Wednesday, November 16, 2022

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.


17 comments:

  1. And the price was right for the fix! Glad it was so simple!

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  2. I took my truck in last spring because I thought the transmission was going out. It is a used Tundra and I have had no training in shifting the automatic into all the different possibilities. I dropped the truck off and within a half hour I got a call to come pick it up. I was instructed in how not to get into any of the hauling gears for pulling heavy loads as the transmission works differently. I couldn't speed up to run down the street. The mechanic was a very nice man and I am good at laughing at my mistakes.

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  3. Aha, the plant nursery, a good surprise for the trip. I read, ages ago, about an elderly lady who took her car to the garage, saying it used too much petrol and was not running smoothly. The mechanic asked her to sit in the driver's seat and show him how she started the car. Turned the key on, this was an older model than we have these days, she pulled out the choke button and put her handbag on it !!!And I think this was true. Snow tyres, I am reading of so many blog friends having theirs fitted.

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  4. such an easy fix, and how kind of them not to charge you!! too bad that you had to struggle for so long!! i am looking forward to seeing the plant nursery...and your purchases!!

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    1. I had a similar issue with the tire indicator. I thought it told me the air pressure was low , but it turned out it was too high???

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  5. I'm glad it was an easy fix, and the garage didn't charge you for the advice. Looking forward to hearing about the nursery. It's snowing and cold here so anything that makes me think of spring is appreciated. :)

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  6. My new to me car has a tire indicator light that went on several months ago. My friend said that her's turns on when the weather gets cold. So I haven't taken it very seriously. May have the tire pressure checked when I have my first oil change. And I'm so relieved to hear you found out about the button which had caused all that trouble.

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  7. The silly little things that get overlooked and can create significant problems. Glad it was an easy fix, it just makes you wonder how many similar things there are in life -- oh the stories I could tell!

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  8. I am so glad to find out it was an easy and inexpensive fix. That is, unless you bought out the entire nursery! :-)

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  9. So pleased it was an easy fix.

    Looking forward to reading more about Barrie plant nursery.

    All the best Jan

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  10. I love the story! Sometimes it's great to have your buttons pushed!!

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  11. A day out, an inexpensive, quick fix, a shopping trip for Mrs. FG, sounds like a good day.

    Deb

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  12. Technology is wonderful and so complicated these days. Glad you found the solution and that it was simple and cheap. Good fun in your future car trips.

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  13. Oh, if only all of our mechanical dilemmas were so easy to fix. And, I can well imagine that wonderful feeling of relief you both felt when the mechanic showed you that on and off button.

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