Project Buckshot, our 1975 Ford Bronco that is undergoing a complete frame-off restoration / transformation, is coming along nicely. The folks at Midlife Classics have completed the body work and applied paint. They also coated the interior, fenderwells and underbelly with POR-15 (an incredibly tough, rust stopping paint material). With reassembly of the rig right around the corner, we needed to make a tough decision for the interior finish. Do we use spray-in bedliner, or go with carpet?
From the start, Buckshot has been built as a daily driver, with the owner planning to spend plenty of time on the highway and surface streets, in addition to time on the trail. Since the owner wants a relatively comfortable ride to be able to drive it across country to his favorite wheelin’ spots, we decided to up the comfort levels and go with carpet. Instead of installing carpet directly onto the painted metal body, we decided to install a heat / sound dampening mat first – this way the owner could rub his toes through the plush carpet while enjoying Boy George and Backstreet Boys piped through the speakers . Err, wait. What we meant to say was that he could enjoy Lynyrd Skynyrd while burying his foot into the go-pedal of the newly installed 400+ horsepower monster mill and automatic transmission that will surely generate more heat than the stock 302 that ol’ Henry built.
 We needed material that would not only deaden sound, but also reduce heat in the interior too, since it will be wheeled in New Mexico, Arizona and other scorching climates. We considered many options and after looking at several manufacturers of sound deadening / heat reducing mat material, we nixed the space-shuttle ceramic tiles and landed on Hushmat. Here’s why… Hushmat outperforms other competitors in key areas including; ease of installation, better heat reduction, no need for special surface prep, Hushmat’s passing the stringent approval process for several OEM manufacturers and the fact that it’s made in the good ol’USA. If those features weren’t enough, here are a few more to consider:
- Reduces driver exposure to road noise and vibration.
- Reduces heat up to 40%.
- Hushmat is automotive OEM specified and approved!
- HushMat Ultra requires no pre-cleaning of the application surface.
- No more acetone or alcohol surface preparation.
- HushMat Ultra requires no heat guns or messy glue to apply.
- One-Step application with HushMat Ultra—simply Peel and Stick!
- Apply to door skin, door frame, door trim panel, trunk floor, trunk lid, floor, firewall, rear deck, headliner/roog and more.
- Apply to Inside of roof skin (yes, you can install it upside down and it iss guaranteed to stick).
- Proven to perform from -30° F to 400° F.
| Installation – Hushmat sound deadening / heat reduction mat |
| Time: |
5-8 Hours (depending upon size of vehicle) |
| Tools Needed: |
Scissors and/or razor blade knife (a roller wheel is optional, but nice to have) |
| Difficulty: |
 |
 We began our installation by wiping down the interior of the Bronco. Since the Bronco was still in the body shop, a layer of dust had accumulated in the interior, blown in from the color sanding process performed on the exterior. This was a simple precautionary step that we chose to take even though Hushmat states that no cleaning or preparation of the area is needed. In fact, it can be installed (and continue to stick to) metal that is covered in oil and grease. Nonetheless, we chose to clean the interior with a bit of water and a rag then let dry. |
  Installation of Hushmat couldn’t be easier. Simply peel the non-stick paper off of the back and press into place. We started at the rear of the truck where things are relatively flat and square, and worked our way forward. We found it easiest to peel back just a portion of the non-stick paper and apply it like a sticker transfer sticker. |
  As we worked towards the cab of the Bronco, we custom fitted the Hushmat by cutting pieces with a pair of regular scissors (it cuts very easily) to best fit around non-flat surfaces like the transmission tunnel. When we covered a bolt hole in the Bronco that needed to remain, we simply pushed a Phillips screwdriver through it, or cut it out with a razor blade knife. |
   We continued to cover the rest of the interior, including areas such as the fender well humps and the vertical portions of the fender too. Working with rounded areas and sections that have a lot of angles (e.g. our wheel wells) were a bit trickier, but Hushmat was easy to work with. We started by covering the largest areas first and then filling in the blanks with smaller sections of Hushmat. |
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4x4Review Off Road Magazine
We needed material that would not only deaden sound, but also reduce heat in the interior too, since it will be wheeled in New Mexico, Arizona and other scorching climates. We considered many options and after looking at several manufacturers of sound deadening / heat reducing mat material, we nixed the space-shuttle ceramic tiles and landed on Hushmat. Here’s why… Hushmat outperforms other competitors in key areas including; ease of installation, better heat reduction, no need for special surface prep, Hushmat’s passing the stringent approval process for several OEM manufacturers and the fact that it’s made in the good ol’USA. If those features weren’t enough, here are a few more to consider: 
