The Button on the Dashboard.

This is the story of the unseen button on the dashboard.

Our van has a side-loading ramp for me and my wheelchair.  When Mrs. F.G. pushes the button to open the rear passenger door, the ramp automatically goes down and the rear suspension lowers, making the angle of the ramp gentler and easier for me to get up.  This function is called kneeling and it is quite remarkable to see.

Last March we started having great difficulty getting me up the ramp, and could not understand why.  We tried several adjustments to my wheelchair over the summer, including getting new tires for the chair, but never noticed that the kneeling function in the van had stopped working.  And let me tell you how frustrating Mrs. F.G. found it!  She often had to push me to get me and my 300 lb. wheelchair started up the ramp.

It was our mechanic, checking things over after installing our snow tires, who pinpointed the problem several weeks ago, but he could not figure out how to fix it.  These special features on the van were provided by a company called Braunability, and we had to go to Barrie to find a technician who could handle the issue.

We duly showed up at the Ford Dealer shop in Barrie, waited a bit since we were early, and then the mechanic came out to report to us.  We were worried that this might be quite a difficult (and expensive) fix so we were braced for his bad news.  But he asked us if we knew there is a button down low on the dashboard that turns this function on and off!  It had been turned off, and simply turning it back on restored the kneeling function!  It has been easy to get me in and out of the van ever since.  We never had such an easy visit to a garage, and they did not charge us.  We did not feel stupid either!

Mind you the button was never pointed out to us, and it sits down at my mid-shin level, far out of sight.  Who knows how that button might have got bumped, giving us 6 months of difficulty.  We certainly did not turn it off ourselves.

I should say that we had very little choice in vehicles that would carry a wheelchair, and I wanted one that would allow me to get up into the front passenger seat position.  But Mrs. F.G. who suddenly took over responsibility for driving, also wanted to be able to see over the dashboard.  That narrowed the choice to one model, a Dodge Caravan, and it has been great except for this curfuffle!

So there you have it, we drove all the way to Barrie to get a button pushed - but all is not lost, Mrs. F.G. had heard about a large plant nursery in Barrie, and it was on our way home - that story next.