Well, I have very little money that I can put towards automotive stuff now days and I was getting roasted in the 7 this summer. I started looking into other methods to block the heat rather then the expensive sound deadening and reflective heat items that are on the market now days. With a budget under $50, I think I have done a pretty good job.

I forgot to take pictures of my progress as I did this rather quickly over 2 afternoons in the heat of Texas. Taking pictures was low on my priority list. I have included some that I found of other cars that have had the same modification done.

So, this reflectix stuff is basically a layer of foil on a layer of strong bubble wrap covered in another layer of foil. It makes a dual reflective barrier with a trapped pocket of air in between. You can buy it at Lowes for about $40.

I pulled the front carpet and lined the entire floor, transmission tunnel and a decent way up the firewall. Tape it down using duct-work aluminum tape or use a spray adhesive. I then pulled the storage bins and lined that with the reflectix as well. Then just reassembly. The carpet will fit a bit weird and require alot more work to get it to look just right as there is more stuff under it now. Also, remember to cut holes for screws, bolts, and such as its not the easiest to poke through when your hunting for holes.

While I had everything out I filled the seat supports and the big tunnel that runs by the storage bins with foam. They are not used to drain water or anything, so might as well remove the ability for sound to bounce around in there. (Great stuff works great)

SO, with it all together now I can say it made a huge difference. I used to be able to feel the heat coming off the transmission tunnel after just a few min of driving. Now even after a long trip of stop and go traffic you can't feel anything. The noise in the car was also cut down a bit with a lot less high pitched stuff coming in. With the extra I have I might put some back around the tail-lights and under the rear mat. I don't expect to gain much from doing this though.

I would recommend doing this if your looking for some heat reduction in the car. Its not expensive and doesn't take too terribly long to install.

 

Nice write-up. Great idea.

 

I was about to ask you about your C5 dashboard swap, but then I re-read your post and noticed you mentioned that it was a photo you found online. LOL

 

How is it on flammability? Not that the cotton wastage soundproofing originally used wasn't flammable as all get-out, but plastic-based stuff tends to have a problem with combustion byproduct toxicity.

 

how does it secure to the floor? doesn't look like there's any adhesive on it.. looks like a nice alternative to dynamat!

 

This does look promising, I've also looked into Second Skin and their stuff looks pretty damn good but breaks that $50 budget.

 

thanks for sharing