7 Steps to Purchase a Wheelchair Van
Not sure where to start?
Don't stress. You just found Michigan's mobility experts.
Looking to purchase a wheelchair accessible van or outfit your vehicle with adaptive equipment but not sure where to start? You’ve come to the right place! When you work with an experienced mobility consultant at The Creative Mobility Group, we will guide you through the entire process to ensure that you receive the best mobility solution to fit your needs, budget, and lifestyle.
While The Creative Mobility Group is proud to offer Michigan’s largest selection of mobility products and wheelchair accessible vehicles, we also understand that all these options can get overwhelming. But that’s where we can help. We’ve been assisting members of our community with disabilities for over 40 years. Relying on our experience and expertise, we’ve broken down the process of purchasing an accessible van or outfitting a vehicle with adaptive equipment into 7 simple steps. We hope you’ll take the first step today by connecting with us. We’d love to meet you!
The road to independence starts here.
And we'll help you navigate it.
As a pioneer in the mobility industry, The Creative Mobility Group is proud to say that we have helped pave this road. It’s our honor to direct you onto it, guide you down it, and see you thrive on it. These are the 7 steps to purchase a wheelchair accessible vehicle or outfit a vehicle with adaptive equipment. And we’ll be here to assist you every step of the way.
1. Connect with Us
When you contact The Creative Mobility Group, we will connect you with your very own mobility consultant. Think of your mobility consultant as your personal shopper who will be your go-to person guiding you through the entire process of purchasing a wheelchair accessible van or outfitting your vehicle with adaptive equipment.
To get started, we will schedule a time for you to meet with your mobility consultant one-on-one. A personal appointment is the best way for us to provide the VIP treatment you deserve. For your convenience, we can schedule a phone appointment, virtual appointment, or an appointment at our dealership or even at your home.
Meeting with your mobility consultant is nothing more than an opportunity to ask questions and learn. It is not a high-pressure sales pitch, because that's not who we are. We're simply here to help you. This is a time for you to discover what's possible. From wheelchair accessible vehicles to adaptive driving equipment, your expert mobility consultant will be able to answer all your questions. We'll probably even answer questions you didn't even you know you had! Additionally, we will take this time to learn more about you so we can determine how we'll be able to best meet your needs.
We're ready to provide you with a 5-star experience. But if you still need a little more convincing, hear what our recent customers had to say about working with Michigan's mobility experts at The Creative Mobility Group.
2. Consult Driver Rehabilitation
If you will be driving your vehicle with adaptive driving equipment, your mobility consultant will connect you with a driver rehabilitation provider to determine if specialized training will be required. Driver rehabilitation is a field of occupational therapy that involves helping individuals who have experienced illness or injury that has affected their ability to drive. The goal of driver rehabilitation is to help these individuals regain the skills and confidence necessary to safely operate a vehicle.
To determine if you are a candidate for driving, a driver rehabilitation specialist will provide a comprehensive evaluation. The assessment should include vision, cognition, perception, motor coordination, functional ability, reaction time, and a behind-the-wheel evaluation. After this assessment, the driver rehabilitation specialist will help you identify what special equipment or accomodations are needed to acheive independent, safe driving.
To help you determine what solution best fits your needs, your driver rehabilitation specialist will likely have different variations of demo equipment for you to try. If a particular product is not available for you to demo, The Creative Mobility Group can facilitate a demonstration for you with your driver rehabilitation specialist at one of our showrooms.
3. Find Your Fit
Now that we've been acquainted, it's time to take a deep dive into learning more about your needs. Through our comprehensive needs assessment, your expertly trained mobility consultant will assist you in finding the perfect accessible vehicle modifications to fit your physical requirements, lifestyle needs, and financial budget. Your mobility consultant will utilize our vast depth of experience and wide reach of resources to help you design a mobility solution that fits you today and well into the future.
We'll help you find the vehicle that fits your physical requirements. While online resources like our Wheelchair Van Dimension Guide can help you narrow down your search to identify which vehicle could be the best fit for you, there’s no comparison to seeing and trying out a vehicle in person. That's why we offer vehicle and equipment demonstrations both in our showrooms or at your home. An in-person vehicle demo with your mobility consultant gives you the opportunity to test the entryway height, ramp angle, and interior space firsthand.
