There are many things to think about when considering a wheelchair van. In addition to the normal considerations like color, amenities, interior decor, reliability, and maintenance costs, here are some major categories:
1. Ramp or Lift? Ramps may be easier to navigate with a wheelchair using a joystick mounted on the back (assistant control). Lifts are typically used on taller vehicles like full sized vans. The wheelchair must be rolled onto the lift, the lift must be raised or lowered, and the wheelchair must be rolled off the lift. I have a lift. It took a bit of getting used to it, but I am pretty comfortable with it now.
2. Side or Rear? Vehicles with a ramp or lift in the rear are not practical when parallel parking in congested urban areas, because you need space behind the vehicle to deploy the ramp/lift and get the wheelchair out. In other places, unloading from the rear means unloading into traffic. I have a side entry van, which works for the area I live in. Before getting it, we did a tour of the places I was likely to need to park and concluded a side-entry van was right for me.
3. Power or Manual? Power ramps and lifts can be more convenient, but that convenience comes with mechanical/electrical complexity. In my opinion, they are less reliable than manual ones. Of course, a manual ramp must be manually deployed by an able-bodied person, which can take away the independence of the PALS. As PALS progress, of course, this is not much of an issue, because they will not be travelling by themselves. Note that even my wheelchair lift, which is powered by electric motors, has a manual capability to get me in and out of the fan if something fails with the motor mechanisms.
4. Electric or Hydraulic? My lift is electric and is somewhat simple. That makes it more reliable. The downside is that it uses a LOT of battery power. If the van's engine is not running, the lift cannot get enough power from the battery to raise me up when the temperatures are below freezing. Note that I replace the battery every year. So, we must start the engine to load me into the van in cold temperatures. Hydraulic mechanisms put less of a load on the batteries, but can have reliability issues.
5. Under or In Vehicle? Some mechanisms live in the vehicle and thus are not exposed to road grime that can cause reliability issues. The ones that live in the vehicle take up precious space. I chose to go with one that lives in the vehicle rather than one that is mounted under the vehicle.
6. Ride in the wheelchair or Transfer to a seat? I still have the ability to transfer to a seat in the van, so rarely ride in the wheelchair. Others will always ride in the wheelchair. In either case, the wheelchair must be securely connected to the van. I use an EZLock. A competitor is a Q'Straint lock. When riding in the wheelchair, you must have an additional way of securing your PALS. My van has a separate seatbelt configured to use when I am in the wheelchair. Note that when riding in the wheelchair, your PALS' eyes will be high enough they may not be able to see through the windows. I can't in my van, which is a major reason why I prefer to transfer to a normal seat.
7. Garageable or not? I have a full size chevy van with a raised roof. It will not fit in our garage, so it lives outside. We live where it snows a lot (typically over 300 inches each year), so we have to clear the snow off of it before we can use it. That is a major inconvenience. I would love to have one that fits in our garage. Even better, would be to have a vacant space in the garage on the passenger side of the van so I could load into the van while it is in the garage. To do this, I would need to get a new van and a new house!
8. Does the wheelchair fit? This is the single most important criteria. My wheelchairs (I have several to choose from) will not fit in many vehicles. I strongly encourage you to get the wheelchair first and then test the wheelchair in whatever vehicle you are considering BEFORE purchasing the vehicle.
9. Amount of Modifications. My full sized van is close to stock. It has an EZLock base in it which locks the wheelchair to the van. It has a lift as well. It also has a setup for a special seatbelt for me when riding in the wheelchair. But, no structural or suspension elements of the vehicle have been modified. Many vehicles, including all minivans I know of, will have significant modifications to the structure, suspension, and sometimes the driveline of the vehicle. Most minivans will raise the body by about a foot and then lower the floor by that much or more. They often have a kneeling feature to get the van lower so the ramp has a shallower angle when deployed. All those modifications compromise reliability and durability (in my opinion).
10. Van or Pickup? OK, this is probably just because I am a guy who would love to have a pickup. There is one company (All Terrain Conversions) that does a wheelchair lift conversion on GM pickup trucks. They are expensive and in many ways impractical. I have dreamed about getting one for years, but finally concluded my primary wheelchair will not fit, they are not cost effective, and are just not practical for my needs.
I am sure I have left some things out, but is a reasonable starting point.
Steve
