Since we learned that God has provided funding for a new wheelchair-accessible van, we've been researching our options. The funding will be available at the end of this week, but we're finding that the decision is dizzyingly complicated. In fact, it reminds me of the old "Choose-Your-Own-Adventure" books I used to read in junior-high. I used to keep my finger in all the places I had to make a choice, so I could backtrack and try something else!The first decision is to get a full-size or a minivan. The full-sized van would easily seat all 6 of us, car seats and all. But I've heard from many parents that full-sized vans are not only gas-guzzlers, but are difficult to park. They will be too tall for our garage and most parking garages and too long for street parking. They are higher off the ground, requiring a lift instead of a ramp to get the wheelchair in and out, which is more expensive and also makes loading and unloading slower. This is a big negative for a busy mother of four who already has to allow 15-20 minutes just for loading and unloading the kids when calculating travel time anywhere. In addition, one mom I talked to said she didn't feel her son was safe riding a lift that had to go up so high to get into the van.
In addition, if I am completely honest, emotions are definitely involved. I just don't like large vans! To me, they are just plain ugly. Seriously... just look at this picture! Even though they staged the photo in a beautiful fall scene with a heart-warming family, the van is U G L Y ugly. I don't think full-size vans have changed much in appearance in 20 years!So, despite Scott's observation that fitting 6 people into one would be simple, until I smash into a brick wall of impossibility, I refuse to consider a full-sized van. Fortunately, Scott is very patient with me. He knows I'll do most of the driving in the new van, so he's willing to accommodate my fickleness for now. So,
The good news is that most minivans can be modified. The bad news is that not all can be modified the same way. So, we've had to look at van makes and conversion options simultaneously, bouncing around just like a choose-your-own- adventure.
Each minivan has its own unique characteristics: one is taller, one is wider, one is deeper, one has a cleaner line from the door to the back row. (This is important when you consider maneuvering a power wheelchair in and out.) We first tested the back row to see if any minivan could fit all three car seats/booster seats in one row. None could, not even the widest. So we knew we'd either need a van with a seat in the middle row next to the wheelchair or a van with 3 seats in the middle row.
We checked out the two minivans with that 3rd seat in the middle row. In one, the third seat is half a seat and not a long-term option. The other van is not currently being converted to rear-entry, which is the only way this will work.
We were back to square one. I remained undaunted. Optimistic even. I knew it would be tricky to find just the right arrangement for us.
We tried looking at the conversions next, thinking maybe we could back our way into a van that way. Conversions seem to boil down to three main types:
You can get a lowered floor van with a side-entry folding ramp or lift. This equipment does not block the window or create the big blind spot we have now, and they require less space out the side of the van (5 1/2 feet instead of 8). But the ramp still blocks one sliding door for passengers who don't need wheelchairs. Side-entry also requires a lot of maneuvering to get the wheelchair in and out because we need a seat next to the wheelchair. We're having a tough time picturing Elli mastering the driving skills required for this any time soon.You can get a lowered floor van with a side-entry in-floor ramp, which frees up the sliding door. This is the best side-entry option for us. But we've heard these are more prone to mechanical problems, can get dirty because they stow beneath the vehicle, and they reduce the clearance you have beneath the van significantly (watch out for speed bumps!).
You can get a rear-entry ramp with a lowered section of the floor. You can park these vans in any standard parking space, and Elli could drive straight in and out -- no maneuvering her chair. But you have to swing a back bench seat up and out of the way to get the wheelchair in and out. In our case, this means we'll have to take booster seats in and out every time we drive with Elli. Also, our first-choice minivan does not offer the rear bench option.So you can probably tell that so far, we have neither settled on a conversion nor specific van make. We have test-driven three different vans (Honda Odyssey, Toyota Sienna, and Chrysler Town & Country) -- more on these experiences in another blog post -- and have looked at all our side-entry options.
Tuesday we meet with a rep from the company that does rear-entry conversions. I am really hoping that the rear-entry option will work for us. If it doesn't, that sound you will hear Tuesday evening is me crashing into the wall of impossibility. And once I recover, we'll have to start over from the very beginning looking at full-size vans.