We'll help you find the vehicle that fits your lifestyle needs. How many passengers does your vehicle need to accommodate? Do you need a vehicle that is capable of towing? Where will you be parking your vehicle? These are just a few of the many lifestyle factors your mobility consultant will discuss with you to gain a thorough understanding of how you will be using your accessible vehicle. To confirm which wheelchair van type best fits your lifestayle, you may even consider utilizing our Try-Before-You-Buy Program. You can rent different types of wheelchair accessible vans to help make a purchase decision and we'll apply up to 3 days of rental fees toward your purchase.
We'll help you find the vehicle that fits your financial budget. To accommodate a range of budgets, we offer a variety of both pre-owned and new wheelchair accessible vehicles in addition to unique vehicle modifications to assist with your mobility. With several options available, your mobility consultant will be able to help you create a budget-friendly mobility solution.
4. Select Added Protection
Once your mobility consultant has helped you find the perfect wheelchair accessible vehicle, your mobility dreams will finally start to feel like a reality. But before you hit the open road, you'll want to know that you and your new investment will be protected.
The Creative Mobility Group offers a comprehensive line of protection programs designed specifically to provide wheelchair van owners with peace of mind throughout their vehicle ownership. This suite of programs includes extended service contracts, emergency roadside assistance, and prepaid maintenance memberships. Your mobility consultant will assist you in determining which of these protection programs are a good fit for you.
5. Secure Financing & Funding
Your mobility consultant will help you find a wheelchair accessible vehicle that fits you, fits your lifestyle, and last but certainly not least, fits your budget. To fit your budget, we will tailor financing options just for you, make trading in your current vehicle easy, and even assist you with identifying alternative funding programs and grant opportunities.
Financing & Leasing
To ensure that you get the most favorable financing terms, we partner with lenders who understand the value of your wheelchair conversion and mobility equipment. Then we negotiate the best financing deal for you based on your financial history, vehicle chosen, and desired monthly payment.
The Creative Mobility Group has teamed up with wheelchair van finance experts to be able to offer the best financing and leasing programs to make purchasing an accessible van as affordable as possible. With loan options for no money down and extended finance terms up to 10 years, your mobility consultant will help design a finance solution that will fit your budget.
Trade-Ins
To help reduce your out-of-pocket costs, increase your down payment, and lower your monthly payment, you may also consider trading in your current vehicle toward the purchase of a wheelchair accessible van. We accept trade-ins of both wheelchair accessible vehicles and unconverted vehicles.
Funding & Grants
We understand that a wheelchair accessible vehicle can seem financially out of reach for many people; however, there are grants and assistance programs available to help you achieve the freedom and independence of owning a mobility vehicle. From private foundations assisting disabled veterans, to charitable organizations for children with disabilities, to government assistance programs, there may be resources available to help make your mobility a reality. And we've done the research so you don't have to. Because we have been helping members of our Michigan communities purchase wheelchair accessible vehicles for over 40 years, your mobility consultant will be able to help you determine which wheelchair van funding programs you may be eligible for and assist you with the application process.
6. Take Delivery of Your Vehicle
Get ready to smile! We love delivery days at The Creative Mobility Group.
You can take delivery of your vehicle at our dealership or schedule to have your vehicle delivered to your home. Whichever option you choose, we'll make sure you're ready to hit the open road safely and with a full tank of gas! Your mobility consultant will thoroughly explain the proper operation of your equipment, including operation of the manual backup systems.
We will also introduce you to our service department to discuss proper maintenance of your mobility equipment. We'll even schedule your first 6-month preventative maintenance appointment for free!
7. Maintain Your Vehicle
At The Creative Mobility Group, we understand the importance of maintenance and service of your accessible vehicle and its specialized equipment. Our highly trained and certified service technicians are dedicated to providing you with the highest quality service in the vehicle modification industry. All of our locations are QAP (Quality Assurance Program) certified through the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association (NMEDA). This certification means The Creative Mobility Group is held to the highest standards in the accessible vehicle industry.
Many of the emergency repairs that we see can be prevented by routine maintenance to your mobility equipment. Just like regular vehicle maintenance keeps your van running smoothly, performing routine maintenance checks on your mobility equipment helps to prevent problems that could take you off the road. To protect your investment, we recommend that your vehicle is brought in every six months for routine service checks and maintenance. At The Creative Mobility Group we want to make sure that your vehicle is always giving you access to the world.
In addition to maintaining your mobility equipment, our technicians are certified to provide:
- Check engine light diagnostics and repair
- Brake & rotor replacement
- Windshield wiper blades
- Filter replacements
- Fluid services
- Oil changes
- Tune ups