Elderly - Best car for Access

[Zelandeth]

Sliding doors?  Pug 1007?

Always surprises me how much stick the Fusion seems to get.  We had three of them, and aside from diabolically crap headlights they worked well as a car.  Wasn't exactly the most exciting thing in the world to drive, but we never really had any complaints.  Was like a TARDIS inside.  We helped a friend move house in ours and the amount of stuff we were able to cram in was incredible.

Given the running gear is all shared with the Focus & Fiesta I'd expect parts to be laughably cheap and available anywhere and any known gremlins to be well documented.

[gadgetgricey]

Dad actually had a Fusion a while ago. Somehow he ended up with a plus model, tinted rear windows, DVD player and wireless headphones in the back. Also had this weird storage cubby thing that you could put on the back seat. Never used any of them ? 

He'd had a Saab before and always found the seats in the Fusion a bit hard... He loved the £30 road tax though.

Not sure he would be too happy if I turned up in one to take him to the quacks.

[chaseracer]

6 hours ago, UltraWomble said:

Citroen Berlingo M-space.

This.  Mine was always the go-to car whenever the much-missed monster-in-law needed ferrying about.

If you're anywhere near Lincolnshire, Ruffgeezer's usually got a few decent ones at his place of work.

[Frogchod]

Plus one for Citroen uppy downy suspension.  When my dear old Nan was alive I'd take her on regular trips out. 

Getting her out  of a CX was a doodle, she'd swing her legs out on to a nice low ground and by the time she'd sorted out her hand bag and walking stick I'd have the suspension

Up to full height. Then it was relativly easy for her to get up and out.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

Be careful of full size MPV's such as Sharan and siblings or Eurovans. When I used Ullysees and Galaxys as cabs some years ago there were a lot of elderly people that couldn't get in. .Didnt have a problem with my Tourneo -as thy could climb onto the step .

The obvious* answer is a P38, just drop the suspension to get in and out , better still a fucked P38 with the suspension permantly dropped!

[Minimad5]

Top thread.

Currently in the middle of similar stuff for my old man. Going to try an CLS (as it needs to be Automatic too) 

[louiepj]

This won't help but a friend of the family about 20 years ago was in a similar situation with needing to transport his ailing/ageing parents around and his lotus esprit, lotus elan and mini Cooper were impractical. We concluded that the 5dr golf VR6 was a good compromise so he went off to the vw main dealers and came back with a corrado vr6 and made his brother do all the running around in his car.

[Dead_E23]

My Mum used to find my V70 very easy to get in and out of due to the wide opening doors and the soft seats made journeys easier on her arthritis.

Also, the huge boot was superb for stuff like zimmer frames and all the other accoutrements of old age.

I hope phase 2 V70s are still cheap as chips when I am in my dotage.

[LightBulbFun]

Ohh the volvo thing that reminds me of another suggestion

what about a big American barge of some kind?  (you know something panther bodied etc)

[DoctorRetro]

Suzuki Wagon R/ Vauxhall Agila. Every time. 

Reliable, easy to hop in and out of, easy to drive and park. 

[ProgRocker]

The boxy older shape Merc A Class. My dad has one (A150 Avantguarde auto).

[burraston2006]

4 hours ago, NorfolkNWeigh said:

 

The obvious* answer is a P38, just drop the suspension to get in and out , better still a fucked P38 with the suspension permantly dropped!

Mother is in her 70's and has arthritis. Even with the suspension low she struggles to get in and out. Strangely she seems to be o.k with her Freelander -not recommending any LR product as we all know they are the most 'needy' vehicle you can get!

[Mally]

Another one for C4 Piccasso,  Alhambra is good as well. Renault Scenic was passable.

Don't get Peugeot  3008, bang your head on the door pillar, well my wife did.

 

[Zelandeth]

C4 Picasso is lot of car for the money too, no denying that.  If I was sensible it's the sort of thing I'd buy to haul the dog around.

Except I'm not sensible so bought a 25' long Mercedes camper van because that made sense as a nice practical runaround instead.

[djim]

+1 for Renault Kangoo, lots of room, large doors, big windows/good external visibility, upright seating and storage, oh the storage. 

My olds have just got a Kangoo after looking at many Olds-mobiles and absolutely love it. 

[New POD]

Have you seen the doors on a BMax? 

[chaseracer]

Pffft!  Amateur... ?

And the AS version:

?

[aldo135]

If you are on a budget the old shape Suzuki Ignis (5 door)are a good bet, they are a good height for passengers to get in and out as well as being cheap to buy and reliable 

[vulgalour]

From my own observations of folks with mobility issues over the years, here's some suggestions for you.

