[KarthikK]

When I first started using the car, I didn't realize how important car mats can be. After all, they are just meant to rest your feet on, right? How does it matter what kind of mats we use? I learnt by experiencing different kinds of foot mats over the years, that these things aren't just cosmetic accessories. For the casual passenger, yes they are just cosmetic eye-candy or sore sights, but not for the driver.

Foot mats can be annoying to use

- If they improperly trap dirt and gravel. The friction of rough stones against the mat and your shoes is one of the most irritating sounds.

- When you get into the car with wet shoes on rainy days, the mats can get squishy and make gross, rubbery, squeaky sounds every time you use one of the 3 foot pedals and/or make contact with the mats.

- If the size and shape of the mats are not matching that of the footwell area. Improper size of the mats will allow slipping and sliding within the footwell area, turning into a potentially dangerous situation when you really need to brake hard in emergencies without your foot slipping away.

- If the mats are made of fabric and/or can get wet. Fabric carpets especially, can trap moisture and can breed bacteria and fungi. Needless to add, they will promote a foul odour inside the cabin.

An example of muddy, dirty foot mats



Back in our humble M800 at home 10 years ago, we used rubber mats - yes, the common, ribbed rubber mats like in the picture above. They slipped and slided, got dirty, even tore in a few places, but to me they looked fashionable back then. I don't think I was aware that there were other types of mats available. Hey, I wasn't a team-bhp member back then! How would I know about these product reviews.

In our next 2 cars at home, the 2006 Swift and my Accent, we still went for the flimsy rubber mats, main reason being the ability to wash and dry the mats in a jiffy.

Fast forward to 2011. I bought the T-Jet, and with it came some fabric carpets from the OEM dealer. They were good to look at, but my worst nightmares came true on rainy days when I had to use the car, sometimes with parents (which meant another 2 dirty mats). The fabric would get wet with the slush. The slush would then dry up, form chunks of mud which would crumble away later and make the whole floor area dirty and stained. Washing it would take a lot of time, drying it would take even longer!

In June 2012, I upgraded to 3D Kagu mats for the Linea, which look good and provide for a classy interior ambience, more so because my beige mats gel well with the black and beige interior theme. They made it look very classy. Agreed. But coming to the basic fact - the 3D mats were nothing but waterproof trays. They were washable all right, but they weren't practical for everyday abuse. Why? Because the tray-shape mat just becomes an open plate with all your shoe dirt accumulating inside. Your shoes soon start rubbing against the dirt and stones. On rainy days, the water directly collects there, so there was no freedom from the rubbery sounds of wet shoes either.

3D Kagu mats ensure a perfect fit in the footwell area, and look very classy by improving the interior ambience, as seen in the picture here of my Linea. They do hold a lot of dirt and stones which will roll around within the mat or hamper feet movement after a while, which is annoying



Fast forward to 2012 November: I bought my Punto, a daily drive car that I started using for my rather longish office commute. I was looking for replacement mats for the floor area to throw out the OEM ones. I wanted to steer clear of 3D Kagu mats and all their imposter imitation products, because I didn't want to keep washing floor mat trays every other day. I wanted something more practical, something that could take some abuse in terms of dirtying, and not take too much time to clean.

On one of my detailing trips to the 3M car care store, I happened to ask them about the 3M nomad mats that they had displayed there. Those looked like any other regular foot mats that people put outside homes and offices. Initially when they told me the pricing would be almost the same as 3D mats, I ruled it out in my mind considering the plain-jane (in fact even cheap) looks. On further enquiring about the details and about why it costed so high, the staff members at the store did a small demo session where they poured water and mud into the mat and showed how the mat sucked in everything, leaving nothing on the top at all. That meant that I could step in and out of the car with muddy shoes, dusty shoes, beach sandals, whatever. The mats would trap all the dirt, gravel and water and I could just take the mats out at my convenience and turn them upside down to eject that dust whenever I had time. Exactly what I needed! Eureka moment! How about the looks part? I somehow compromised on that.

