motoring
Sirus Automotive – The New Caddy Conversion
Volkswagen’s new Caddy has recently hit British shores and SIrus Automotive are using it as the base model for three of their conversions. Offering independent driver and wheelchair passenger solutions, Sirus were good enough to bring the wheelchair driven I-Can along to Able towers. They do seem rather proud, and, after spending some hands-on time with it ourselves, we can see why.
First let’s get the tech details out of the way. The model we tested, the I-Can, is based on the 1.6 Turbo Diesel 7 speed DSG Automatic Caddy MPV from Volkswagen. A powerful yet suprisingly economical base vehicle that offers 49.6mpg and low CO2 emissions of 149g/km. Being a Volkswagen you are assured that the build quality is suitably German — so no complaints there.
Able have dealt with Sirus for a number of years so we know they are a quality, skilled company but it’s still surprising to actually see how good one of their conversions is up close.
Adapting a vehicle to accommodate a wheelchair driver is no small engineering feat of course — swathes of interior have to be removed, resculpted and replaced but the Sirus engineers, mechanics and I can only assume, motoring elves, somehow merge this all seamlessly into the base structure. If I hadn’t known differently I would easily have assumed that the car had come direct from the manufacturer to this specification.
To be perfectly honest though, the heart, the pleasure… the point of this vehicle is not the tech specs, or the build quality, or even the price. It is what it offers to the wheelchair driver (or passenger)— true freedom and independence.
The car can be accessed and driven by a wheelchair user without all the transfer hassles, without family, carers or friends having to aid and assist. Just press the button to open the back gate and ramp, roll on in (on your own chair) to a safe and secure driving position and off you go! (more…)
UK Uncut joins fight against welfare reform bill
Tax avoidance group forges alliance with disability campaigners in marked strategic shift to stage day of mass civil disobedience The direct action group UK Uncut has joined disability activists to plan civil disobedience against the welfare reform bill in London this weekend, which they say will bring chaos to the centre of the capital. Saturday’s action, billed as “hugely daring and disruptive” , is a shift for UK Uncut from previous action against alleged corporate tax avoiders, such as occupying stores run by Vodafone and the Arcadia retail group. It is forming alliances with campaigners against specific spending cuts it views as being, in part, the direct consequence of reduced tax receipts
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UK Uncut joins fight against welfare reform bill
Honour for Jim Mansell, who brought learning disability out of the shadows
His decision to take a group of disabled children to the cinema changed lives for the better In 1970, there were 60,000 adults and children with learning disabilities living confined, institutional lives in long-stay hospitals. That autumn, a young student newly arrived at Cardiff University agreed to help take a group of children from the city’s Ely hospital to the cinema on a Saturday morning. From that point on, the hospitals stood no chance
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Honour for Jim Mansell, who brought learning disability out of the shadows
Audi apologies after turning away disabled driver
Audi mistakenly claimed its new sales order system meant it could no longer take sales orders from disabled customers I’m a paraplegic and, when buying a new car, am entitled to have the vehicle VAT exempt because it has to be adapted for me to drive. We live in a rural location with a young family and no public transport, and are totally dependent on a car. I currently have an Audi on a three-year contract with Audi Finance
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Audi apologies after turning away disabled driver
How the Spartacus welfare cuts campaign went viral
Disabled activists use #spartacusreport Twitter storm to help inflict hat-trick of welfare reform defeats on the government in the Lords Something extraordinary happened last week in the volatile micro-blogging world of Twitter: a medium normally obsessed by celebrities, football and sex turned its collective attention instead to disability. A handmade campaign against welfare
Disabled students
As debate continues over welfare reforms, charities are concerned that disabled students will lose out Alaina Sonn is style-savvy and has an eye for colour. Passionate about fashion, she hopes to study for a degree in design and textiles. “I want the chance to learn more,” she says
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Disabled students
