So after my 2nd heart attack last January, I got really tired of being stuck in the house and only able to go to stores that had their own electric carts.
Too many stores either had no carts at all (chiefly malls) or carts that were unavailable, inoperative, or left unplugged with no charge (grocery stores).
I had essentially been housebound since 2018 when I had the first heart attack. 2019 was one complication after another.
When I got medically cleared to go back to the office, we shut down for Covid… aaand here we are.
This chair really gave me my life back. It’s $2,200 on Amazon and that’s counting paying a little extra for the extended range (20 AH, 17 mile) battery. The chair with the standard 12 AH 13 mile battery is $2,000 and rated for airline/cruise ship travel.
Both batteries are AC 100 – 240 Volt, 50 Hertz, at 1.5 – 5 amperes and charge through a standard 3 prong XLR port. It comes with a standard 24V 2A charger in the box. A 24V 3A charger is available separately.
Maximum speed, 4 miles per hour, maximum incline 6°. Auto brakes at 9° downhill. The control stick is true analog, a slight touch barely moves the chair, fully pushing the stick is full power.
Max power can be set with up and down buttons. 0.8mph, 1.6mph, 2.4mph, 3.2mph, or 4mph
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CD6BFM95
Rated to carry 350 lb. which is far better than most electric wheelchairs. It has a feature where it folds and unfolds itself automatically:
https://youtube.com/shorts/q3185mokjZ8
The control stick has a fold and unfold button, hold it until it beeps, then press the horn button and the chair will completely fold or unfold on it’s own.
Once folded, it’s basically the size of a large suitcase, weighs 67 pounds with the battery, and can be hauled around in the back of most cars or SUVs.
If I reach a point where I’m incapacitated and can’t drive myself, there are two options:
- It comes with a wireless remote so someone else can drive me.
or:
- Each of the two motors in the back has a release lever, disengaging both motors and turning the chair off allows it to be pushed like any other wheelchair. When engaged, each motor is 250w for a total of 500w.
2 is also a good feature for when I need to go somewhere that has 1 or 2 steps for entry. Put the chair in manual and push up the steps.
After a year, I’ve successfully driven on the usual surfaces, but also gravel and dirt. The only thing it couldn’t handle was soft, wet, grass and DEEP gravel. The wheels get stuck in the mud.
Only damage it has sustained are small scratches to the bottom of the metal kickplate from repeated folding and unfolding on asphalt. Nothing unexpected.
Replacement parts, including both motors and all the wheels, extra batteries, fast charger, etc. are all available from the manufacturers website:
https://comfygomobility.com/products/iq-7000-electric-wheelchair-replacement-parts
I have yet to be in a situation where I’ve completely run out of power. The LED display doesn’t really give you a good idea of how many miles you have left, it’s a gradiated display, so:
🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢 = 55% - 100% power (17 miles)
🟢🟢🟢🟢 = 35% - 55% (9.35 miles)
🟢🟢🟢 = 20% - 34% (5.78 miles)
🟡🟡 = 12% to 19% (3.23 miles)
🔴 < 12% (2.04 miles)
After running all around 2 floors of an indoor/outdoor mall one day and a Costco the next day, I was still at
🟡🟡
3-year frame, 1-year motor, 1-year battery, and 1-year electronic parts warranty.
4 frame colors and 9 seat cushion colors = 36 different combinations. Clearly black and red is the cool one. :)
I see a couple of brewing bottles, what do you brew?
Those are actually for water, doc has me drinking 100 ounces (2,960ml) a day(!)
So I found these 33 ounce glass bottles that keep cold.
Ah OK almost as good.
Thanks for documenting your experience thus far! I’m curious as to whether 4 mph is fast or “just right” for an electric wheelchair? What speed do you most often use?
Because it’s an analog stick, and I can control the speed with how hard I press, I just leave it at 4MPH.
It’s faster than the rate people walk in a store, so I have to be cautious.
I don’t and hopefully never will need a wheelchair, but I just read your entire review. It absolutely warms my heart that you’ve found something that gives you back your mobility and agency like that :) I hope that chair continues being fantastic for you.
Thanks for the review! That self folding thing is kind of wild.
How does the folding activate and are there any safety mechanisms to prevent it from folding with someone in the seat?
There are 2 buttons on the controller to start folding, unfolding. You have to hold one until it beeps, then press the horn button.
If the process is obstructed, it stops automatically.
Nice, that sounds like a pretty good design.
Also bought a headlight for it to get in and out of movie theaters. :) Plugs into the charging port and gives me a USB port too.
Yo, where did you get this? I use a chair with a similar controller and charging port location, so would love one!
You can get them on Amazon, they’re like $20. “Wheelchair headlight”.
Such a cool chair. I work with a few people who have various mobility scooters here in Australia and damn, they are expensive. I really think the biggest cost comes from the lack of competition. If more electric bikes were around with swappable batteries and those packs were interchangeable with mobility scooters the price could come down a lot. I would love to see some off road and camping options too, like with much larger wheels, bigger battery packs, and solar charger connections. Oh, and an inverter too, just to make it even cooler.
That’s pretty much what I found, like any good product category there’s an entry level price up to “Well, how much would you like to pay?” ;)
You can spend 5 to 6 times what I did, but now you’re talking about something that one person can’t manipulate by themselves unless you drive it instead of a car.
