An Affordable and Durable Truck Bed Mat Made Here in the States

If protecting your truck bed is a high priority, then you already know the importance of picking up a high quality bed mat. But with so many options to choose from, finding the right mat for the right price, might be difficult. If you go too cheap, you might be left with some flimsy piece of junk that traps water and doesn’t actually protect your truck bed very well at all. And the higher priced items sometimes look great while not providing the best protection available either. If what you’re looking for is that sweet spot of a product that is affordable and at the top of the competition as far as quality and function apply, then you should definitely check out the Dee Zee Truck Bed Mat. While this mat doesn’t boost many of the bells and whistles that some more expensive products might, it does do what it claims to do--protect your truck bed--and does it well too, all for an affordable price tag. And Dee Zee succeeds where others fail at making a solid bed mat too by avoiding some all too common mistakes. And technically, I’d label this particular product a bed liner, as well. While it does not cover your side walls, like many liners do, it is custom fit, designed to wrap around your wheel wells. So in my book, this is a custom fit truck bed mat. Dee Zee does note that for some short beds a bit of cutting may be required, but if you’re rocking a standard or long bed, this baby should come ready to go. The short bed versions may be a little too long and require some minor adjustments as far as length is concerned. And Dee Zee also sells a tailgate mat that matches this particular product. So if you decide you want some tailgate protection too, then you may want to consider adding this second product to your order as well. Let’s get into the details of what makes this bed mat so affordable and such a great option for those of us looking to support American workers while protecting our truck beds.

Bullet Point Breakdown of the Dee Zee Truck Bed Mat

        No time to read this whole article? Just want the quick and dirty dets? “Too long; didn’t read” your fav acronym? Don’t worry. We hear ya. Here’s our Midwest Aftermarket Bullet Point Breakdown of the Dee Zee Truck Bed Mat:

• Custom fit truck bed mats
• Protects your truck bed from dents and dings
• Keeps cargo and equipment from sliding around your truck bed
• Slows down and stops scratches from happening, damaging your paint job
• Aids in rust prevention via scratch protection and superior water drainage
• Raised rubber cleats suspend the mat above your metal bed
• These cleats allow any water underneath the mat to drain as normal out bed drain holes and tailgate
• Constructed of thick Nyracord Rubber Compound
• This .375 inch thick mat is made to handle gas and oil spills and is UV resistant
• The mat will not absorb water and can withstand high and low temperatures
• Will not crack or curl up over time
• A cost effective method of protecting your truck bed
• Resists tears and abrasions
• Custom fit to your specific year, make, model, cab size, and bed size vehicle
• Designed to wrap around your wheel wells
• Backed by Dee Zee’s three year warranty
• Made right here in the US of A
• Manufactured by American workers in Des Moines, Iowa
• Some trimming may be required for short beds
• Mat could be longer than the max length of these short beds in some cases
• Easy install: just roll it out in the back of your truck bed, and you’re done
• Made from a heavy duty rubber material
• Protects your investment in your truck, preserving your truck bed for years to come
• Designed and manufactured to last the life of your vehicle
• A Heavyweight Product at an Affordable Price
• The Dee Zee Truck Bed Mat

Dee Zee Truck Bed Mat

There are lots of different products out there designed to protect your truck bed. You have everything from the full marine grade liner that covers your side walls down to a generic rectangular mat that you toss into the middle of your bed.

All of these products help protect your truck bed from scratches and dings, but some of them do it better and at a more cost effective price too. And some of the more generic versions and even some more expensive ones have some serious issues and shortcomings. So before we jump directly into the parts that Dee Zee is doing right, let’s tell you a bit about what you need to make sure you’re avoiding.

First, let’s talk coverage. The cheapest of the cheap truck bed mats out there are going to be square or rectangular mats. These things won’t go around your wheel well like Dee Zee’s custom truck bed mats. And you might think this isn’t that big of a deal. But the thing is, these areas can quickly become damaged or start to show more wear and tear than the rest of your vehicle’s truck bed. The best case scenario is that you start to see scratches and / or rust in the corners of your truck bed of along the edges near that wheel well. This means that the damage is isolated, but it is mostly in regions that are very critical to your truck bed’s support.

