Metallic red wheelchairs with flamed fenders don’t mix well with drab mommy-mobile minivans.

But Doug Eaton, among others, intends to make them blend-polishing and pumping up minivans to appeal to young disabled consumers looking for something with more sizzle.  More is at stake than matters of taste.

Thousands of young disabled veterans are returning home from wars in the Middle East, and the minivan remains the most practical vehicle to make wheelchair-accessible — a $20,000 process.

“But they just don’t want minivans,” says Eaton, President and chief executive of Vantage Mobility International in Phoenix.  “The problem with a minivan is just that–it’s a minivan.”

VMI, one of the largest producers of wheelchair accessible vehicles, has developed a modified Honda Odyssey with flashy wheels, leather seats and even a carbon-fiber dashboard cover.

“With young veterans coming back, and with our being in Texas, trucks are popular wheelchair-accessible vehicles”, said Laura Klaus, marketing manager of the United Access dealership in Garland, which carries vehicles from VMI, BraunAbility, and Eldorado.  “Minivans are not.”

The limited-edition van, which VMI calls its “25th Anniversary” Odyssey is aimed largely at Gen Y buyers who frequently prefer modified pick-up trucks to minivans-though the trucks are more often difficult to use.

“Our client base is older and they don’t mind minivans,” Eaton said.  “But we’ve also got to deal with this shift to young veterans.  We’re trying to bring a little bling to the table.”

These are  unusual times in the business.  Like the larger auto industry, the growing wheelchair-vehicle business is being shaped by two huge population groups with different interests and needs — young Gen Y-ers and aging baby boomers.

For decades, the practical-minded wheelchair-accessible industry served a largely older
population who appreciated the practicalities of a van. But when Stephen Willoby returned home from Afghanistan four years ago as a quadriplegic, the last thing he wanted was a minivan.

Willoby, who broke his neck in a diving accident while in the Air Force, said he was “already dealing with the loss of identity from the injury.”  ”I joined the Air Force at 19, and I was going from high-performance cars and jets to a minivan,” said Willoby, 28, of Phoenix, owner of Second Chance Enterprises. “On top of everything else, you say, ‘I’ve got to get a minivan?’”

He bought a modified Chevrolet Silverado pickup instead — and has struggled with it since.

“I have not come along physically as quickly as I had thought, so transferring from the lift [on the truck] to the driver’s seat is difficult,” he said.   Willoby, who acknowledges
that the VMI anniversary van enticed him to take a second look at minivans, plans to buy a van but keep his pickup for towing purposes.

May, whose United Access dealerships employ 80 people and generate $30 million in annual revenue, said Gen Y buyers are just one of the issues with minivans. The segment is fading. Over the last decade, its overall annual sales have plummeted from a high of 1.4 million to fewer than 500,000 last year. And the crossover, SUV-like vehicles that are supplanting minivans can’t be easily made wheelchair-accessible. “It’s a big concern,” May said. “Plus, cars are getting smaller and smaller.”

‘Something more’

VMI is building only 25 of its anniversary vans, which typically cost about $75,000. That expense includes the cost of a new Honda Odyssey minivan, its conversion and accessories such as a custom grille, 20-inch Londrina lightweight wheels, Hankook tires and two-tone leather interior.

“Here’s the bottom line: There are lots of people who want to buy something different,” said Charlie Lincoln, owner of Austin Mobility Solutions, the first dealer in Texas to order one of the special VMI vans for its lot. “Why should that be limited to able-bodied people?”

Depending on the severity of a veteran’s injury, federal programs will pay as much as 80 percent of the cost of the vehicle — though many of the appearance options on the VMI van would probably be excluded, Lincoln said.

“Most people in this market are content to say it’s a minivan I’m buying and it is what it is,” Lincoln said. “But a growing number want something more suited to their wants and needs, and it’s good to see VMI working on this.”

Although several companies are developing better wheelchair conversions for pickups, the minivan is likely to remain the business’s primary vehicle for years.

“There are some good alternatives being developed,” said Dave Hubbard, chief executive of
the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association. “But we hope to see the minivan around for a good long time.”