by slomobile » 20 Mar 2022, 13:51
Biggest issue was opening and closing the hood which is required to fill the DEF(Diesel Exhaust Fluid). It is very fiddley for someone in a wheelchair.
The interior release handle is deep within drivers footwell and requires leaning forward a lot to pull. There are no hood springs so you have to lift the entire weight of the hood. The secondary catch release is in the center of hood where you expect, but the catch that holds the hood up is on the far left side as you face the hood to open it(right side of vehicle). It is not within arms reach from the center. In order to lift the hood high enough for the open catch to engage I had to raise the chairlift all the way to the top where the drive inhibits are engaged. This means holding the entire weight of the hood with one hand while the other operates the slow chair lift. If you drop it, it latches and you need to go back to the interior latch. If you don't have a chair with lift option, you will require a longish stick to push it up. Gook luck.
Lowering the hood requires driving over to the right side of the vehicle and getting close and somewhat high. I'm not sure lowering the hood is possible without at least anterior tilt or a small amount of seat lift. Lift the hood with right hand and hold, release catch with left hand, lower the hood carefully till you cannot control it anymore and drop it to latch. A strong right arm and at least somewhat dexterous left are absolutely required to close the hood. Despite that...
I really liked the Sprinter I looked at today despite 4 completely bare tires, broken windshield, fog light cover, left rear window, dents on 3 sides. The car lot has parts on order. They bought it from a leasing company and did not have info on what company leased it. I saw remnants of a fender sticker "23" probably a fleet vehicle number, and "This vehicle stops at all RR crossings" so certainly a former commercial vehicle. The WC lift had a counter at about 2500. Is that cycles up and down? My Permobil M3 only fit the lift if I swivel the rear casters or lift the footplates or lower them so far that drive inhibit kicks in. It only needs an extra 3/4" but without it, the roll stop wont lift and without that in place the lift wont operate.
The important thing for me was that it is exactly the right size for me to operate by myself and comfortably maneuver around inside, I can spin the wheelchair around inside without hitting anything. I can drop to the floor and crawl around on all sides to attack transport hooks. I can work on the chair from all sides inside the van. I can walk a few steps, so it was important for me to be able to step or crawl from the wc to the drivers seat without exiting the vehicle. This van has that clearance. It will be improved if I can replace the 3 position rear seat with a single position seat for my son. While loading it will also serve as intermediate transfer seat for me. The wc and lift in the back never interfere with side sliding door access and storage. Being 144" rather than the longer ones allows me a bit of extra parking space when using the rear lift in a crowded parking lot. I never need deal with someone parked too close on the side.
The only thing holding this up is finding the money and concerns about availability of service. On the way home I stopped at the local MB dealer/service shop where I counted 22 sprinter vans in the lot awaiting service and only one working mechanic inside. Ambulances, a postal metris van, FedEx, Amazon Prime, 4 Winnebagos, and a few regular cargo and passenger sprinters all neatly stacked and ignored.