DIY Van/Wav Hybrid?

[Scooterman]

Take for example this small van
youtu.be/BO19zfGqAcs
FOUR of the big name manufacturers badge their own version of the van with varying levels of trim and goodies but all four vans are basically the same. (common platform)

Rear doors are easier than a tailgate to manually and open and close (from the outside) when sat in a wheelchair.

How feasible do you think it would be to automate a basic fold-down wheelchair ramp such as this
youtu.be/5SazxwPvGzE. I thinking along the lines of aftermarket 12 volt actuators, similar to actuators used for electric gates and power chair lift/tilt mechanism?

And also fit actuators to remote close rear doors.

Then the remove rear bulkhead behind front seats and replace with DIY bullhead only behind drivers seat.

Remove front passenger seat and install some form of anchorage fitted to floor for power chair.

Idea is to open doors manually or remotely from outside, deploy electrified rear ramp remotely, drive up and next to drivers seat. Then using wooden transfer board perform a manoeuvre any contortionist would be proud of, and transfer across to drivers seat?

Repeat process in reverse to exit vehicle

A stupid idea, or does it have promise?

NB: Have push/pull brake accelerator professionally fitted. Might as well as need to have professionally fitted adaption to qualify for VAT exemption.

[foghornleghorn]

Unless you are a midget or have no head there is no way you are going to fit inside a standard small van. A big part of what makes a wheelchair van is the floor being chopped out and lowered.

[Scooterman]

Unless you are a midget or have no head there is no way you are going to fit inside a standard small van. A big part of what makes a wheelchair van is the floor being chopped out and lowered.

Hmmmm, but that's what makes them expensive, and a smaller fuel tank I've heard?

Changing the subject a bit, I was travelling in my chair in the back of a WAV taxi the other day. (Train replacement service, I'm too tight to pay for a taxi out my own money). Anyhow this WAV taxi had a sloping floor and my power chair which has a rear weight bias and 10 degrees of fixed seat tilt. And every time the taxi pulled away my chair would tip over backwards, it was bloody annoying.

[foghornleghorn]

Anyhow this WAV taxi had a sloping floor and my power chair which has a rear weight bias and 10 degrees of fixed seat tilt. And every time the taxi pulled away my chair would tip over backwards, it was bloody annoying.

Driver is supposed to tie down the chair so you don't have that happen, and also your wheelchair doesn't go through the windscreen if the van stops suddenly.

Two straps attach to the floor at the back and have clips for the tie down points on the chair.

At the front of the chair you use the clips on the winch.

[Burgerman]

Hmmmm, but that's what makes them expensive, and a smaller fuel tank I've heard?

Lowered floor means chopping the old card floor out modifying practically everything, and then getting it destroyed to certify safety. And its all essential. So yes expensive. https://www.wheelchairdriver.com/images ... -roadshow/

[Scooterman]

Hmmm, very nice.

I expect they hold their value, partly due to long build time.

My thinking was wondering if a useable vehicle could be done on the cheap?

[steves1977uk]

https://www.wavsgb.com/ Not exactly cheap, but are properly converted and serviced.

Steve

[foghornleghorn]

Prices on all vehicles have gone nuts recently. Ordering something brand new leads to delivery in many months so used vehicles have become desirable as you can have it straight away.

Looking at what is currently for sale around the country my Peugeot Partner WAV is worth more now than I paid for it used 3 years ago

Not sure you will save much money by bodging up a van either. The Amazon effect, where loads of people are delivering parcels in their own small van now, has made used van prices go silly too.

[Scooterman]

https://www.wavsgb.com/ Not exactly cheap, but are properly converted and serviced.

Steve

Cheers for the link Steve, I shall make a coffee and have a gander

Prices on all vehicles have gone nuts recently. Ordering something brand new leads to delivery in many months so used vehicles have become desirable as you can have it straight away.

Looking at what is currently for sale around the country my Peugeot Partner WAV is worth more now than I paid for it used 3 years ago

Not sure you will save much money by bodging up a van either. The Amazon effect, where loads of people are delivering parcels in their own small van now, has made used van prices go silly too.

They're all good points. Perhaps I'll stick with buses & trains, and me large mob scooter which good for spring/summer local trips of say 1-5 miles. And I probably wouldn't get enough use out of WAV to make it worthwhile.

A small van with manual fold down ramp would be fine for the spring/summer as I can manage to hobble and stand with crutches enough to drive power chair up and down ramp with detachable joystick on long r-net cable.

Trouble is I couldn't/wouldn't want to be doing it in the winter with the rain pouring down and wind howling, I'd get blown over! . So the only sensible/usable all year round option would be a drive from wheelchair WAV. Or an easy way to get across from WC to drivers seat, which as you say unless you're a midget forget it, it's not feasible.

[Scooterman]

Something like this as an EXAMPLE would probably be the most sensible option, although not cheap! But it would have to have a powered tailgate and ramp.

By sliding the drivers seat to it's rearmost position, there might be enough room to transfer across to drivers seat (I'm stick thin)

https://sirusautomotive.co.uk/upfront-passenger/

[Burgerman]

Tried that and the transit connect versions. Not enough room for a proper wheelchair and even with extended steer wheel etc you cant sensibly get square on and drive and the wheel is too low.

All these car derived small van conversions are terrible to use compared to a US style conversion like the rollx, or a WV caravelle colarado, (all the other VW conversions do not have a properly lowered floor and inadequate headroom etc). Trust me I have examined them all and bought a few.



The only ones that make any sense at all are the VW Caravelle Colarado DRIVE FROM conversion, https://www.gmmobility.co.uk/private-pu ... r-colorado

and the US minivan lowered floor conversions be they the Honda, Toyota or Chrysler one.

