@wonkipop
@jeffbowlsby
@van b
@big len
In the midst of finally replacing a few key pieces of my original carpeting. Noticed something somewhat strange (see pics). The backing on the driver’s side (on right) is lighter and kind of light, stiff pvc or something. Stamped with “TSB”. Passenger side backing is black and much more rubbery; not stiff at all. Same situation with the NOS pieces I’m preparing to put in and the NOS passenger mat already in (not in pics).

Any experience, insight, or history on this. These are known (mine) original pieces.
As promised, truly minutia.
Thanks!

Backs of Originals:
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Backs of New NOS:
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@StarBear - found my old left hand drive carpets for comparison.

similar mix.
haven't looked at these for ------30 years!
got a bit of a surprise looking closely after your prompt.
forgot they were a mish mash. probably had noticed this before but long forgotten.

proviso is i can only vouch for these carpets from 1989 on.
but i don't think the original owner before me had any reason to change them.
they are all aged similarly. faded to equal degrees where they were exposed to sunlight and unfaded elsewhere. so.....99% sure its the original installed.

carpet is brown with the white fleck.

black rubberised kind of backing on drivers floor carpet and also little piece that went behind the seat.

clear whitish resin type backing on drivers sill piece, tunnel piece and piece behind the passenger seat. all stamped TSB.

passenger sill and passenger floor piece seem to be a clear resin too, possibly a bit grey but not as thick as the other type and not stamped TSB.

bit i don't have anymore is the piece that went on the passenger footwell wall.
MIA during rhd conversion.

bit from the bin which i recarpeted to match the new unfaded rhd set i made.
its a kind of grey or clear thinner resin backing.

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for interest @StarBear .

images of carpet i obtained as a 7m roll from porsche back about 1992/3.
scrap from the rhd set i made.
a kind of clear or greyish resin backing. not thick. similar to original carpet that was on passenger sill and passenger floor piece.

i backed the new floor pieces i made with a closed cell foam layer.
this gave the carpet body so the floor plugs etc did not show through.
the carpet was too thin in this form for the floor pieces.

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@StarBear
if i was forced to stab a guess.
having got them out and looked at them - and having a think about where they go.
i can see a logic maybe.

the clear whitish resin backed pieces seem to be the ones that had to conform to more complex 3-d contours.

drivers sill has hand brake recess.
bit from behind the passenger seat, pretty sure that is where it went seems to be deformed to accomodate the wiring loom bundle that comes out and heads for the seat belt interlock relay etc. (or maybe i have those two bits back to front in my photo above and its shaped for the hand brake cable guide where its going through the firewall?) the tunnel piece is deformed into a shape near the gear lever.

rest of the carpet only needed to do simple single fold or was flat.
has different thinner less rigid type of backing.

drivers piece seemed to get a super dooper heavy layer of rubberised or vinyl backing probably because they figured it was going to get the most wear and tear?

i think whitish resin piece has something to do with form moulding carpet. just a guess but.

------------

otherwise its just whether hans or gretel down at the cottage industry made of straw or the other one made of wood produced the pieces and they all ended up in a big bin that got bits of carpet taken out randomly by heinrich and horst!

if my outlandish theory above is correct (and not just wonki) then i am super impressed by the germans. it would have been taking capitalism, functionalism and minimalism to levels i had not appreciated before.

its the kind of nut case engineering/frugal penny pinching the germans would get up to. not even relaxing when they got to the carpet. they probably made an extra $5.00 per month out of tuning the carpet material and manufacture process.

@wonkipop Seems like a plausible scenario; I like your thinking process.
Definitely minutia, but that’s part of what retirement is about, I suppose.

@StarBear

trying to remember taking them out, but its a hell of a long time ago.
my memory is hardly any of it was glued on with factory carpets.
certainly the tunnel piece was not. thats a piece dealer mechanics needed to be able to get off easily and reinstall easily to do work on the car. only way it can look any good without being glued is if its a moulded piece.

the tunnel piece for rhd set i made i had to glue down but only along its bottom edges and sparingly. so it holds form but i can get it off without a lot of trouble.

passenger sill piece might have been glued on originally. i can sort of remember having to pull some of it out. the passenger firewall footwell was.
can remember getting that piece out and the weird pad. had to cut it away from the where the steering shaft came through the firewall. probably why i threw it away. i damaged it anyway.

original driver side piece is pretty tatty because i cut the pedal slot trims and heel pad out of it and reused them for rhd carpets.

@wonkipop Busy day today, on my knees struggling to get new door sill pieces in while cleaning up 50 years of debris. Pics below.
Waiting on new seat belt anchor hardware then final reassembly. Areas around speakers were the hardest.
Passenger side
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Driver side
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Once every 50 years, whether it needs it or not!
Now, of course, the driver side mat looks horrible next to new carpet. We’ll see if I can find one…..

looking good @StarBear .

i had to fight that sill piece on with mine. not being moulded. really had to work it into that handbrake recess. which is of course the mirror version to yours.

looking at the drivers mat, thats exactly what the lhd carpets were like in mine.
(still are having hauled them out of the cupboard to take a look at them for you).
greenish tinge in places and fading to a kind of pale almost tan color.
the brown carpet was not as stable against fade or stain resistant as the charcoal carpet.
i think it was (still is?) vulnerable to UV exposure and water from wet shoes.

i observe another bit of minutia from those photos.
interesting looking at all the subtle different ways they did brown interiors.
mine has a completely black left hand door bin handle.
the bottom part is not brown matching the doors.
the car has also always had a black centre cushion too.
and the right hand passenger (now driver side) handle also is all black on mine.
i can see yours has a brown bottom half to it.

i wonder if that was just a random thing.
or whether AG cars like yours got the full brown matching bits and non AG cars like mine got the "cheaper" version.
i think both styles make sense aesthetically but yours sure does take the brown to a higher level.

@StarBear

non AG (basement bin model) brown interior in my car?
you can see how i didn't get the brown bits on the doors or the cushion.
as i say i can only vouch for it since 89, but again i doubt the original owner would have mucked with it too much. i know for instance the steering wheel is the one that has been on it since delivery new. the original owner had the dealer install it. was some kind of standard kit alternative the dealers had. gut clearance option that USA dealers had ready to go.

i guess thats one for @JeffBowlsby . mr b is bound to know the answer.

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Yes, @wonkipop that looks like standard non-AG version. A bit step up for the $ but didn’t have a choice; this is the one that was on the lot. Otherwise a Ravenna Green (not my favorite) with Steelies or a 2.0 (don’t recall the color but too expensive for the day after graduating college). Worked out well!

Wish I could help guys but that lower door trim has had me stumped for awhile.

Early cars were vinyl over pressboard and typically black. Have seen some in vinyl that were in colors matching the interiors and not black. Then at least by mid '74 forward they changed to molded plastic and AFAIK, were always black and not upholstered.

that makes sense.

i must have copped the later ones after they changed how they made them.
about right. late jan 74 car.

thanks again to the voice of authority.

probably got a black centre cushion because the dealer threw it into the deal maybe.
and didn't have a brown one lying around handy?
doesn't look out of place in dark brown interior. kind of matches with black handles on doors.
might not have worked so well with a light tan interior?

Yep; still learning about these cars. So many little changes over a relatively short production life.