Nomad mats are quite thick



I got impressed by the nomad mats' advantages displayed at the store



They were giving a demo of the mats to some other customer, which I recorded on video and cutoff the staff member's voice:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIOPninOXIY

The video shows clearly how the mats just suck in all muck and water and leave nothing on top. The paper rubbed on the 3m mat has no water in the end, while the other paper is literally soaked!


A closer look at the nomad mats: they just look like any other noodle-pattern foot mats found at local shops , but they are very capable mats.





It rains unpredictably in Bangalore, and I wash my car at unpredictable frequencies too. These nomad mats gave me exactly what I was looking for in a daily commute vehicle - freedom from regular mat maintenance. I wanted to buy these mats purely for the practicality, but still wanted to go for the best looking option among them, so I asked them if they had anything other than Grey color (I hate that color on floor mats personally - looks cheap to me). They had beige and black too, so I went for black, being a neutral shade. Beige wouldn't have gone with the Punto's black/grey interiors anyway. The mats are measured and cut to the exact dimensions of each car's footwell zones. This ensures a snug fit, so there is no slipping and sliding when you move the foot against the mat while driving.

Cutting the mats to fit the Punto's footwell dimensions



This is the driver side front foot mat



And when fitted in the car, this is how it looks





And here's the rear portion, again cut to fit the dimensions exactly





This is the rear centre portion which goes on the transmission hump, again cut to fit around the bottle holder panel



It has been 5 months since I fitted the 3M Nomad mats, and I am thoroughly impressed with the fit-it, forget-it nature of these mats. I deliberately held back for all these months since I wanted to thoroughly put it through all kinds of tests before writing my version of a product review.

Let me summarize what I've experienced so far:

Product: 3M Nomad foot mats

Targeted at: cars mainly, but also works for home and office entrances I think.

Size: custom-made (cut) for each car to perfectly sit in the respective vehicle's footwell dimensions. There is no pre-made size for any car, unlike 3D Kagus.

Available at: All 3M car care outlets across India, and local accessory shops too.

Color choices available: Black, Grey and Beige.

Application time: half an hour

Price: Depends on car's floor area. Prices are approximately 10-15% lesser than 3D Kagu mats. 3M has measured and prepared a table showing the mat-fitting costs for all cars depending on dimensions. I paid 4.2k for the Punto's floor mat area.


Pros :

- Dust trapping capacity. Your daily shoe dirt will get trapped into the inner layers of the mat. Nothing is visible on top, so the mats have a clean appearance for a long time.

- Water/Liquid trapping capacity is good. Even fluids will get trapped in the inner layers of the mat. You can remove the individual mat piece and tilt it to eject the impurities later at your leisure. It will not spill off on its own.

- Once dust and liquids are absorbed into the mats, nothing stays on the top surface. This prevents the wet rubbery sounds that come from moist shoes.

- There is no dust on the surface, hence no dust will get into the A/C when it is in the air re-circulation mode.

- Since the mats are cut for the car's footwell dimensions, the fitting is perfect. Snug fit of the mats in the footwell area means they will not slip and slide too much with foot pressure.

- Washing the mats is simple since it is made of a kind of rubber material.

- Spongy, cushioned feel for the feet when resting them on these mats increases comfort.


Cons :

- Cosmetic value is very, very low. They look just like any other cheap quality footmats found outside home doors.

- There is no protective zone for the driver's pedal area like in 3D Kagu mats. I am guessing that portion of the Nomad mat will get worn out faster due to constant friction with the driver's shoes.

- Measurement of the mats (while cutting) needs to be inch-perfect to ensure that there is no slipping and sliding later. Please make sure of this when you get the work done at your local 3M store.


