Rubber Truck Bed Mats -- Look For This...

Rubber truck bed mats protect the floor of beds with thick, corded rubber-like material. It's easy to dismiss these mats since they are so cheap. It's a mistake to overlook rubber mats as a valuable addition to any pickup. That's because thick rubber mats protect better in some ways than much more expensive liners.

The thick rubber absorbs impacts that will cause dents right through lesser liners. Since rubber mats are so easy to put in and take out, it's easy to protect more permanent liners as well as protecting the truck bed itself.

Look for this...

Look for a really thick, heavy mat. The better mats are a full 3/8 inch thick. That makes for a heavy mat that can stand up to just about any abuse. That much mat absorbs heavy impacts and is very difficult to cut as well. Get thick rubber truck bed mats.

Ribs on the top of the mat make it easier to move cargo on the bed. Rubber is non-skid, so ribs help with sliding cargo. If you want loads to stay put, the rubber truck bed mats will accomplish that for you. Adding a rubber mat over a plastic liner makes a drop-in liner skid-resistant too.

Water under bed liners is more common than most truck owners know. That's sadly the way rust often starts in pickups, water under a bed liner. Rubber truck bed mats should have an under-side that's pebbled in texture to let the water escape from under the mat easily. Of course, since mats are so easy to remove, it's easy to take the mat out and make sure there's not water underneath. You can't say that for most plastic drop-in liners...

An Example of Rubber Truck Bed Mats

The Protecta bed mat is worth a look. It's available as a custom fit for many trucks. That means all the cut-outs for the wheel wells and other standard features are already in place. It's made for many different models, more than some other bed mats.

It gets praise because of the heavy-duty construction at a reasonable price. It's not the cheapest mat, but it's one of the heavier models available. You can find it in many auto parts stores as well as online in many places too. It's worth a look...

My No-Name Mat

I needed a bed mat for a 1976 Chevy C10 and I needed it fast. Both on-line and from the truck parts places I checked, the wait was longer than I wanted to make for rubber truck bed mats. My local auto parts store made a call to a supplier and I got a heavy-duty mat delivered overnight.

This was a custom-fit mat for my truck model. It was a perfect slip-in fit. The mat was 3/8 inch thick over the ribs. The bottom surface is textured with pebbles. It's molded around the perimeter with a raised section. It looks just like what you want.

In addition, it weighs 68 pounds. I weighed it myself. I'm not sure how that compares to other mats, but it's just about as heavy as one person can easily move into place.

What's also a plus... It only costs $50.00 plus tax. A real deal in a custom-fit, heavy duty mat.

I don't know where it came from, so it's a generic, no-name mat made for heavy use.

Rubber truck bed mats cost very little but sometimes protect better than much more expensive mats. That's why often, spray on liners and plastic drop-in liners ride under a cheap rubber bed mat. That's a case of a bed liner protecting a bed liner.