Rubber Mats - A Warning

[olliesgrandad]

Whilst waiting for my car to be serviced I earwigged a conversation between a customer and a member of staff. The customer had the protection pack on his new RC and the rubber floor mats were over the plush mats. He was expecting visitors to his home and it was a wet evening. He got in the car and started to manoeuvre it in a very confined space -you guessed it wet shoes vs wet rubber- his foot slipped and he hit the garden wall. It cost £2000 to rebuild the front of the car.........

[ISJason]

Thanks for that. I've always seen one or the other in showrooms either the floor mat or the carpet mats never at the same time. But it's worth bearing in mind.

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[PaulWhitt20]

I don't think the rubber mats are supposed to go on top of the plush mats but instead. They need to be secured down and Toyota had a lot of trouble with mats not secured and getting caught up in the accelerator with terrible consequences. That's not to say that the rubber mats were not on top of the plush mats when I bought mine. But the salesman did point this out and say just use one set.

Back on topic. Wet rubber mats can be slippy wether secured down or not. Thanks for the warning

[olliesgrandad]

3 hours ago, PaulWhitt20 said:

I don't think the rubber mats are supposed to go on top of the plush mats but instead. They need to be secured down and Toyota had a lot of trouble with mats not secured and getting caught up in the accelerator with terrible consequences. That's not to say that the rubber mats were not on top of the plush mats when I bought mine. But the salesman did point this out and say just use one set.

Back on topic. Wet rubber mats can be slippy wether secured down or not. Thanks for the warning

Paul, I think that you have explained the hazard far more eloquently than I did. From what I overheard the combination of the damp and the unsecured rubber mats were probably the cause of the accident.

[NemesisUK]

When I collected my RC with Protection Pack the rubber mats were still in their poly bag in the boot.

The packaging slip is very clear about securing them If they can't be secured, they slip very easily.

I can't say I've found them at all slippery with wet shoes.

[PaulWhitt20]

Checking the mats are secure is a service check. Something I am sure they put in place after the problems with the mats getting caught in the accelerator.

Funny enough in my wife's Jazz only the drivers mat is secured. Cost cutting to the extreme.

[Glover]

That's quite common. I suppose they look at it and say what is the risk to the passenger if the mat slips.  Answer: I they're sitting down none and standing up their weight is probably securing it.  But a slip for the driver whilst driving could be fatal.  Saves a few pence not putting it in but with volumes they make saving 50p on an output figure in the millions across all models is straight on the bottom line. That's the problem when accountants build cars!

[rayaans]

39 minutes ago, PaulWhitt20 said:

Checking the mats are secure is a service check. Something I am sure they put in place after the problems with the mats getting caught in the accelerator.

Funny enough in my wife's Jazz only the drivers mat is secured. Cost cutting to the extreme.

Seems to be the same with the Ford Fiesta, the passenger side mat is not secured and hence moves around a lot when people get in/out

On a side note - my wife put her IS into the garage door resulting in a £2.3k bill for the insurance company 1.5 years ago because her foot slipped onto the accelerator :/

[DanD]

I think it is common practice: same with our Peugeot. Not sure you can blame it on cost cutting... they are just not needed. In fact, it makes removal and cleaning easier.

[Rabbers]

Considering that the height of the floor-fixings/depth of the eyelets makes it impossible to secure a second mat on top of the

first, assuming both to be Lexus originals, the driver mentioned in the OP has only himself to blame.

 

The ribbing on Lexus rubber mats makes them pretty slip-proof but, in my own experience, you need to momentarily take care

if you bring in bits of slush and/or compacted snow and maybe salt when wearing deep-tread soles.  Also, the opacity which

develops with time and wear in the area of the rubber around the heel might tempt you to apply tyre or plastic dressing in order

to bring back the gloss.  Some of these dressings, especially cheaper high-gloss ones, can cause slipperiness, at least initially

until the effect wears off.