 | Home > Technical > Wright off road accoustic mats and gear lever gaiters |
 
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| Bradders130 Member Since: 27 Nov 2021 Location: Southampton Posts: 105   
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I thought that some of you guys may find this interesting.
So some months ago, I fitted some acoustic mats in the front of my 2.2 puma which I purchased from http://www.wrightoffroad.com/products.htm I have to say they are brilliant and reduce the noise levels in the cab significantly. Mine came in two parts, with one set for the front seat box and the other set for the driver and passenger footwells. Mr Wright was also exceptionally helpful. Now in the puma, the footwell set are a real struggle to fit and are very tight where they go between the front of the gearbox tunnel and the bottom of the dash. it is one of my biggest dreads and I hate it! Such is the difficulty, that when I initially fitted mine, the corners of the plastic gearbox tunnel, that the gear lever gaiter goes over, simply broke off…. and I was trying to be very careful. Anyway, having just removed the mats to replace the transfer case, it came to re-fitting and I decided that I would do a bit of reinforcing work. On the one side, I had managed to save the bits that had broken off, but unfortunately the pieces for the other side were lost. Using superglue, I managed to stick the corners back on and then added some bicarbonate of soda and added more superglue. If you don’t know about the benefits of bicarb and superglue, watch this video... ?feature=shared Use this superglue, it is as thin as water… https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00A29ART8?ref...asin_title With these… https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08K2G3TS2?ref...asin_title After that, I added some JB Weld metal reinforced epoxy. On the other side (where I had lost the corners), I cannibalised an old plastic radio and, using a hot knife, cut out pieces that were roughly the right size and shape and glued them in with superglue again. I filled in the gaps with bicarb and then added more epoxy, finishing it all off with some sandpaper The result is shown in the photos below…  Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge The corners held up superbly and none of them broke off. Not only that, but the gaiter still fits. It has made a job I dreaded into one which is a mild inconvenience. Hopefully, you will find it useful. |
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3rd Mar 2025 10:39pm |
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| NickMc Member Since: 01 Oct 2014 Location: Norn Iron Posts: 1681  
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3rd Mar 2025 11:53pm |
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| Bradders130 Member Since: 27 Nov 2021 Location: Southampton Posts: 105
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Thanks NickMc, that’s another one for the garage shelf and the memory banks.
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4th Mar 2025 12:38am |
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| HuddyM Member Since: 28 Jan 2025 Location: Yorkshire Posts: 46 
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Wow, nice work.. Can’t even tell you’ve had to repair it.
 2009 Stornaway Grey Puma Build Thread |
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4th Mar 2025 5:55am |
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| Bradders130 Member Since: 27 Nov 2021 Location: Southampton Posts: 105
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Thanks HuddyM, I have to say I was chuffed at how it turned out.
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4th Mar 2025 8:45am |
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| Kippax Member Since: 11 Jan 2023 Location: Suffolk Posts: 3 
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I've just ordered one of these for my Puma, any fitting tips would be much appreciated. Thanks
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4th Mar 2025 4:14pm |
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| Bradders130 Member Since: 27 Nov 2021 Location: Southampton Posts: 105
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Hi custom90, yeah I’ll take some photos tomorrow and put them on here. oh, and thanks for the compliment
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4th Mar 2025 9:36pm |
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| John P Member Since: 26 Dec 2013 Location: West Sussex Posts: 338 
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I’ve just fitted mine, and unfortunately broken the same as you. This is a great idea, so will be trying to fix mine as well. Thanks for the tips.
