The Official 356Talk Forum

As many of you already know, VeloceSpace supplies the only beige mats on the market; these are of very high quality and accuracy, but we are always happy to improve when there's room for such.

We are (and have been) attempting to get the beige color as close as possible to the original (or what we see in purportedly "original" cars today), and our supplier in Italy is ready to take on the project as soon as we find a good sample. We've requested samples from this group before, but have not been successful. We'd like to try again.

If anyone can "loan" us a beige mat (one of the rear floor mats, being the smallest), we'd be happy to apply a 30% discount toward a brand new set of beige mats once they're ready (within two months or so). We need this mat for color-matching purposes only; it will not be cut up or subjected to any physical stress that would change its shape or color. Our supplier has been extremely good at returning samples to us in original condition, so we're confident that we can return your mat to you unharmed after a few weeks in Italy. If you are interested, we'd be happy to speak to you on the phone (408) 335-5990, or communicate via e-mail/private message here.

Thanks in advance, and we look forward to offering well-reproduced beige mats in a few months, with your help.

Patrick I have a old tan mat I removed due to its poor condition.I cut the bottom pieces apart as they were not to bad.I have some pieces I could send you. Sandy in Nelson NZ

Sandy, I may have found a local source in San Francisco for a sample of these tan mats, and will try it first. If this falls through, I'll contact you for those small pieces that you have.

Thanks!

Patrick,

If you want your mats to be even more authentic have your supplier also add the part number and the manufacturer logo like the originals had. If you could do that it would be great! The same goes for the black mats.

Joris

That's a great idea, Joris... I'll see if my supplier can modify the molds a bit to accommodate these changes.

Thanks for the suggestion!

Hi Patrick,

Here is am image of the part number and mfr logo from an original mat.

Contrarian POV:
I made and had made parts for the vintage F-1 we raced. Each part had an "R" stamped on it to denote it was a "reproduction". The alternative is to attempt to deceive a buyer that the part is truly an "original" and I don't think that's a good idea.

Ron LaDow wrote:Contrarian POV:
I made and had made parts for the vintage F-1 we raced. Each part had an "R" stamped on it to denote it was a "reproduction". The alternative is to attempt to deceive a buyer that the part is truly an "original" and I don't think that's a good idea.

Point well-taken. The part number is one thing, but the original manufacturer's logo may be a copyright-related issue... unless that logo is no longer trademark-protected.

Inscribing an "R" basically defeats the purpose of even attempting this, in my opinion.

Or use the logo but simply replace one of the small letters inside with an R. That way it looks pretty darn authentic but can be picked out of a lineup if anyone's so anal to care.

Greg Scallon wrote:Or use the logo but simply replace one of the small letters inside with an R. That way it looks pretty darn authentic but can be picked out of a lineup if anyone's so anal to care.

Another good idea.

One concern that just came to me: do beige and black mats share the same part number? I believe that these mats share the same mold as used by our supplier, with the only differing factor being color masterbatch used. If the part numbers are different, we'd be in a bind, as commissioning a separate mold would be out of the question.

I would suggest you place your company logo on the back of the mat. That way it is clear it is a reprodution but not when installed in the car.

Joris,
I'm looking for a 'thumbs up' tab; that's a wonderful way to keep the appearance and not degrade the folks who have managed to keep an original in good shape.

Joris Koning wrote:I would suggest you place your company logo on the back of the mat. That way it is clear it is a reproduction but not when installed in the car.

Joris, excellent suggestion! On a repro product like a mat, it can be made to look 100% "correct" but on the underside can still contain a clear indication that it is not an "original" (vintage) mat.

Thanks,

Sebastian Gaeta wrote:Hi Patrick,

Here is am image of the part number and mfr logo from an original mat.

Does that say FISCO in that triangular logo?

I agree that it looks like FISCO.