In early March I finally got my new 2024 Toyota Grand Hilander Hybrid. It has the bells and whistles that I wanted including the black wheels. Most important was the automatic rear hatch opening. I had to wait 2 months to get the hand controls installed.
My current 2005 Toyota Hilander doesn’t have an automatic one, which hinders my ability to put my wheelchair in the back, or so I thought.
In July I finally got my new wheelchair, aluminum with blue frame and low foot rest with detachable motor. Unfortunately it is very heavy, even when I remove the wheels, seat and back. The way the wheelchair folds is extremely awkward and very difficult.
Now the test, getting it into the back of the vehicle. I can only use one arm because I have to hold onto something while I lean against the back. It’s too heavy, I can’t lift it.
Went to Petco, bought a ramp. Nice ramp, folds in half. Now again with one arm , take it out, unfold and set it up, heavy and difficult, all before I even get the wheelchair on it. Not working, too exhausting.
Next, Pete hooked up a pulley system. It worked only if the chair was lined up correctly with the rope and hard to maneuver using my one arm for pulling and lifting.
So here I am, still can’t drive my new car and use my new wheelchair. There are no devices on the market to help lift wheelchair into the vehicle. There are small trailers that attach to the rear to put your wheelchair on but the wheelchair is open to the rain and snow. That’s no good.
Is there an engineer out there who can figure this out? I’ll keep you posted.
By the way, I can’t put it in the way I put my other wheelchair in because of the awkward way it folds up.