Converting Vans by Vehicle Manufacturer

On this page: Minivans, Full Size Vans

Much of your satisfaction with your wheelchair van purchase will be based on your satisfaction with the van or minivan you chose. Many of us have very strong brand preferences when it comes to cars and we want to use those brands when it comes to buying a wheelchair van or handicap van with a lift. Often, however, we have to make tradeoffs based on the availability or features of the wheelchair van product we need on the van or minivan we would like to have.

Our goal is to help you understand the different vehicles and their conversion options available; in order to best accommodate your handicap accessible needs. See more on converting minivans or full-size vans now available on most of the popular minivans on the market.

Minivans

Over the last 15 years, minivans have replaced full-size vans as the primary choice for family transportation and wheelchair vans. Consumers prefer the smaller size, ease of driving, and better gas mileage that minivans offer. Fortunately, the wheelchair van manufacturers were in lock-step with this trend and there are many different wheelchair van options now available on all of the popular minivans on the market.

As you can see, the Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town and Country have the most availability for wheelchair van conversions. Dodge and Chrysler were the first to bring accessible minivans to the market and have always been more adaptable to wheelchair van conversions than many of the other manufacturers on the market.

However, strong consumer demand for the Toyota Sienna and the Honda Odyssey gave the wheelchair van conversion companies a strong incentive to overcome barriers and create products on these platforms. In addition, Toyota and Honda, recognizing that the “boomer bubble” was creating more demand for mobility conversions, became more proactive in working with the wheelchair van converters on new products.

As you can see from the chart below, this interest has resulted in many options for wheelchair van consumers, allowing them to select their preference of minivan manufacturer, wheelchair van conversion style and wheelchair van conversion company.

Find out more about converting minivans:

• Converting Chrysler Vans
• Converting Dodge Vans
• Converting Honda Vans
• Converting Toyota Vans
• All Conversion Minivans

Full-Size Vans

For large families, people who like to travel, people who prefer four-wheel drive capabilities, people who require greater ground clearance, or people with special equipment that consumes a lot of space, full-size wheelchair vans are the best answer. As gas prices have risen and consumer preferences shifted towards minivans, the full-size van market has fallen in size. However, there are still enough people and circumstances for which a full-size van is the right choice.

Get more information about converting full-sized vans:

• Converting Chevrolet and GMC Vans
• Converting Ford Vans
• All Conversion Full-Size Vans