[annenich]

Hi,

I've just taken delivery of my new Renault Kangoo car. Its been adapted to a drive from the wheelchair car and I have an accelerating ring on the steering wheel and a push brake lever.

Its been 3 1/2 years since Ive been in a wheelchair and aside from the test driving, its the first time I've driven and Im finding it abit daunting.

Has anybody got any advice or wants to relay their experiences. I have thought about having familiarization lessons with an instructor and Im trying to find about about these too!!

Help!!

Anne

[PsychoSimon]

I drive a mitsubishi colt and although it's just a standard car with a push pull accelerator/brake i had the same issues as you.

All i did was find an industrial estate by my house and practise in the evenings around there. I practised parking and everything and i now eel very confident drivin in real world situations.


Hope that helps a bit?
Simon

[annenich]

Thanks for that Simon, there is an industrial estate quite close so I'll try that!!

Anne

[Lucydog]

Did you go for a MAVIS assesment? If not you should. It costs £50 and takes a whole moprning. You are assessed from top to toe on your driving and then they make reccomendations for you as to what is the most suitable for your needs. I was taken out for a drive in a wide range of cars until we hit onthe ritght style for me. It was great fun and they were lovely people. I cant reccomend it highly enough.

MAVIS

cheers
L

[wheels5894]

Bother, Lucydog, I missed out on fun with MAVIS. Mind you, I don't think there was much happening at MAVIS 24 years ago.

When I was first paralysed I got a couple of driving lessons before I got a car with hand controls and that seemed to be fine. I have always used the push / pull sort though. [For those in the Americas, we have a lever fitted under the steering wheel that one pushed down to brake and pulls up to accelerate.] After a couple of ours of practice, everything was fine.

annenich, I think it is just a matter of practice going slowly at first and getting used to the way things work. Don't forget to try some reversing. I take it this is an automatic so get some practice and enjoy.

Oh, and I am on my 2nd Kangoo (unmodified apart fro hand controls) and I find it great. The door pillar allows some support while I toss the chair lightly onto the read seat.

[icarus_melt76]

Hi. Had to read about your car's hand controls a few times. Sounds like you need

both hands...one for gas.....one for brake. With the gas control on the steering wheel, it's

amazing you can drive at all. Most systems use the pull back for gas and push forward

or down for brakes. One hand controlling both. This leaves you the other hand for the

steering wheel only. Less to think about! I've tried many but settled on SURE GRIP.

When you're not concerned with stopping and starting, the driving part gets real easy.


happy motoring
Al

[hockeydahc]

and don't feel limited to the controls where they put them. I do use the single lever for gas/brake, but I requested it be moved to the opposite side that where they had it. its much more comfortable. adjust to fit you.

[wheels5894]

I did some driving in Canada whiere the hand control qwas push away for brake but move round in the plane of the steering wheel for gas. Add that to them being on the wrong side of the wheel and I got quite confused. one soon learns though.

[Angela250153]

I had an assessment at a mobility centre in Carshalton. They advised me to take a few practise lessons with a BSM instructor who had an adapted car. That helped me a great deal to get confidence driving. When I got my Golf 3 months ago I had it adapted and was able to get straight behind the wheel.

[PsychoSimon]

Angela250153, on Sep 4 2007, 01:36 PM, said:

I had an assessment at a mobility centre in Carshalton. They advised me to take a few practise lessons with a BSM instructor who had an adapted car. That helped me a great deal to get confidence driving. When I got my Golf 3 months ago I had it adapted and was able to get straight behind the wheel.

When I had my colt they offered me a pass plus thing free of charge. Basically for those who don't know pass plus is a scheme for young drivers to take extra lessons on motorway driving and country lanes etc. I'd already been driving three years before my accident so was quite confident on these roads but i thought it might teach me a bit more about the hand controls. I booked up.

First lesson came and the guy turned up in a manual car with no hand controls..... then he promtly said "oh, you can't use pedals?" looking bewildered. he then carried on talking to me like I was completely gone in the head! asking me completely irrelevant questions and talking to me like a child. I only put up for it for so long before i said "look mate my legs don't work but my f*cking head does."

we ended up doing 6 hours driving in silence in my car lol but at least i got my excess down

[Rotarymotion]

Hi Anne,
I too was rather nervous when I first used hand controls. I went to the Regional Mobility Centre in Derby, (I live in the East Midlands) and had an assessment off-road. There was a several week waiting list for this, but when I had decided which type of controls I liked, I asked if I could go out to drive in increasing levels of traffic with one of their instructors. I then found that some of their instructors were freelance, and could fit me in the next day, since I could be available almost anytime.
I found this a tremendous help and confidence boost, because it is different using hand controls at first. Now 20,000 miles later, I don't even think about it anymore.
I assume there must be similar centres nearer to you. The Derby one is now called Derby DrivAbility. They were very helpful.
Good luck and don't worry. Its not harder, just different.

[Texaswheelz]

Find a large parking lot or back road or even an open pasture and just drive around, in circles, figures eights...etc. That is what I did to get used to it. I've used both the push for brake/pull for gas and the push for brake/down for gas controls and actually have one of each right now in seperate vehicles. Was riding with another Para last week and saw a different kind then I had seen before. It had the push for brake handle and then a small nob connected to that side of that where you could push it down for the gas. It would be hard to get used to, but he drove with it quite well.

[annenich]

Thanks for the replies everybody!! . I am getting more used to the controls now.

The car had to go back to the garage because a cable from the wheelchair lock wasnt secured probably. So after that little hiccup I got behind the wheel again and found a little industrial estate that was quite close and have been trying parking, reversing and three point turns (although three is a bit optimistic at this stage)

My main trouble is co-ordinating steering and braking at the same time but I guess that will just come with practice.

I did go for an assement at the Regional Driving Centre in Birmingham and tried the various controls - the push/pull brake and accelerater didnt work for me because I found it easier to have both hands on the wheel so the assessor recommended the accelerating ring on the steering wheel.

These things come to try us, we have all had to get used to much bigger changes in our lives!! Once I get used to it, it will make so much difference to my life being independent and going out whenever I want (well after the carers have come to get me up that is )

Thanks again for the advice - its good to know there are people out there who have gone through the same kind of things

Anne