Has anyone ever come across a difference in running board mat lenght between Canadian and US made cars? I have recently received my new repop mats fron I&I and thay are shorter than the backing plates. I could cut the plates but I feel that would bring me perilously close to the clip holes. What if I laid them in the sun before gluing them on? Would they stretch a bit?

I thought the same thing when I glued my mats on, however I found that when I applied the rubber cement the mats actually grew in length. Apparently the distillate in the glue reacts with the rubber (like rubber gloves when wetted with gasoline). Just apply the glue to the mats then clamp one end where you want it and lay the rest of the mat down; it will be 3/4" or more longer than before the glue. Be sure to get it where yopu want it first; there's no undoing it if the glue is tacky.

ron

Thanks, Ron.

If you lay the mats out in the sun they will stretch to the normal size. I had the same problem with my 1930 running board mats and the warmth of the sun did the trick. You should apply the rubber mats when they are warm, not cold.

Tried the sun. It works. So they'll get a sun bath before getting installed.

glad that I read this post.
I am waiting for mine to arrive from I&I, but I will glue mine straight to the running boards with contact adhesive.
cheers
Peter

What kind of glue is used here? Is it a contact glue type of application?

I've seen contact cement mentioned many times. That is what I plan to use.

The only issue I see with normal contact cement is it sometimes has a tendency to relax it's grip when heated. A black rubber mat on a sunny day might come loose.

Use commercial contact adhesive, the kind that is used to apply vinyl tops on vehicles, and that stuff will hold the running board mats just fine.

You can get this contact adhesive at any automotive upholstery shop that installs vinyl tops.

When you buy reproduction mats now, some of them come with a new kind of "contact cement". It's a two-part mix (like epoxy). Once you mix it, you have about 15 minutes to spread it --- and after that, it's sets up very, very strong.

I've not seen this on the shelf. Maybe someone else knows where to buy it commercially. It is MUCH stronger than contact cement.

These are "2" kinds of adhesives that may work.

You may want to try tube of black urethane "windshield weld".

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en...6be1K3HXBTMF8gl

http://www.theboatpeople.com/product_info.php?products_id=381