Re: [QUAD-L] Buying a van

[Eric Olson]

There isn't a right or wrong van, only what's right or wrong for you.  I have a rear entry minivan and will NEVER go back to a side entry.  I can park anywhere without worrying about some idiot parking on the striped area.  Unless you park on the street, I see no advantage to a side entry. Possibly a bit more space inside.  I used to have a 3/4 ton full size van.  What a pain in the ass using a lift is compared to just cruising up the short ramp on my minivan.  It was also a hassle getting my long chair turned 90 degrees once I rolled into the van from the lift.  With my full size van, even if no one was parked in the striped area, my lift and chair were too long for me to get in my van just using the striped area.  I had to use part of the next space too. My fiancee hated driving the big full size.  However, if you travel a lot you'll appreciate the extra room in a full size.  This means nothing though if you have needs that require a particular kind of van.  One word of caution though if you want to use an ez-lock with a rear entry minivan.  The rear entry minivans have a slight hump in the floor in the rear.  If you want to use an ez-lock, your chair and the ez-lock must fit on the level area in front of the hump.  The chair will probably fit.  I have an older design Ranger X with the old  style long frame and size 12 feet and my chair fits fine.  I could not use an ez-lock because part of the ez-lock's docking station would have been on the angled part of the hump.  Where the docking station ends up being located is going to depend on the design of the chair, your size, and where the pin would be located on your chair.  The pin is usually placed between the drive wheels, so, a front wheel or mid-wheel drive chair shouldn't be a problem.  If your chair is rear wheel drive, the aforementioned factors come into play.  The rear wheel drive chairs from Invacare and Pride today have much shorter frames.  The rear wheels are located much closer to the driver, and probably won't be a problem.  My old chair has a really long frame.  They don't even make it anymore.  Unfortunately if you have a rear wheel drive chair, the only way to be sure is have an ez-lock installer look at your chair in the van.  Like I said though, chairs designed today have much shorter frames.  Eric Cameron Wallace wrote: Hey people What factors or models of van should be considered when looking for a conversion van? I know I want a lowered floor and an auto chair  lock. I will be a passenger -Cameron