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We had no power for6 days here in Nashville. Our camping skills came in handy, but there was ice storm damage everywhere around us. We were trapped when one of our 160 year old Red Oaks fell across our drive. Thankfully, My Nephew brought a crew and we sawed a gap to drive thru. The Ollie took a direct hit right on the Maxx Fan (toast), but thankfully the gel coat was unhurt. I have been moving branches and sticks for a month to the street. Things are slowly getting back to "normal".

The stock suspension is fine. We replaced everything after 9 years and a lot of miles (100K+). There have been some cases of leaf spring failure, but when I had ours replaced they looked fine. I’m just a believer in preventive maintenance (too many years in the Army). There was no reason to replace my axles, except to upgrade from the 3500 lb axles and also get bigger brakes and never lube bearings. Our camping is a combination of nice roads and not so nice roads. Mike

The first time I replaced brakes was just a couple of years ago, I’ve got 110Ksih miles on the trailer now. 24K is way too soon for normal braking. I also agree with the comments on bearings, they should not need replacing, just repacking. Mike

@Olive2Roam Great post and photos! We are big fans of our friends David and Kristine Hess owners of Sea Biscuit. You won’t meet a finer couple who fully support the RV industry with their products. My wife and I have been to their factory where they craft their products. Our front cargo box is has been one of our top mods. We store our chocks, blocks, 30amp cord and all other “possibles” for a quick set up and take down of our campsite. I installed a sheet of XPEL PPF (paint protection film) to the front of the cargo box of XPLOR to keep it protected from the blast zone and road missiles when in tow behind our TV. Your LE1 looks amazing, congrats on your mods! Beauty and the Beast - camped inside Yellowstone NP 🇺🇸

Hopefully I'm posting in the appropriate thread and it has not already been posted here. Just saw this on Bloomberg via MSN: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/ford-recalls-4-4-million-vehicles-on-trailer-controller-flaw/ar-AA1X88AR?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=69a1a8ea953d4482be96a7f27cdc157f&ei=145 Bloomberg (subscription required): https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-26/ford-recalls-4-4-million-pickups-suvs-on-lighting-system-flaw

We re all here to help Jeff, no worries! 👍🏻

Now, the original question makes more sense! Bill

I believe that it was Patriot who first brought Sea Biscuit to the attention of the Forum. They certainly do have quality products and both you and Patriot speak very highly of the owners. Also, glad to hear that the Elite I is working out well for you - your 15,000 miles in the first period of ownership is a bunch. Bill

Of course, there also could have been an issue with the adjustment of the brake shoes and/or with the automatic adjusters. But, most likely (as jd1923 first pointed out) your brake controller is set too high. Any way you slice it (unless you have the bad habit of "riding" your brakes) 24,000 is way too soon under anything near "normal" usage to wear a set of trailer brakes out. Bill

I'm sure that you will receive a bunch of differing views on this subject and your question. As is covered in the many posts related to this subject, there are those members that believe that the stock suspension is underrated and there are those members that believe that at least some of the issues you might read about are due to things wearing out. There are other opinions that Dexter (the main suspension parts supplier to Oliver had a run of "bad" or "defective" or "weak" or .... parts from China that caused at least some of the issues. And, of course, there is the manner in which and individual trailer was used - a bunch of rough off-road activity, hitting curbs, etc. Happy reading! Bill

I just had that happen yesterday.

I am sure the model of truck matters, but my brake controller is set to 3.

Thank you for the kind words. Yes, the Texas was our first Oliver rally. Inks Lake was beautiful and we met a lot of great folks there, had some great barbecue, and learned a ton about our LE I. I agree with your comments about the Sea Biscuit accessories. The white powder coat finish and the diamond plate lid are a great match.

I really should not have said bumper. It is the bar across the top of the bumper where the trailer hitch is attached.

My wife and I are traveling to look at a new 2026 Oliver and reading this thread got me curious. Are the suspension parts being replaced due to wearing out or are the OEII factory suspension underrated? thanks!

Yes, only requires a setting change via the Xantrex’s wall-mounted remote screen. Upgraded our 2020 OLEll with two LFPs, totaling 460 AH, and a dedicated transfer switch to enable running the a/c on battery.

I think closer to 6.0 is typical. The shop must think the bearings were subjected to excessive heat and thus, likely damaged as the brakes wore out prematurely.