My verdict : Yes, they don't look good. Kagus look way, way better. But that's probably the only significant area where they lag behind. The strength of the Nomad mats is in practicality and ability to take dirt abuse. It will do it for as long as you want. I've put these mats through tremendous abuse - I come in with sand on my shoes, mud, slush, etc every other day when I get back from office, thanks to a long walk to the MLCP from my office block.

It holds it all for me from a Monday till the next Saturday, when all I have to do is just lift the mats, tilt and dust everything out. One day, my dog threw up in the car. These mats neatly handled it by absorbing the whole thing into the mats, which I washed and put back later. During a trip with friends, one friend spilt ~500ml of Maaza into the mats. It absorbed that too! We later just stopped on the highway somewhere, drained off the maaza from that particular mat, washed it with water and put the mat back. Best part was - no one could even tell anything was spilt there. Once the trash is taken in, you can neither see it nor smell it.

In a nutshell, practicality is fantastic, fluid/dust holding capacity is fantastic and I wouldn't hesitate in recommending this to anyone looking to buy such fit-it, forget-it type mats. It would be especially useful if you travel with dogs or infants/toddlers, or if you just want low maintenance mats which you can clean at your convenience.

Other BHPians who have experiences or reviews to share on Nomad mats, please do share them on this thread.

[nkrishnap]

I have used both the 3M nomad mats and 3D Kagu mats. Let me first tell you that the 3D kagu mats looks asthetically good and does a decent job in keep the muck from getting into the floor carpets. But the catch is when Kagu mats are taken out to dust, invariably some bit of the mud, sand or whatever is left will spill on to the carpet.

With 3M nomad mats this is not the case. I have the Kagu mats in the front driver and passenger seat area and the nomad mats for the rear. The beauty of the nomad mats is that it can hold sand, mud, water in place even when it is taken out. For an instance, my wife had left a water bottle with the cap not tightened fully rolling on the floor. The end result, nearly a litre of water was in the carpet. Took it and poured it out. The floor carpets did not have a single drop of water.

The moment the Kagu mats wear out, I will go for the 3M nomad mats for the front too.

Another aspect, is the color options available with nomad mats. The colors available are black, grey, beige, Brown to suit the interiors of the car.

[rkg]

I have fitted a similar one in my Vista way back in 2008 November.

I got it cut to suit the footwell area, did @ JC road. Cost is 1K only. They are doing fine even now. They do everything that you have described.

[rr_zen]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

I am guessing that portion of the Nomad mat will get worn out faster due to constant friction with the driver's shoes.

You are absolutely right. I have been using these mats for the last 9 years (9 years in my Esteem and 3 years in my Civic) and can vouch for them. The only issue is that in my Civic due to the constant friction between the mat and the heel of my shoe, that portion alone is wearing out. I have asked the 3M guy to give me a replacement and he has agreed for the same. In the Esteem, I have the rubber mats over the 3M mats and hence they are still intact.

[linuxmanju]

I also have similar mats ( Nomad like ) in my Punto. If I recall correctly I paid around 3000 for the same. Have been using it for a while and they do the job as promised. With one year baby on board most of the time, you can only imagine what all goes on the mats, but till now I never had to clean the carpet as all abuse is taken by these mats.

The only downside I see is that, these mats being thick tend to block full clutch operation sometimes. You will need to pull it just a bit down towards the driver once in a while. Faced this issue only once in last one year.

[Viju]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

I am guessing that portion of the Nomad mat will get worn out faster due to constant friction with the driver's shoes.

KarthikK

Thanks for a detailed review! I have been wanting to get these mats for my Ritz as well as Nano, especially since the Nano comes with cheap rubber mats which spread sand / dirt on the floor in no time.

I would have got it done when I went to 3M HSR for PPF and underbody coating, but for the point you have mentioned regarding early wear on the driver side mat. Pradeep had mentioned the same to me and I was apprehensive about how long it would last.

But if it lasted you 5 months, then I think it should not be a problem. And even if it wears out, I think there should not be a problem in replacing just the driver side mat, right?