Yes: Vauxhall Omega, Citroen Picasso (early version),  Toyota Lucida/Emina/Jellybeanspacewagon/Eggbus, Austin Princess (front seats only, rear seats are a trap), Austin Maestro

Maybe: Peugeot 106, Volvo 740, Citroen Xantia, Ford Escort Mk5/6, Rover 800, Ford Granada, VW Up

No: Lexus LS400, Range Rover P38, Rover 200/400 (R8 type), Honda Prelude (pop-ups version), Ford Sierra, Rover 75, Volkswagen Polo Mk2

[Kringle]

6 hours ago, New POD said:

Have you seen the doors on a BMax? 

B max would be perfect I think, accidents still happen though, my poor nan cut her eyebrow open on the top corner point of the door in a carpark.

 

P.s. I just accidentally clicked on the screen and ended up at the homepage. I pressed back and the forum remembered and restored my writing, giving me a notification that it had done so.

Super impressive, great work folks.

[bub2006]

18 hours ago, chaseracer said:

This.  Mine was always the go-to car whenever the much-missed monster-in-law needed ferrying about.

If you're anywhere near Lincolnshire, Ruffgeezer's usually got a few decent ones at his place of work.

Mine was a decent steer but as I said on my post on this thread it's hard to miss it's van roots unlike mpvs. Mine rattled and droned at certain speeds

[chaseracer]

1 hour ago, bub2006 said:

Mine rattled and droned at certain speeds

ALL speeds, Bub.  All.

?

[mat_the_cat]

My mum, who has quite severe arthritis, finds it easiest to get into our Discovery rather than a normal car. Seat is at the right height so no need to lower into it, and lack of a sill lip means less need to lift legs. So based on that, look at the distance from the seat squab to the lip of the door aperture when considering.

[BeEP]

Relatives of mine were in a similar position last year.  We discussed a number of options, most if not all have been mentioned above.  Then, unencumbered by rational thinking, they went out and returned with a Kia Venga.  I expect the same hoots of derision on here as I made at the time.  But, I have to grudgingly admit, it packs a lot of interior space into a compact(ish) size, is a bit higher than most cars and has particularly good rear leg room.  It has certainly fulfilled their needs.

[Mally]

Have drive a Venga as a courtesy car, I liked it, it's as you say.

[eddyramrod]

Huggy?

 

Seriously though... way back in 1989 my parents had a 1975 Triumph Dolomite, and I had a 1981 Lada estate.  We did a swop and they never looked back, having 4 more Ladas and a Polonez, because the slightly raised (1960s) seating position suited them perfectly.  More recently MrsR has had similar issues.  The Vauxhall Brava pickup we had in Cyprus was at an ideal height for her - note it was a two-wheel-drive model - and the Chevrolet Tacuma we had over here for more than 5 years also suited.  They are available cheap on the bay.

Interestingly, I took my dad out one time in my 1978 Daimler Sovereign and he had surprisingly little difficulty getting in and out of the front.

[Vince70]

My father and mother had trouble getting into his old BMW and my elderly uncle had the same problem and came to the conclusion that the best car for the job was the previous generation W169 A class Mercedes.

My father loves the car and the added bonus is it feels really nicely screwed together and has brilliant visibility and soaks up the potholes quite well. In fact the other month I had to find a similar one for my mothers friend as she liked the car so much.

Normal rules apply get the best you can with your money as apart from servicing I wouldn’t want to work on one as everything is very compact under the bonnet.

My Dads had his for 3/4 years now and in that time it’s had one oil change and a squeaky wheel bearing replaced and is  totally reliable and a grand can get you a nice low mileage car these days if your prepared to shop around  as that’s what we paid for this one the other month.

So this is the 3rd one Ive  helped buy for friends and family but if it’s an auto you want maybe look for something else as I hear the auto box can be trouble so I’ve just stuck to the standard manual cars.

 

 

[gadgetgricey]

Thanks for everyone's responses.

Should have clarified we are talking sub grand second car. Dad loves his golf and hoping health wise he will make a return to previous level.

Also needs to be an auto as wife would need to drive.

Currently Smart, Scenic any Pug 1007 are on the need to check out further list.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

On 1 June 2019 at 6:46 PM, Frogchod said:

Plus one for Citroen uppy downy suspension.  When my dear old Nan was alive I'd take her on regular trips out. 

Getting her out  of a CX was a doodle, she'd swing her legs out on to a nice low ground and by the time she'd sorted out her hand bag and walking stick I'd have the suspension

Up to full height. Then it was relativly easy for her to get up and out.

Always did wonder why Citroën didn't seem to make oleopneumatic suspension widely available when the Motability scheme was set up. The two were made for each other.

[pauldoubleyou]

Ive got a new Citroen C3 for a work runabout, and although the car is nice - when you're driving it the B pillar is against my shoulder. Meaning when i get out, i either have to contort myself or twat my shoulder off the pillar. Really poor design.. and the seats not all the way back - im six foot. I appreciate that an elederly lady / gent may be nose to the steering wheel but the access design is horrendous!