- Anti-slip backing
- A textured or rubberised underside that grips the car's carpet. It stops a mat creeping, with or without clips, and does all the work in the few cars that have no fixing of any kind.
- Binding
- The strip of material stitched around the edge of a carpet mat. It stops the edge fraying and gives a finished look, often in a contrasting colour.
- Boot floor, upper and lower
- Many cars have a boot floor panel that can sit at two heights. Upper is level with the lip at the boot opening; lower sits below it. A boot liner is cut for one or the other. See how to check your boot floor.
- Boot liner
- A mat that covers the floor of the boot. Some are flat and some have raised edges, and the names boot liner and boot mat are often used for both.
- Clips
- Fittings on the underside of a mat that attach it to the fixing points in the car's floor.
- Fixing points
- Studs, clips or hooks in a car's floor carpet, placed by the manufacturer to hold the mats still.
- Footwell
- The floor space in front of each seat, where your feet rest.
- Generation
- A version of a model built between two redesigns, often labelled Mk7, Mk8 and so on. Floors and fixings can change between generations, which is why the year matters.
- Heel pad
- A hard-wearing panel on the driver's mat where the heel rests while using the pedals, the part of a mat that wears fastest.
- Load area
- The rear floor of a van. It may be bare, or already have a ply or plastic liner fitted.
- Nubuck binding
- An edge binding with a soft, suede-like feel.
- Pile
- The raised fibres that form the surface of a carpet mat.
- Pile weight
- How much fibre a carpet contains, usually given in grams per square metre (g/m²). A higher figure generally means a denser carpet that feels deeper underfoot.
- Rear mat, one piece or two
- Some cars take a separate mat behind each front seat. Others take one mat that runs across the floor and over the central tunnel.
- Saloon and touring
- Two body styles of the same model. A saloon has a separate boot lid; a touring, also called an estate, has a tailgate and a longer load area.
- Tailored
- Cut to the shape of one model and generation's floor, following its edges and fixing points. See tailored or universal car mats.
- Transmission tunnel
- The raised section that runs along the middle of the floor. Mats, especially one piece rear mats, are shaped around it.
- Twist studs
- Round fixing studs in the floor of many cars. The clip on the mat sits over the stud, and a short turn locks it in place.
- Universal
- Made in standard sizes to suit many cars, rather than cut for one.
Shop the mats this guide covers
How we wrote this guide
Definitions are general. Where a term is used differently by a particular manufacturer, the manufacturer's meaning applies to that car.
Questions this guide does not answer? Write to us from the contact page.