I purchased a set of the ivory color all season floor mats. They are really great at protecting the carpet. The only downside is that they show dirt from footprints quite easily. Has anyone had any success using a coating to help seal the vinyl and make it less susceptible to showing the marks.

if you don't mind having black mats instead of the ivory ones, that would be an alternative. i don't think it would look all that bad with black mats.

Yeah, I bought the beige to match the interior, but we'll definitely be switching to black.

I bought the black ones because all of the posts about how dirty the beige ones get. Looks fine with the lighter interior.

maybe use the spray scotch guard stuff. dunno if that stuff will work though.

I have the black ones - I got the set as a "freebie" from the dealer. I had thought I was getting beige ones (to match my interior) but wound up with a black set. I also think I got the cheapie set as my set has a honeycomb pattern, with no perimeter lip. They are cut to fit though along with the holes that hold it in place on the driver side.

I think it looks fine with a black set, but would be curious if someone would post pics of what their mats look like. I had thought the OEM set had CIVIC or Honda imprinted on them.

Either way, it does its job of keeping my mats clean, although I haven't looked under them lately.

i don't think you got oem mats. it has the Civic name imprinted on them. this is what they look like black or beige. i have the black set.

http://collegehillshonda.com/storear...seasonmats.jpg

You might try a vinyl/rubber protectant, like Meguiar's NXT Tech Protectant on the mats. It will make them a tad slippery, but not as much as Armor-All or similar products would. Put on only a fine mist and rub it in. I did this to the rubber floor mats we have in our '92 Corolla (aftermarket). They got filthy and after using Simple Green to get years of caked on grime off (including someone's spilled Dr Pepper--why I got the mats in the first place!), I coated them with the NXT Tech Protectant and that brought the color back and keeps them looking nice. In the Corolla the mats are a dark gray to match the interior.

In our '06 Ford Escape Hybrid, I have lighter gray Husky rubberized mats but haven't treated them. I find I can clean them with just water and a paper towel, or a Swiffer wipe (wet or dry). I don't have the problem of visible footprints unless my boots/shoes are muddy, in which case I wipe 'em down with the aforementioned water/etc. when I get home.

- Shannon (Geeky, Wild Texan)

sigh, that's what I thought.

When I picked up the car and saw them, I checked their "ad" about their freebies and did not see anything about OEM mats, just mats.

They do fit nicely - it's just that I wished it had a perimeter trough like the OEM mats.

Oh well, I'll probably only keep the car for 3 years (I do about 40K/year) so I at least I'll know for next time.

I picked up the beige all season mats yesterday from the dealer. Ripped at $111 with 5% tax included. I saw them online for around $88.. but with shipping and all it wasn't all that different.

I almost got black.. but changed my mind as I have a beige interior. Mmm. Black really wouldn't look all that bad to tell you the truth. I'll keep the beige for now. If it bothers me I can always replace.

2 weeks and my carpet mats are already getting grungy. Out they go.

-G