Preface:
Although the WIlderness comes with all-weather floor mats, I found that they have some glaring limitations. The area directly under the pedals on the drivers side remains exposed, and I found that a lot of dirt accumulates in that area due to your feet being constantly moving. Same goes with the dead pedal. I also found that in the Outback, the floor upholstery is particularly plush; more so then my previous cars. This is nice as it's a bit of an upscale car compared to my Crosstrek or BRZ, but the additional plushness also meant that I found it harder to vacuum dirt and dog hair out of the carpet.
So I started looking for some aftermarket floor mats. I wanted to get some before the Canadian winter hit, where I knew that the OEM mats will be easily overcome with the excess snow and salt. I looked at the usual suspects for mats: WeatherTech, Husky Liners, Tuxmat etc.. Then, of all things, I came across a Facebook ad, for a Canadian company called "Findway". I noticed their mats were significantly cheaper, undercutting WeatherTech and Husky by about 30%. I have previously owned WeatherTech and Husky X-Act Contour mats in previous vehicles.
Considering the COVID-19 pandemic, and wanting to support a Canadian company, I decided to drop by their warehouse/showroom in Markham, ON, as it was on my commute home from work.
The Mats:
The mats themselves appear to be made quite well. They are made of TPE Rubber, similar to the material that WeatherTech mats are made of. They are stiffer than the Husky Liner X-Act Contour line, more similar to Husky's Weatherbeater line. I did note that they feel thicker than WeatherTech's mats too. The edge of the mat has a curled lip, to prevent curling and deformity over time, an issue I had previously with WeatherTech mats.
The mats themselves have very high walls. The driver side reaches all the way behind the pedals and covers the dead pedal fully. Since the passenger side doesn't have a mat anchor, I was concerned that the passenger mat would slide around. Considering how high the mat goes up the footwell, the design appears to negate this issue. Time will tell once I take a trip with the passenger seat occupied. The back mats are pretty well designed. High walls, with a centre piece that covers the hump in front of the middle seat. My only concern is that the back mats lack a significant lip or wall on the side that goes under the front seats, potentially allowing fluids, salt or snow to run under the seat.
The mat texture is a bit more slippery than the WeatherTech's and definately more slippery than the Husky X-Act Contour., however its nothing that would compromise comfort or safety. The channels molded into the mats are not very deep, but the mats make up for it by having high sidewalls. Abnormally long pants may get wet as there's no deep channels for water/snow/mud to hide.
The mats carry a 3 year warranty against defects and cracking.
The Price:
For a complete set of mats (front and rear seating positions) I paid $169.00 (Canadian Dollars). For comparison, WeatherTech is asking for $268 (Canadian Dollars) for comparable mats and Husky is asking for US$238 ($299 Canadian) and US$165 ($207 Canadian) for the X-Act Contour and WeatherBeater mats respectively.
Final Thoughts:
The Findway mats have great coverage, and is comparable to the major competitors. The price undercuts even the economic lines of the major competition, and as such, contributes greatly to their value. Long term durability will have to be tested, but based off of initial perception of the quality, I think it will be just fine. In addition, being able to support a local business recover after a heavy economic downturn during a worldwide pandemic is a bonus. Canadians should definitely take these mats under consideration for that reason alone. If you are American, a similar approach could apply to WeatherTech and Husky. Having a local storefront to bring up any potential issues is a bonus.
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Purchase Link:
Although the WIlderness comes with all-weather floor mats, I found that they have some glaring limitations. The area directly under the pedals on the drivers side remains exposed, and I found that a lot of dirt accumulates in that area due to your feet being constantly moving. Same goes with the dead pedal. I also found that in the Outback, the floor upholstery is particularly plush; more so then my previous cars. This is nice as it's a bit of an upscale car compared to my Crosstrek or BRZ, but the additional plushness also meant that I found it harder to vacuum dirt and dog hair out of the carpet.
So I started looking for some aftermarket floor mats. I wanted to get some before the Canadian winter hit, where I knew that the OEM mats will be easily overcome with the excess snow and salt. I looked at the usual suspects for mats: WeatherTech, Husky Liners, Tuxmat etc.. Then, of all things, I came across a Facebook ad, for a Canadian company called "Findway". I noticed their mats were significantly cheaper, undercutting WeatherTech and Husky by about 30%. I have previously owned WeatherTech and Husky X-Act Contour mats in previous vehicles.
Considering the COVID-19 pandemic, and wanting to support a Canadian company, I decided to drop by their warehouse/showroom in Markham, ON, as it was on my commute home from work.
The Mats:
The mats themselves appear to be made quite well. They are made of TPE Rubber, similar to the material that WeatherTech mats are made of. They are stiffer than the Husky Liner X-Act Contour line, more similar to Husky's Weatherbeater line. I did note that they feel thicker than WeatherTech's mats too. The edge of the mat has a curled lip, to prevent curling and deformity over time, an issue I had previously with WeatherTech mats.
The mats themselves have very high walls. The driver side reaches all the way behind the pedals and covers the dead pedal fully. Since the passenger side doesn't have a mat anchor, I was concerned that the passenger mat would slide around. Considering how high the mat goes up the footwell, the design appears to negate this issue. Time will tell once I take a trip with the passenger seat occupied. The back mats are pretty well designed. High walls, with a centre piece that covers the hump in front of the middle seat. My only concern is that the back mats lack a significant lip or wall on the side that goes under the front seats, potentially allowing fluids, salt or snow to run under the seat.
The mat texture is a bit more slippery than the WeatherTech's and definately more slippery than the Husky X-Act Contour., however its nothing that would compromise comfort or safety. The channels molded into the mats are not very deep, but the mats make up for it by having high sidewalls. Abnormally long pants may get wet as there's no deep channels for water/snow/mud to hide.
The mats carry a 3 year warranty against defects and cracking.
The Price:
For a complete set of mats (front and rear seating positions) I paid $169.00 (Canadian Dollars). For comparison, WeatherTech is asking for $268 (Canadian Dollars) for comparable mats and Husky is asking for US$238 ($299 Canadian) and US$165 ($207 Canadian) for the X-Act Contour and WeatherBeater mats respectively.
Final Thoughts:
The Findway mats have great coverage, and is comparable to the major competitors. The price undercuts even the economic lines of the major competition, and as such, contributes greatly to their value. Long term durability will have to be tested, but based off of initial perception of the quality, I think it will be just fine. In addition, being able to support a local business recover after a heavy economic downturn during a worldwide pandemic is a bonus. Canadians should definitely take these mats under consideration for that reason alone. If you are American, a similar approach could apply to WeatherTech and Husky. Having a local storefront to bring up any potential issues is a bonus.
Purchase Link:
