How to disable driving capacity of Mercury Sable 1998/99 ? Mom has dementia / Alzheimer's

FJ wrote: Mercury Sable 1998/99

My mom has medium stage Alzheimer's and I think she should
not be driving, but she sometimes drives around the block when
my nurse caregiver is with her. She has no license.

Taking the keys away from her would create a major emotional
problem and I am all that she has in the world. Governmental
agencies I have contacted say that it is a family matter.

I want to (secretly) disable the car from starting. It could not
involve disconnecting the battery, so she could put the windows
up and down and take the pets in or out of the car, but she could
not actually drive it. Could I disconnect it at the starter wire?
__________________________________________________ ___


Tough spot to be in. Sorry I don't have the answer. Thoughts:


If she has the ability to drive around the block, then she has the
ability to see through your disconnection, and the same emotional
problem could arise.

If you are her legal guardian you have assumed some responsibility
for her actions, including liability for property damage or injuries to
others (including the caregiver) if she operates the car.

If you are not her legal guardian, taking taking her car or her keys
could be considered a criminal act. If she is a danger to herself
or others, someone must take her keys, and her car should be sold
to get it out of sight. If this is the case you must act now to
gain legal status before something bad happens.

If a car suddenly takes off at full throttle, jumps the curb and
slams into a dozen children at a lawn party, the driver is most
likely to be an elderly person who thought he/she was stepping
on the brake instead of the gas, and when the car accelerated,
stepped harder on the gas, thinking it was the brake.

Keep contacting more government and private agencies such as
HHS or the Alzheimer's foundation for more ideas.

No matter what you do, she may come to suspect your motives
or to hate you. This is not her - it is the Alzheimers. This is
where tough love comes in.

You may not be tough enough. Not everyone is. Get some help.

Good luck.

Rodan.

FJ wrote:
> 'Looking for some advice from those more knowledgeable about cars than
> I. I would like to disable the start up capacity of a Mercury Sable
> 1998/99 without the obvious move of disconnecting the battery.
> Mom has dementia / Alzheimer's that is in a medium stage and I
> consider that she should not be driving. Additionally her driving
> license is expired and I had thought that that would have been enough.

If her license is expired then how can she be (legally) insured? Or,
mom, without a licence you're driving without insurance ... and that's
just not smart. If what you say about the dementia is true, then
someone should have power(s) of attorney to protect your mom and her
assets. It's tough, I know, my mom suffered from dementia ... but
someone has to take responsibility. I suggest don't start playing
tricks on her, like disabling the starter.

FJ wrote:
> 'Looking for some advice from those more knowledgeable about cars than
> I. I would like to disable the start up capacity of a Mercury Sable
> 1998/99 without the obvious move of disconnecting the battery.
> Mom has dementia / Alzheimer's that is in a medium stage and I
> consider that she should not be driving. Additionally her driving
> license is expired and I had thought that that would have been enough.
> There is no governmental agency who will step in. All that I have
> contacted, including the police, say that it is a family matter. But
> she sometimes goes down the block or around the block when my nurse /
> caregiver is with her and it is not something for the caregiver to
> address.

You could pull the fuel pump relay. There should be a black plastic
box, roughly the same shape as a shoe box, but scaled down with a lid
that fits over the top with snaps on either side. Remove the lid and
there will be plastic cubes in the bottom half and a diagram on the
lid. Use the diagram to figure out which of the cubes is the switcher
for the fuel pump, remove it and take it with you.

If you can find the right relay this will give you a very nice solution
to the problem. All the accessories will still work as you wanted
because the battery will still be connected. The car won't start
because that relay is a switch that the computer uses to turn on the
fuel pump: no gas, no go. Reinstalling the relay to make the car
operational is also not too difficult because usually they are made to
only fit into the car in the correct direction; you can't put it in
backwards.

If you can't seem to find the right one or are unsure after poking
around for a while, stop by an auto parts store during a slow time and
one of there employees will usually be willing to walk out and to the
lot and point out which one it is.

Matthew