PVC for the floor. If it would mold to shape (heat gun ?) it may be worth the weight.

Mike

[LUFTKUL]

Cut to size and then weigh down all the corners with dumbbells or whatever you have that is heavy on all the curves and corners. Leaving in the hot sun would help. Once you have the general shape holding I would put industrial velcro at the corners to keep them from curling or sliding. Velcro adhesive would come off with some goo gone if you decided you didn't like it.

[JohnJL]

That stuff looks good in my fj40. Not so much in a 911, in my opinion.