Time to get a set for the Nano.

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

A closer look at the nomad mats: they just look like any other noodle-pattern foot mats found at local shops , but they are very capable mats.

How are these mats different from the regular mats available at local shops ?

Please pardon my ignorance, I'm not able to make out the difference from the pictures.

Is there any harm if I buy a regular mat from a local shop and cut it in the same shape as the OEM floor mat ? I need a single floor mat for the driver side only.

Rohan

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by Viju

KarthikK

Thanks for a detailed review! I have been wanting to get these mats for my Ritz as well as Nano, especially since the Nano comes with cheap rubber mats which spread sand / dirt on the floor in no time.

I would have got it done when I went to 3M HSR for PPF and underbody coating, but for the point you have mentioned regarding early wear on the driver side mat. Pradeep had mentioned the same to me and I was apprehensive about how long it would last.

They warned me about the same, but I think it is a very minor price to pay for the convenience you are getting in return. In fact, over these 5 months and ~9000km of usage, most of the running has been in stop-go traffic on my office commute route, with constant clutching and declutching. I still don't see any significant damage under the foot pedal area. I think it (driver side) will last me at least one year from purchase date, going by current pattern of wear and tear.

But if it lasted you 5 months, then I think it should not be a problem. And even if it wears out, I think there should not be a problem in replacing just the driver side mat, right?

Shouldn't be a problem in getting just 1 side after it wears out. They will calculate the pro-rated price and charge you just for that I guess. The other 4 sides are quite new even now, and should last me a few more years for sure. The material itself is quite thick.

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

How are these mats different from the regular mats available at local shops ?

Please pardon my ignorance, I'm not able to make out the difference from the pictures.

Is there any harm if I buy a regular mat from a local shop and cut it in the same shape as the OEM floor mat ? I need a single floor mat for the driver side only.

Rohan

I wouldn't blame you. I had the same doubt before purchasing them too . Where these mats differ from regular home entrance mats is in the absorption technology. 3M has some patented design (information available on the web) in these mats where the dirt/fluids percolate between the multiple layers of the "noodle" loops and settle down at the base layer which holds the impurities in place without allowing it to flow out, unless you manually lift and turn the mats upside down.

I have a similar looking (non-3M) entrance mat outside our office. When I tried putting water on that, i could still see the water there below the noodle loops. Those mats don't have so many layers of the loops. Pressing down on the area where I poured water would wet my shoes too. It was clearly ineffective at trapping impurities.

[thoma]

One doubt KarthikK; won't all the water trapped between the maze stink the next day? I've felt these stinking even when they are used as front door mat; that was why I'm asking. Maybe the 3M mat is far better in quality, but there will be very less chance of evaporation in a closed car, right?

[tbppjpr]

Thanks for the useful thread Karthik.

Though I have 3D mats in my car, but this thread given me idea of doing DIY on locally available similar looking household floor mats and covering some exposed floor portions with some custom cut matting.

[vb-saan]

Thanks Karthik for the detailed review. The T-Jet also the special Nomad treatment?

Originally Posted by KarthikK

This is the driver side front foot mat

And when fitted in the car, this is how it looks

I checked around online and found this.

https://www.carmat.sg/content.php?p=3&menuId=4
https://www.carmat.sg/content.php?p=2&menuId=3

In the first link there a mention about heel plate for driver-side foot mat, but that's not seen in what's fitted in your Punto.

Overall this looks a quality product, probably more practical than the 3D Kagu.

[Sankar]

Yes this is the best type of mat for the conditions that i use my car, keeps the interiors cleaner for longer. I'm using a non 3M one. Is the 3M Nomad mat different from the regular loop mat? I'm using a brand called prestige bought from a local building supplies shop. I bought 2 metre length of std spool width (or if bought in sq ft it would've cost Rs65/sq ft) for Rs.1500/- to cover the floor and the boot with some to spare. This mat has similar dust/water retaining properties like shown in the video but is less expensive.