E.G. Rollx https://www.rollxvans.com/

[Scooterman]

Tried that and the transit connect versions. Not enough room for a proper wheelchair and even with extended steer wheel etc you cant sensibly get square on and drive and the wheel is too low.

All these car derived small van conversions are terrible to use compared to a US style conversion like the rollx, or a WV caravelle colarado, (all the other VW conversions do not have a properly lowered floor and inadequate headroom etc). Trust me I have examined them all and bought a few.



The only ones that make any sense at all are the VW Caravelle Colarado DRIVE FROM conversion, https://www.gmmobility.co.uk/private-pu ... r-colorado

and the US minivan lowered floor conversions be they the Honda, Toyota or Chrysler one.

E.G. Rollx https://www.rollxvans.com/

Thanks BM I'll defer to your superior knowledge and experience. Buying the wrong vehicle would be an expensive mistake. And anyway with all this 'green' tyranny I wouldn't risk buying anything with a combustion engine. Or investing a LOT of money into any type of WAV vehicle. If I did I would hope to be able to keep using it for 20 years to make it financially viable.
I'll probably just stick me scooter and powerchair for local trips and public transport for longer ones.



BTW Rover delivered me Jive R2 on Friday. I'm super pleased with it . I'll post some piccies of it in the garden when we get a bit of sun. It's 120A r-net, 4-pole 6mph, tilt (no lift). It's even got an LCD joystick which says 700m on the display. I don't know whether the M stands for miles, and if so whether that's the miles from new, or from when it was last serviced?

[slomobile]

Rear Ramp

rampOut.png (256.28 KiB) Viewed 50 times

Rear interior

RearInterior.png (198.37 KiB) Viewed 50 times

That is my new (used) van. Ram Promaster 2500 high roof 159" wb. Former commercial medical transport. ADA compliant when rear kneeling, ramp slope still ok when suspension at stock height, but a bit more nervous going up and wheels can slide going down if you let the brakes click.
https://www.amf-bruns-behindertenfahrze ... eurorampe/
The "Euro Rampe" is manual and I'd like to motorize it.
Same with rear doors.

I've been told by a commercial sales rep and engineer for Mobility Works that aftermarket door closers and kits for motorizing manual ramps are a very common request among customers that remains unfulfilled. There is a market for them. He suggested repurposing commercial door openers used in buildings.

I'm happy to hear your ideas, try them out if I can, and report back.

[Burgerman]

If it were me I would find a used ricon clearway lift or similar. That ramp looks like hard work and very long.

[slomobile]

youtu.be/nvwF4PuWnts
Is that what you are looking for?

[slomobile]

Anyhow this WAV taxi had a sloping floor and my power chair which has a rear weight bias and 10 degrees of fixed seat tilt. And every time the taxi pulled away my chair would tip over backwards, it was bloody annoying.

Driver is supposed to tie down the chair so you don't have that happen, and also your wheelchair doesn't go through the windscreen if the van stops suddenly.

Two straps attach to the floor at the back and have clips for the tie down points on the chair.

At the front of the chair you use the clips on the winch.

This is a failing of most wheelchair transport vehicles, including buses. They require an able bodied person spry enough to reach the floor and dedicate 2 hands to securing each restraint. The design just assumes one will always be available.
That is not the case if the wheelchair user is transferring into the conventional driver seat.
It is also not the case when the driver/carer is elderly or infirm themselves. Stooping to secure 4 restraints can take a toll on the carer.
Even if the driver/carer is fully capable, the extra time and effort required is annoying. That often results in omitting one or more necessary securement points.

The winch is a step forward as it can secure the 2 front points with a single motion if done properly. Obviously it isn't always done properly.
Another issue, removal and replacement of the rear restraints to allow a clear path for the chair to pass. We can do better.

The systems to secure 4 caster stretchers, as in ambulances and NEMT(Non Emergency Medical Transport), are much simpler to use. The front casters are captured automatically when the stretcher is wheeled in. A structure shaped like falopian tubes guides the stretcher into a set of horizontal hooks which prevent the front casters from moving up, forward, or sideways. A single hook at the rear is normally out of the way. Once the front casters are captured into the hooks, the rear hook is swung into position, and clamped onto a stretcher frame tube. The entire stretcher is now locked in place, attached to the floor of vehicle with one smooth motion. It does not require anything like an EZ Lock bolt which lowers ground clearance.

I think it can be a model to build wheelchair securement completely operated by the seated wheelchair user. It would also be much easier for driver/carers to operate correctly.

Accommodating existing chairs would require a vehicle system that
A) can be tailored to a chair's front caster separation and height. Front drive wheels are also accommodated by this system.
B) has a configurable distance between front casters and rear clamp.
C) has a hard point on the chair which can be interfaced with the rear clamping hook.

Future chairs could be built to a standard front caster separation and height, and rear hard point, which matches existing stretcher systems.
That would allow any vehicle configured to transport stretchers(ambulances) to also transport wheelchairs with a portable ramp. It would also potentially allow rear ramp WAVs to transport people in stretchers provided the vehicle is long enough, or the stretcher is short enough.

I think intercompatible transport systems would be better for everyone involved, especially the person in an emergency trying to find appropriate transport.

My van has a Stryker branded stretcher securement system. I don't have a Stryker stretcher, but will be looking for a used one to experiment with. I don't know how much variation there is between other brands of stretcher.

Re: used ricon clearway lift instead of ramp.
That would not permit my new side hustle. Transporting motorcycles for hire in my van.

[slomobile]

Any idea what this system is?
https://youtu.be/wJPlBoAK96A?t=2270
Starting at 37:50