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4th Mar 2025 9:45pm |
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| Bradders130 Member Since: 27 Nov 2021 Location: Southampton Posts: 105
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Stand by Kippax, I will put up a post with some tips, and after I’ve taken some photos….. |
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5th Mar 2025 10:14am |
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| Bradders130 Member Since: 27 Nov 2021 Location: Southampton Posts: 105
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Hi Kippax et al, there are instructions provided which you can also download from the web site, although having just looked at them, they seem to be more for TD5 / 300 TDI maybe. Here are the ones that were supplied to me and I hope that I’m not breaching copyright here.… Page 1 Click image to enlarge Page 2 Click image to enlarge Page 3 Click image to enlarge The instructions are mostly right, but some parts don't seem to make sense… you’ll realise which bits I mean, although it could be just me. I didn’t need to cut any of the mat away to clear the pedals. You will need some hollow hole punches… similar to these. You can do it without, but the result may look a bit shonky. Buy a set with a good range from large to small. Here is an example... https://amzn.eu/d/1KS6rrn You will also need to use new Stanley knife blades and change them often. Remove the handbrake lever. Trust me, it will make things a lot easier for you. Remove the rubber gear lever gaiter, the foam insert, the top of the gearlever, and the gearbox tunnel. Reinforce the underside of the plastic lip on the top part of the tunnel as per the thread above. You need to do underneath both ends and about 25mm around the corners under the front and rear edges. I didn’t do right along the front and rear edges as they didn’t break off when I fitted the mats. However, it wouldn’t hurt to do this; use your discretion. I also bought some 4mm x 25mm self adhesive foam and fitted this around the underside of the gearbox tunnel. It compliments the moulded foam insert that is fitted between the tunnel and the bodywork. This made a huge difference to the noise levels in the cab afterwards as I dont think the moulded foam rubber is a brilliant fit. Clean the surface of the gearbox tunnel before applying the self adhesive foam strip. After you've done this, replace the gearbox tunnel. Seat box. Fit this first. You will need to use the punches to cut out holes big enough to take the large seat rail washers. If you get the right size, the washers will be held in the hole you’ve made and not slop around, so to speak. Click image to enlarge When it comes to cutting out the flaps in the seat box mat, to provide access to the compartment covers under the drivers and passenger seats, you will find that there are guides on the under side of the mat for you to follow. If you make the slit about 10mm shorter than you need to here and then use one of the small punches to put a hole at the end of the slit to try and avoid it ripping. It’s a bit unwieldy when you remove and replace it from the car and the hole will help to stop the rubber from ripping. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge You will also need to cut some small slots for the nuts and bolts at the rear/top of the seat box. Click image to enlarge Remove the seat belt buckle brackets either side of the cubby box as you will need to cut the mats to accommodate these. Click image to enlarge The cubby box just sits on the top of the mats, but you may have to use the punches to accommodate some screw or bolt heads. Click image to enlarge Cutting out the slots for the clasps at the front of the seat box can be tricky. Click image to enlarge I would measure from the corner of the seat box to the outside and inside edge of the clasp and then transfer these measurements onto the inside of the mat and make a cut. Make the slot smaller than it needs to be as you can always make it bigger, but not the other way. Also, if possible, put the mat onto the seat box before you cut out these slots and see how tight the fit is side to side. It is a pretty good fit as far as I can remember, but as we all know, no two Defenders are the same. If there is any slop, you will need to take this into account when cutting out the slots. The other option is to make the measurements for the slots and transfer them to the inside of the mat. Then cut a single vertical slit which is approximately in the middle of where the clasp would be. You can then put the mat onto the seat box and probe through the slit with a bradawl or similar to see where the clasp is in relation to your measurements, then cut out the slots accordingly. Footwell mats Fitting the floor mats is the tricky part; slow and steady is the answer here. Cut the mat right at the front where it passes underneath the dash and heater. This will give you two flaps, so to speak, that pass under each side of the dash board at the front. There is a lot of wiring there so it can be fiddly. This is at the bottom of page two in the instructions above. Click image to enlarge Lay the mats over the gear levers with the footwells more or less in the right position and then try and feed the the mat into the space between the front edge of the plastic lipped gearbox tunnel (that you’ve reinforced) and the bottom of the dash. It is very tight, but you have to just be tenacious here and feed a bit in on one side then go round and do the other side. The more you can angle it down to feed under the dash, the better. I used some silicon spray which seemed to help. Click image to enlarge Here are some more photos. Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge So that’s it, I hope it helps. Reply on this thread if there is something I’ve not mentioned and you still have a question. Anyone is more than welcome to come over to my place and we can install them together if you need some help and moral support. I live in Southampton so it may be a bit of a treck, but the offer is there. Just PM me. |
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5th Mar 2025 11:38am |
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| custom90 Member Since: 21 Jan 2010 Location: South West, England. Posts: 20645
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Looks good, I might have a look at getting those mats one day.
TheThunder Rolls🇬🇧🇺🇸
⛽️🛢️⚙️🧰💪 |
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5th Mar 2025 5:04pm |
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| Kippax Member Since: 11 Jan 2023 Location: Suffolk Posts: 3
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Thanks Bradders that’s a massive help I appreciate the time and effort you took, I’ll certainly be removing the transmission cover and reinforcing it before I start, I had intended to install Dodomat throughout before fitting the acoustic mat but not sure if this will cause me even more issues that could be avoided.
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5th Mar 2025 7:26pm |
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| Bradders130 Member Since: 27 Nov 2021 Location: Southampton Posts: 105
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Yeah, I mentioned that to Mr Wright and he said that it wasn’t necessary as the mats are so good at muting the noise.
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5th Mar 2025 7:59pm |
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