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by thoma

One doubt KarthikK; won't all the water trapped between the maze stink the next day? I've felt these stinking even when they are used as front door mat; that was why I'm asking. Maybe the 3M mat is far better in quality, but there will be very less chance of evaporation in a closed car, right?

As far as I know, the 3M mats use many more layers of the loop maze than the regular door mats of similar texture. I have had maaza spilling and once (excuse me for sounding gross) my dog puking on it too. I faced little to no odour issues at all. Perhaps the mat design has something to do with it.

With just water, slush or dirt, it won't stink of moisture like conventional fabric mats do. You can hardly make out the mats are holding anything.

Originally Posted by tbppjpr

Thanks for the useful thread Karthik.

Though I have 3D mats in my car, but this thread given me idea of doing DIY on locally available similar looking household floor mats and covering some exposed floor portions with some custom cut matting.

Thanks a lot tbppjpr. You can definitely try the DIY with nomad mats and update this thread, do let us know how the results are after your DIY is in place.

A question though - does 3D leave any exposed portions of the floor at all in your car?? In the Linea and my friend's Swift, the 3Ds occupy almost the entire floor area, both at front and at the back.

Originally Posted by vb-san

Thanks Karthik for the detailed review. The T-Jet also the special Nomad treatment?

Thanks vb-san. The T-Jet retains the 3D mats since I don't need too much ruggedness in it, being a weekend highway-use car . I'd still stick to 3Ds on the Linea for cosmetic value, hehe.

I checked around online and found this.

https://www.carmat.sg/content.php?p=3&menuId=4
https://www.carmat.sg/content.php?p=2&menuId=3

In the first link there a mention about heel plate for driver-side foot mat, but that's not seen in what's fitted in your Punto.

Overall this looks a quality product, probably more practical than the 3D Kagu.

Good find in those links. Probably the ones offered in Singapore come with heel plates for the driver mat. The ones on sale in India are supplied in rolls. The 3m stores just cut the required dimensions and add them, so no possibility of the anti-skid plate I guess. That said, a DIY to fit an anti-skid plate on the mats shouldn't be tough - 1 nail each hammered at the 4 corners should suffice.

Personally, I'd keep the Nomads as it is (without anti-skid plate) since anything added/fitted extra above the mats looks a little bad in my opinion.

Originally Posted by Sankar

Yes this is the best type of mat for the conditions that i use my car, keeps the interiors cleaner for longer. I'm using a non 3M one. Is the 3M Nomad mat different from the regular loop mat? I'm using a brand called prestige bought from a local building supplies shop. I bought 2 metre length of std spool width (or if bought in sq ft it would've cost Rs65/sq ft) for Rs.1500/- to cover the floor and the boot with some to spare. This mat has similar dust/water retaining properties like shown in the video but is less expensive.

The 3M Nomads use their own technology which has more absorption power, is what I am told. I wasn't aware of aftermarket imposter brands or how bad they are. If it serves the purpose, I believe that's what matters at the end of the day. 1500/- bucks sounds good though.

[tbppjpr]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

A question though - does 3D leave any exposed portions of the floor at all in your car?? In the Linea and my friend's Swift, the 3Ds occupy almost the entire floor area, both at front and at the back.

Its not like leaving exposed floor portions but I want to cover some more areas, or maybe another layer over or under the existing 3D mats.

Will definitely update once I do the DIY.

[Sankar]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

I wasn't aware of aftermarket imposter brands or how bad they are. If it serves the purpose, I believe that's what matters at the end of the day. 1500/- bucks sounds good though.

Actually its the 3M Nomad which is new in the market, other loop mats were available with building supply stores since many many years. 3M Nomad too is a building/indoor mat.


I found (was directed from the 3M website) an online store for the 3M products, mats are available too.
http://emahendra.com/68-matting