Rubber Mat vs Stuck Throttle ;-)

[chris1983rangie]

G'day all,

I'm sure this has happened to a few Defender owners out there!

Well this morning while on the on ramp getin onto the fwy i put the foot to the metal and what happened next scared the absolute livin daylights outa me! the throttle pedal got stuck on the rubber matt and i couldnt get me foot under to tape it back! Eventually got into the emergency lane at full speed :o but managed to release it! pheeeww!

Any tips you can reccomended? would be great! I was thinking of cutting away more of the rubber mat area around where the throttle stop bolt!

cheers,

Chris

PS. Only had the 98 Defender for 2 months now, Runs and Drives Awesome, a nice upgrade from the 83 Rangie...........!

[nice1guv]

Second one in a couple of days. :p

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/90-110-130-defender-county/135034-good-scare.html

Others have mentioned trimming the mat is the way to go.

[jx2mad]

As a side issue I was driving my 110 when I had to brake. Imagine my surprise when I couldn't get my foot from the accecerator to the brake. Why? The lace on my sneaker had come undone and was jammed in the door. I have never shifted to neutral and braked left footed so quick in my life. Scared the daylights out of me.

[malleefowl]

I too had this problem recently-very disconcerting:o
Fixed by getting some velcro stick on -one lot on the mat other side on the floor back near the seatbox.
Worked great even on the CSR
Cheers,
Mary

[Sleepy]

Yikes :o That'd get the palms all sweaty. Is this a Puma thing or should I be worried with my Td5? I have the Land Rover rubber mats and never happened to me...<<knocks head>> touch wood.

Not trying to be a smarty pants but did you think of turning the ignition off and coasting to a stop (Being careful not to engage steering lock of course!!!)

[flagg]

yep happened to me in a tdi...

I cut a piece about an inch wide and 3 inches deep in the mat and never had a problem since.

...until recently in the isuzu when the accelerator cable froze on.. hehe

[Loubrey]

Guys,

Its a rubber mat thing, not a Defender thing. Especially after market mats that fit "about right". This has happened to me in a brand new VW Golf with factory fitted rubber mats and a lot of collegues have said it's happed to them in a long list of car makes.

If you put your foot down and the mat shifts a bit, there is potential for it trapping the accelerator pedal.

The best thing is purely to take a close look at your pedal/mat interface and either cutting a bit of a gap or securing it down. If you turn your OME mats over and there should be dotted lines for the required cuts, marked for both LHD and RHD. The UK companies like M&M, Devon, Paddocks etc sell "genuine" mats, but they are genuine reproductions and lack the official Landrover markings.

Not sure about the Puma, but 300Tdi and Td5 OME mats all require this "cut out". If your mats are aftermarket, have close look at a fully depressed accelerator and how it touches your mat.

Cheers!

[nice1guv]

If you turn your OME mats over and there should be dotted lines for the required cuts, marked for both LHD and RHD.

Very interesting Loubrey.

My 300Tdi Disco has rubber mats with this cut-out section you mention and I've always wondered why they moulded an extra odd bit in the corner of the mat - now I know! :)

I guess I should cut it out then. :p

[chris1983rangie]

yes, totally agree, it can happen with any make of vehicle. I am going to cut out a 3" dia hole on the rubber mat and also try some of that velcro stuff.....!

cheers,


Chris;)

[vnx205]

I have avoided the problem by not using full throttle. I have never needed to. :p

However, thanks for the tip. I am on my way outside right now to have a very close look at my mats.

[Offender90]

Chris,

Had that happen in my V8 powered 90 only a couple of weeks after I bought it - not a pleasant experience! I trimmed the mat, and it hadn't happened since. Trimming it so that there is plenty of room around the pedal catch, even when it's hard up against the front of the footwell did the trick.

On the up side, that was the first time I truly appreciated how well the 90 accelerates with an injected 3.9l V8! :burnrubber:

Glad to hear your ordeal ended well.

Bojan

[ScottW]

Mats?

In a defender?

You're all crazy. I just have a metal floor. Makes cleaning much easier :)

[Sleepy]

Mats?

In a defender?

You're all crazy. I just have a metal floor. Makes cleaning much easier :)

Cleaning?

In a defender

You're crazy too!:p

[chris1983rangie]

hahahaha Funny!

[zwitter]

Happened to me too in a 1996 130.
After the third time of having to kill ignition and pull pedal up I trimmed the mat and then fitted an aluminium strip at the door opening through the mat and all. Holes were aylready there. Never had mat move since.

James