At the least, this can involve some UV damage or fading outlining your mat. So you might end up with an outline around your truck bed mat when you take it out.

Dee Zee gets past this issue by making their truck bed mats fit perfectly, contouring around your wheel wells and up into the corners. This means you won’t have to worry about uneven fading or damage.

Now as far as coverage is concerned, you should note that Dee Zee’s mats do not cover your side walls. There are truck bed liners out there that do cover your walls too. So if that is something you’re after, you may want to check out some other options we have to offer as well.

Now protecting your side walls isn’t that big of a deal if you don’t have gear that is sliding around in your truck bed. So make sure you secure your items well and get a truck bed mat, like the Dee Zee, to help prevent anything from sliding or tipping over.

Secondly, be very cautious about plastic drop in liners. While these liners, often sold at big box stores, do cover the side walls of your vehicle, and they do form a watertight seal, typically, over the top of your truck bed, there are a couple huge issues with them.

One is that no matter how securely you install these suckers, they almost always vibrate or rock a little over the top of your truck bed. Since they are designed to float over the top of your existing bed, this means they will over time scuff up, scratch, and damage your truck bed. Now you won’t see it. So if you’re only concerned about what your truck bed looks like with the liner installed, you might not think this is that big of a deal. But if you ever need to remove that liner or if the bed becomes so damaged that it’s integrity becomes challenged, then you could be in trouble.

Which brings me to issue number two.

No matter how well installed, these babies almost always seem to trap water and moisture underneath them, between the liner and the truck bed itself, which leads to rust.

I actually can’t even fault the manufacturers on this one, so before you go yelling at drop in liner makers, so your roll. This isn’t exactly their fault. Unless your drop in is damaged or poorly installed, that hidden and trapped water probably didn’t get under there from a rain storm exactly. What I mean is it probably didn’t get there from coming down through or past the liner. It probably came from underneath.

You see, truck beds are designed to drain water already. Your truck bed will have a series of drain holes and even be designed to drain water out the tailgate in most cases. Well, those drain holes work the other direction too. And while splashed water is unlikely to get in this way, moisture via humidity can. So the more humid the area you live in is, the most likely you are to find out that moisture has become trapped underneath your drop in. Add in some scratches to remove that paint, and you’re practically bugging rust to start to form.

Now with the Dee Zee Truck Bed Mat, they’ve prepared for this issue. The underside of this mat has rubber cleats which are designed to hold the mat in place, provide a bit of added cushion to the mat, and--and likely most importantly of all--to let water drain out naturally, the way your truck bed is designed to drain water.

While this isn’t fancy exactly, and it doesn’t involve a full drop in liner, or a complete coating of your truck bed, it does get the job done and do it well.

Again this is one of the issues you might not know about until you do a little research. At the end of the day, if you’re looking to protect your truck bed, there are a number of great options out there, but they aren’t all as good as their price tags might suggest.

This particular Nyracord Truck Bed Mat from Dee Zee is one of the most durable and affordable options out there, and Dee Zee has designed these mats to compensate for some of the more common and often serious issues we see with a number of mats and liners out there. You’d be hard pressed to find a better custom truck bed mat for the price.

Our Promise of Exceptional Service and the Lowest Prices on the Interwebs

When you’re ready to order your Dee Zee Truck Bed Mat, we hope you’ll get yours from us here at Midwest Aftermarket. We only promote products we believe in and sell them at the lowest prices, shipping quickly to you for free if you’re in the lower 48 states. We have an excellent return policy and strive to get you the right product in perfect condition the first time.

What are you waiting for? Give us a call or place an order directly through our website. We’ll get your product out to you ASAP so you can enjoy your vehicle and make it your own. If you have a vision of what your truck or Jeep could be, let us help you achieve that image, that goal. We put aftermarket right at the tip of your fingers on your smartphone, web browser, and even via various apps, making ordering the parts you need super easy.

Let us help make your aftermarket dream possible. Let us help you build your dream machine. We want you to drive the truck or Jeep of your dreams right now. So when you get it installed and love it, make sure you share us some pics on social media so we can live vicariously through you. Because we too are aftermarket enthusiasts, truck and Jeep owners, who love and own many of the products we sell. In other words, we don’t just work aftermarket--we are aftermarket.

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