Life With ALS.com

+    Diagnosed Aug 2005

+     Bipap March 2007

+     PEG July 2007

+     Trache and Vent July 2008

Still Living, Loving & Laughing

There is a lot of disagreement as to which type of conversion is better - side entry or rear entry.

 

The one thing that most agree on is they like a ramp as opposed to a lift. With a ramp there is a dropped floor which gives much more headroom. These are usually confined to minivans as dropping the floor on a full size van is not possible . In a full size van the roof is usually raised to allow the necessary headroom, but this makes the vehicle too tall to utilize underground parking as in a city.

 

There are also benefits to both side entry and rear entry, each have their advantages.

 

- Side entry allows the wheelchair user to be in the front of the vehicle and even drive it. But this forces passengers to be in the rear of the vehicle. Also, even the handicapped parking spaces are, a lot of times, too narrow to get out of the side entry. This necessitates exiting while blocking the road.

 

- Rear entry has the advantage of parking anywhere, even in a non-handicapped space, and still be able to exit the vehicle safely. It also allows the passengers to sit closer to the front in very comfortable seats. One advantage I am particularly fond of is, with rear entry, there are separate controls for heat and AC. I am always cold so can have the heat turned up without bothering the driver and passengers. It works wonderfully.

 

This is the rear entry Pontiac Montana we used to have.