Yeah, it's ugly, but hopefully it will get the job done. It's not like Caprices and Panthers look all that great, and they make horrible cabs. We lost a lot when they stopped making Checkers.
DeDion suspensions are simple and cheap. They work reasonably well. That's why they're used. #standardtaxi
Wheelchair accessible vehicles don't have to be less than pleasing to the eye. Not that I think a PT Cruiser is pleasing to the eye, but there are those that do. #standardtaxi
@skaycog: Well, it's not for me, but I have no problem with it speaking strictly from a design perspective. It stands out as an interesting shape, it has been a sales success, and it has aged (and aged and aged and aged) pretty well. I sold tons of these things back around 2002-2003. #standardtaxi
Okay, now Ford needs to build one based on the Transit Connect and show that "mobility" doesn't have to resemble an 8-year-old Trailblazer. #standardtaxi
Last time I checked, London Taxis were also low load-floor wheelchair accessible vehicles, but they've got so much style they're a national icon, while this looks like someone welded 6 refrigerators together and put wheels on it. #standardtaxi
"It will ride on the same chassis and the low load floor which is roomy in the taxi will be useful in enabling an automatic ramp for wheelchair access in the MV-1."
Well, at least some of those Detroit resources idled by the Carpocalypse are being put to good use, bettering transportation for the handi-capable. There's a guy along my commute each day who apparently lives alone and is wheelchair-bound. He has a ramp to the front door, but aside from that you wouldn't know. His daily driver is an F-150 with a 'topper' on the back. The topper tilts up from the driver's side and he has a boom that he uses to hoist the chair in and out of the bed - not unlike you'd move a 50 gallon drum at a job site.
I guess my point in mentioning all this is that one of the challenges facing folks in that predicament is that their predicament is rare enough not to drive significant economies of scale in the industry. So it's good to see something like this coming along. #standardtaxi
@Racin_G73 - dirt track legend (some day ... maybe): When I was in 7th or 8th grade, I used to regularly see a very bizzarre looking Plymouth Superbird from my school bus window. I didn't know what a Superbird was at the time, so I had assumed that somebody grafted a Corvette nose onto a Roadrunner. But what really made this car stand out was that it had an approximately 3 foot wide camper constructed in the back.
When I got older, I knew someone who looked at the car when it came up for sale, and heard the full story.
An owner, back in the 70's, was wheelchair-bound. He wanted a Superbird, which, back then, were often cheaper than regular Roadruners. He had the back of the car modified, removing a section of the rear bumper, trunk, rear window, and part of the roof, and built this camper-type enclosure. He could open the rear door, extend a ramp, and roll right up to the front of the car to drive it. #standardtaxi
@PowerTryp, Starless wonder.: Good call. Once the trade show aisles become too clogged to navigate with a larger vehicle, this can deploy a fleet of Hoverounds. #standardtaxi
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DeDion suspensions are simple and cheap. They work reasonably well. That's why they're used. #standardtaxi
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Wheelchair accessible vehicles don't have to be less than pleasing to the eye. Not that I think a PT Cruiser is pleasing to the eye, but there are those that do. #standardtaxi
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Then again, there isn't any downside to cutting several of these up during testing/experimentation. #standardtaxi
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"It will ride on the same chassis and the low load floor which is roomy in the taxi will be useful in enabling an automatic ramp for wheelchair access in the MV-1."
What?
And also. #standardtaxi
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I guess my point in mentioning all this is that one of the challenges facing folks in that predicament is that their predicament is rare enough not to drive significant economies of scale in the industry. So it's good to see something like this coming along. #standardtaxi
11/06/09
When I got older, I knew someone who looked at the car when it came up for sale, and heard the full story.
An owner, back in the 70's, was wheelchair-bound. He wanted a Superbird, which, back then, were often cheaper than regular Roadruners. He had the back of the car modified, removing a section of the rear bumper, trunk, rear window, and part of the roof, and built this camper-type enclosure. He could open the rear door, extend a ramp, and roll right up to the front of the car to drive it. #standardtaxi
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