BREAKING down in a clunky van while caring for three men with disabilities is no fun for Tammy Hunkin and Darren Ferguson or their passengers.
Not only does it endanger their lives, it has also stopped the gang from getting to their destination when out-and-about on the weekends.
About $20,000 is needed to replace the faulty car, with about $6500 already raised through a Go Fund Me campaign.
Ms Hunkin said a better-working vehicle would not only mean safer trips away, but also exciting ones further out-of-town to places like Sea World at the Gold Coast.
She said the high-needs care trio, who lived in a Capalaba share house, looked forward to escaping the confines of their home for excursions.
While trips to Redcliffe for a seaside escape sound idyllic, Ms Hunkin said the journey in their current car could be perilous because of engine troubles.
The 28-year-old vehicle once broke down in the middle of an 80km/h road past the Hornibrook Bridge.
But concerns about collisions and traffic pile-ups caused by the vehicle’s engine failures are not the only worry.
The vehicle’s interior can also turn into a heatbox on a summer’s day when its air-conditioning has failed.
One of the men, Nick, is unable to cope with the window’s being wound down.
The men, two of whom are wheelchair bound, must be removed from the unsafe van and placed in the shade when it breaks down.
Ms Hunkin, who has looked after the men for the past four-and-a-half years, said it could be an uncomfortable and hazardous scenario with the car breaking down in the most unlikely of places.
Mr Ferguson said a mechanic had inspected the van and found that repair costs would be more expensive than replacement.
To make a donation towards a replacement vehicle, visit their Go Fund Me site here.
