DIY - Heavy Duty Rubber Cargo Mat

[BlueVibe09]

First Mod to my '09 Vibe. Needed to find something inexpensive to keep my music gear from sliding around in my cargo area and didn't think that carpet would quite cut it. I went online to home depot and found some heavy duty recycled rubber mat for just over $20 delivered. 30 minutes worth of work later and voilla! The rubber grips real well and also won't soak up liquids or stain.

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[lovemyraffe]

Welcome to the site!Nice job on the mat. I haven't seen anybody do a rubber mat before. Some of us have done a DIY carpet mat.

[ponta2147]

Quote, originally posted by BlueVibe09 »First Mod to my '09 Vibe. Needed to find something inexpensive to keep my music gear from sliding around in my cargo area and didn't think that carpet would quite cut it. I went online to home depot and found some heavy duty recycled rubber mat for just over $20 delivered. 30 minutes worth of work later and voilla! The rubber grips real well and also won't soak up liquids or stain. I like this. If I did something like this (for hauling video gear) I'd probably cut it so I could open everything in the cargo area (organizer, spare tire, etc) w/o removing the mat. I'd have to actually attach it to the plastic though...

[A Psycho Martyr]

Looks very nice. Very legit. I noticed in your pic tho on the back of your seats the vertical lines. Looks like you have a cap for those metal things in there 8( Mine didn't have that when I bought it. Anyone have any idea where to gets em?

[ponta2147]

Quote, originally posted by A Psycho Martyr »Looks very nice. Very legit. I noticed in your pic tho on the back of your seats the vertical lines. Looks like you have a cap for those metal things in there 8( Mine didn't have that when I bought it. Anyone have any idea where to gets em?There's metal things under there? Mine came with it, those "lines" are rubber (or rubber-like material). Which is great, except when you try to load a file cabinet in there and it gets stuck on them when you're shoving and the metal corner gouges up the plastic the day after you buy the car brand new... lol.

[bull77]

I think those plastic covers were new for 09+. The older gens have to deal with dirt and sand getting in those tie down grooves. I'm liking the rubber mat over the carpet. I'll look into replacing my carpet over the weekend. the carpet got all chewed up after I loaded the vibe with patio stones...

[Wolfman213]

If I ever get sick of the Herculiner, I think I'll def go with the rubber mat. Good job and welcome to the site!

[Zimm]

how is the offgassing with the rubber? i'm always skeptical of adding large amounts of rubber because it can stink to high hell and sometimes give you fume-induced headaches-especially if you have to make a long trip.but if it does not stink, i might have to consider doing something similar. nice DIY work!

[ou.grizzly]

Quote, originally posted by Zimm »how is the offgassing with the rubber? i'm always skeptical of adding large amounts of rubber because it can stink to high hell and sometimes give you fume-induced headaches-especially if you have to make a long trip.but if it does not stink, i might have to consider doing something similar. nice DIY work!Could always let it sit out in the garage or such to air out for a while.

[vibolista]

Nice find. What were the dimensions of the rubber mat before cutting?

[BlueVibe09]

There is some smell associated with it right now, it's only a couple days old. It hasn't been above freezing here either so I don't know if it would be worse in the heat. I'm hoping that it will go away in time and might hang it in the garage to air out... all in all it's not really bad. The original size of the mat was about 3' x 5'

[DoubleBaril]

Looks good. I'm sure you could have an extra cutout ready if you lay the seats flat and have the whole back end covered with the matting.

[vibolista]

All rubber mats tend to smell a bit. That should fade after a while.