Each year, the Chicago Auto Show reveals the latest in new cars and SUVs to a packed crowd of journalists, drivers and auto enthusiasts alike.
While the auto industry as a whole continues to strive toward more connected vehicles, Ford has teamed up with a company to make one of its most popular SUVs wheelchair-accessible.
In partnering with a company called BraunAbility, Ford revealed its new wheelchair-accessible Explorer MXV at the Chicago Auto Show over the weekend, as reported by ABC7Chicago.com.
As part of its unveiling and demonstration, Ford had Jesse Billauer on hand. When Billauer, now 37, was 17 years old, he was preparing to turn professional in surfing when a mammoth wave tossed him onto a sandbar, resulting in him being paralyzed.
Still, he saw to it that he was able to continue to surf.
"When I got to surf after my injury, I just felt like 'Wow, this is still a beautiful sensation,' and like I said, I got that freedom and that independence," Billauer told ABC 7 Chicago.
That same kind of feeling and access is why Ford and BraunAbility teamed up to give paralyzed drivers the wheelchair-accessible Explorer MXV.
"Personally, I'm not a minivan kind of guy," Billauer continued. "I like to roll around in style with a smooth profile. So when I first saw it, I thought 'Yeah. This is talking to me a lot more.' "
Joe Garnett, of BraunAbility, additionally told ABC 7 Chicago: "We had a segment of our customers that were wanting an alternative. Those especially young, more active lifestyle that wanted an alternative to our current offering, and they're asking SUV, SUV."
Like other SUVs on the market, the Explorer MXV's door slides open with the push of a button. Except this custom-made vehicle additionally extends a ramp, which is used to lower or lift the driver in the wheelchair into the SUV.
ABC 7 Chicago reports that BraunAbility was especially called on by Ford to make this happen, considering the Indiana company's history with making vehicles wheelchair-accessible.
It was also fitting that the Explorer MXV was revealed as part of the Chicago Auto Show, considering it's made on the Windy City's South Side.
The customized Explorer is slated to retail at around an estimated $60,000, beginning in the local Chicago area, as Ford revealed to the news outlet.