Here's additional photos of the spare tire removed on our LE2:

We've got a couple Forum Mods and several others who have miles in the 100K+ range, so they could answer to that. But 24K sounds too soon! Given your brake shoes have worn prematurely, it must be too much gain on the controller, your trailer is likely braking some for your tow vehicle. Hard to say on price, depends what they are truly replacing. You should look into purchasing complete brake plate assemblies. This is likely not the correct part (BTW Dexter support can tell you the correct part #s based on your axle tag), but for example a left/right axle pair is not expensive. If your handy at all, these bolt on. Or buy the parts you need and hire the guy to do the work. And to do it right, see if a local trailer or auto parts shop can turn (machine) the drums. https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Brakes/Dexter/23-26-27.html This is certainly a FALSE statement! The bearings only need to be re-packed. Worn shoes down to metal can damage the drums, not the wheel bearings. Believe me, I've owned many 50-60s classic cars that all had drum brakes on all fours and I've done more brake jobs than I can count, including rebuilding 3 dual-axle trailers! When I hear something suspect, I tend to not trust the shop. Beware and be cool! 😎 Also, we're here to help if you need installation advice. Best wishes, JD

Hello all, hope I'm not duplicating something here but couldn't find it on the forums. I took my trailer in to a shop today to get the wheel bearings repacked and the zerks greased. They discovered that the pads are just about shot and showed me. The wear seemed even on the pads, but they were pretty thin. The trailer has about 24k miles, much of it up and down the mountains in the west. My brake controller is set at 7.5. It this normal for the pads to wear out after 24k miles? The shop also told me that in order to replace the pads they also have to replace the bearings, even though they said the current original bearings look ok. They said they'd have to order the parts so I didn't the work done, but will want to get those pads replaced before another trip. They quoted me $390 per axle for the bearings and pads.

My first thought is thanks for sharing! Even though we have ample carrying capacity, it's still of interest as what you have done here is truly excellent work! I've also heard very good reports re Sea Biscuit. Your white boxes, especially the rear box with the white railing surround, even white supports, look to be a perfect match like it was done at the factory, just gorgeous! 😂 18 months now? We remember meeting a friendly couple with a brand new E1 at the fall 2024 Texas Rally! Would that be you? Please, keep having fun in your cute little Oliver!

Before June 2023 I had no idea what an Oliver was! Found ours 4-sale locally and a few days later I brought it home in time for Chris' birthday. Another four days later, I joined "The Forum!" 😎

You gotta love this forum! Frankly it was a primary reason we bought our LE2.

Barb and I have had our LE I for about 18 months now. We fancy ourselves minimalists, but truth be told, we viewed the LE I as a bit of an experiment knowing that it would be a challenge getting all of our gear in the trailer and the Pathfinder. What helps is that we are both perpetual organizers and efficiency nuts so we welcomed the challenge. The game changer for us has been connecting with the folks at Sea Biscuit. Knowing we needed a little more storage one of the first accessories we added was the rear basket from Sea Biscuit. We weren't quite sure what types of containers we could put in the basket, but we knew it gave us lots of options for adding storage. After looking at the myriad options of storage containers, boxes, etc. that could go in that rear basket, we settled on the rear storage box from Sea Biscuit. The locking rear box is home for our hookups, a large tool bag, our outdoor carpet for under the awning, and several other items that immediately come out when we land at a destination. Our sewer hose for draining the gray tank (we have a composting toilet, so no black tank hose) is still in the bumper and it is surprisingly easy to store and deploy when needed even with the box over top. The expanded storage we gained from the rear basket and box combo was our first game changing moment. It allowed us to move several items out of the Pathfinder permanently. Shortly thereafter we noticed the front box that many of the LE II owners had added. To our disappointment, the box was not compatible with the LE I, but we started a conversation with Dave and Kristine at Sea Biscuit about our options. Fast forward several more months and we are one of the first to acquire a front box unit designed specifically for the LE I. The front box is deeper than the rear box and fits neatly between the front jack post and the bull dog coupler. It sits on a steel platform making it super stable, and when opened leaves plenty of clearance for the jack post. The front box now holds our DC to DC charging cables, wheel chocks, and several other necessities that also formerly rode in the back of the Pathfinder. This was game changing moment number 2. One of the final accessories we added to compliment our storage accessories from Sea Biscuit was the rooftop basket from Rhino Rack. The rack holds our chairs and camp table that were also - yes, you guessed it - in the back of the Pathfinder. (Low and behold, I can now see out of the back window.) Barb and I are huge fans of the little Ollie having put over 15,000 miles on it, visiting 21 states in 2025. Our travel style is such that we rarely spend more than a couple of days in one spot so the flexibility of the smaller LE I, and smaller tow vehicle (17 mpg with the Pathfinder) is the perfect combination for us. For anyone who is considering an LE I, or who has an LE I and is looking for quality accessories to expand your storage, we cannot recommend the folks at Sea Biscuit highly enough. The products are top notch and the Hess's are awesome folks. See you on the road!

Strange, is your bumper not flush to the rear deck? I’ve slid ours off a half dozen timesI The bike rack mounts are removed on ours, but unless they changed something, the bumper is flush and could not be in the way. It should wiggle off after the center nut and washer are removed.