Recommend good car for elderly/ handicapped

vpg mv1. Derived from the panther chassis, quite specific in function of transporting the handicapped and/or infirm. 

In reply to Mndsm :

Too big. She won’t want to drive that. 

I throw the Mazda CX-5 into the pot. I actually bought one to transport my Mom around after my wagon was getting two low for her. I found it surprisingly fast and comfy. 

Stefan said:

Dodge Grand Caravan.  /end thread.

The Pacifica is also great, but a bit out of your budget (the Hybrid is nice with the tax credits and the eventual gas savings).

well known and developed chassis and drivetrain.  Upright driving position.  Apple Carplay/Android Auto, backup cameras, stow and go seats, etc.

Came here to say this.  Mom has a 2017 caravan GT an it's loaded down to the big infotainment system and heated seats.  For what you get, they're a deal and the 3.6 is ballsy

+1 for CR-V. My stepfather just stopped driving his '09 this summer (95 years old), but kept it for others to transport him in. It's easy ingress/egress and has lots of room for a folding wheelchair and other stuff. Great reliability and low maintenance.

Hey, something I just thought of; Toyota Venza.  I know they're bland looking and really just a tall Camry... but this situation screams "tall Camry", right?  RIGHT?  So I looked on cars.com and there's 50k-ish mile Venza's with leather for $15k-ish.  Seems like they'd be worth considering.

My Dad uses a walker and generally doesn’t get around too well due to heart failure; about a year ago they purchased a 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander. Dad can get into/out of it easily, gets good mileage, room for the walker and all his LVAD  stuff. 

What about something like a Transit Connect ? Should meet the butt height need and plenty of room in the hatch for the wheelchair. Second row ingress/egress I have no idea about.

Recon1342 said:

My Dad uses a walker and generally doesn’t get around too well due to heart failure; about a year ago they purchased a 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander. Dad can get into/out of it easily, gets good mileage, room for the walker and all his LVAD  stuff. 

Goofy, but wild question- does the Outlander provide special plugs for his LVAD or does his pack have a standard 12 volt cigarette plug?

GIRTHQUAKE said:

Recon1342 said:

My Dad uses a walker and generally doesn’t get around too well due to heart failure; about a year ago they purchased a 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander. Dad can get into/out of it easily, gets good mileage, room for the walker and all his LVAD  stuff. 

Goofy, but wild question- does the Outlander provide special plugs for his LVAD or does his pack have a standard 12 volt cigarette plug?

He’s got a charger at home and carries a spare battery/driveline everywhere he goes. He’s got a total of four batteries. No need for a plug in.

Looks like the answer is Chrysler Pacifica.  The newer minivan version, not the older SUV version. 

Found a super clean 2018 Limited. Fully loaded with all the bells and whistles for $24K. My wife fell in love with it. 

Its amazing how easy loading and unloading is with a low floor and electric stow-and-go. 

Thanks guys!

My parents have been slowing down for going on six years. 86 and 84.  Mom has not driven in those six years.  Getting into the cars has been the driving force in what they are getting around in.

My father is as frugal as they come but he has taken to leasing, for 36 months.  Two Audi A4's and now a Mini Clubman.  My Dad takes full advantage of the technology and has not backed into anything.  His F-150 became mine after the second tail gate replacement.  Both of my parents find getting into and out of the Mini very natural.  Dad is 5'10" and Mom is 5'4".  The four door nature allows them to take their friend's and the back end has room for the walkers.

He has advised the family that this will be his last car.  I will believe it in 18 months when the lease is up.  He had both knee's replaced earlier this year and is getting his second wind.  Old fighter pilots are hard to keep grounded.

David

You need a low floor, a seat about as high as the wheelchair seat, a high ceiling, and a loooong space in front of the seat to the front edge of the door opening to swing the legs in. You also need a door that can open almost straight out so you can be in front of the chair to help the transfer in. Im betting cute utes, crossovers, or big american sedans are the best fit.

In reply to SVreX :

Congratulations!! 

Patrick said:

Stefan said:

Dodge Grand Caravan.  /end thread.

The Pacifica is also great, but a bit out of your budget (the Hybrid is nice with the tax credits and the eventual gas savings).

well known and developed chassis and drivetrain.  Upright driving position.  Apple Carplay/Android Auto, backup cameras, stow and go seats, etc.

Came here to say this.  Mom has a 2017 caravan GT an it's loaded down to the big infotainment system and heated seats.  For what you get, they're a deal and the 3.6 is ballsy

Yep, you’re right. 

And yes, the 3.6 is ballsy. 

Sienna for the win!! 

While many people are still against (nearly) self-driving cars, consider this very case here. I think it's fair to say that self-driving cars could be a real value to older drivers who are marginally safe on the road, and that situation with the cars' smarts is only going to improve. To stay relevant to this thread, I guess I'm suggesting a Model 3.

In reply to kb58 :

Yes and no...

Autonomous cars have some wonderful theoretical opportunities for elderly and handicapped.

In practice, the moment that elderly people stop driving is also the moment when they start needed increased assistance- entering, transfers, guidance in and out of their destinations...  These are all things a car will not be able to help with. 

Its also a fearful time. Elderly consumers who are concerned about a fall, getting lost, etc are not the right people to try out new technologies on, especially when the newsfeeds are showing semi-autonomous cars crashing into police cruisers. 

SVreX said:

Patrick said:

Stefan said:

Dodge Grand Caravan.  /end thread.

The Pacifica is also great, but a bit out of your budget (the Hybrid is nice with the tax credits and the eventual gas savings).

well known and developed chassis and drivetrain.  Upright driving position.  Apple Carplay/Android Auto, backup cameras, stow and go seats, etc.

Came here to say this.  Mom has a 2017 caravan GT an it's loaded down to the big infotainment system and heated seats.  For what you get, they're a deal and the 3.6 is ballsy

Yep, you’re right. 

And yes, the 3.6 is ballsy. 

I don't know if the GC got all of the gizmos, but the auto-park and lane sensing tech in the Pacifica is pretty damned handy at times.  If the GC has them, they can be worth it for the folks less confident in their driving.

Just having sensors that beep and cameras that provide a surround view when you're parking has come in handy more than once.  The ability to parallel park for you is a nice bonus.

Purchase and decision was made before I could even suggest an Element. 

In reply to captdownshift :

Thank you. It’s a good suggestion. 

SVreX said:

Looks like the answer is Chrysler Pacifica.  The newer minivan version, not the older SUV version. 

Found a super clean 2018 Limited. Fully loaded with all the bells and whistles for $24K. My wife fell in love with it. 

Its amazing how easy loading and unloading is with a low floor and electric stow-and-go. 

Thanks guys!

Two questions-

1) Howzit drive?

2) Have you ‘crossed it yet?

In reply to Recon1342 :

It drives really nice. 

No ‘crossing for this one. 

In reply to SVreX :

Mazdeuce says you should autocross everything you own at least once... although I don’t blame you for leaving this one be...

Nissan Versa Note. Roomy interior, rear doors open very wide, decent size hatch. I have a 2015 and I'm a Lyft driver on the side and have had many elderly passengers and they complimented how easy it was to get in/out of. Get an SV model for backup camera.