Let’s say you’ve bought WeatherTech mats for your car, and over time, they’ve faded. Someone has a hack that will make them look like new—for a fraction of the cost it would take to replace them with brand-new mats.
The handy tip comes from creator Rinselab (@rinselab), an auto detailing business in the Vancouver, B.C., suburb of Richmond. In the Sept. 19 video, which has brought more than 60,000 views thus far, the host walks the viewer through the process of revitalizing mats.
“For all of you who have WeatherTech mats that look like this,” he begins. “Super, super faded, doesn’t matter. [It] doesn’t matter how many times you wash it. It still looks so faded. Let me put you on something.”
He then reveals what he claims to be the solution: Kochchemie Gummifix, available via Amazon and billed as a rubber and plastic interior cleaner.
“Once you finish washing it, scrubbing it, [drying] it out, all you just need is a few [spritzes], right? You know, just be conservative,” he says, as he spritzes the chemical all over the mat. “You don’t need that much.”
He then works it with a towel, noting that it’s a dry towel, as you don’t want to dilute the solution with a damp towel.
“Just keep working it in,” he says, as he rubs the solution into the rubber mat. “And then, pretty much, once it’s all done, boom! Look at that, looking like brand new.”
He concludes the video by doing a side-by-side comparison of the treated and untreated mats.
@rinselab Save yourself a couple hundred dollas from buying new floormats #detailing #vancouver ♬ original sound – rinselab
Plenty of advice on Reddit
Though you might think this is all the advice you need, this issue inspired a 2017 post on Reddit’s r/AutoDetailing subreddit with an array of suggestions on how to revive mats.
“Liberal amount of Simple Green and scrubbing,” suggested one.
Another counseled, “I use Purple Power Citrus Degreaser as APC. Liberally spray on and scrub it down with a brush. Rinse off then air dry. Dressed with Aerospace 303, buff off excess 303 if it’s too slippery.” That person added, “Typically I don’t. It’ll look new for a few months.”
Someone else thought olive oil could do the trick, but another warned, “It WILL go rancid.”
What commenters thought
The video brought a few more suggestions into the open via commenters.
“Linseed oil works the same,” said one.
Another brought up Aerospace 303 and asked about it.
That inspired the creator to respond. “I personally think it lasts much longer than 303 and takes less product to achieve comparable results, so to me it’s worth the extra dollar.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Rinselab via email and TikTok comment and to WeatherTech via online contact form.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
