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My domestic fridge just stopped cooling, no signs of leakage. Everything testing good on the troubleshooting guides. The opinion of the local RV guy was that I had a failed cooling unit. That left me with two options: buy a new unit or replace the cooling unit. After talking to Jason at Oliver and him telling me that to remove the fridge from the trailer you need to remove the door, I thought I would try to replace the cooling unit myself. I found some places that would ship a unit for $500 to $1000 and I do the install. I watched many videos and researched the work. In this research I found several people talking about burping this kind of unit, it entails flipping the unit on its side, top and allowing the ammonia mixture to reposition and displace any air pockets. Since I had to remove the fridge from its housing I thought I would try it...and it worked! We just took a 10 day trip and it worked fine. Some RV techs said it was a wive's tale. Glad I tried it. Hope this might help somebody.

John, Replaced Ollie's battery tray with Oliver's latest tray about 6 months ago, took a few measurements of the old (2015) and new tray. New tray on right: Old 2015 tray: I only use one Battle Born 100AH lithium battery with a 100W solar suitcase with plenty of room for other stuff in the tray:

im going all in on the 2022...hope i can get one before the trailer is finished dec8...!!???

Be sure whoever you choose for the installation understands the issue of retaining thermostat control for the LP furnace. Advanced RV is careful to point out that their retrofit cost does not include additionals for this when replacing a Penguin II. Quotes must include specific consideration for this issue.

Several hours on its side and on its head overnight mostly because I had no idea

Sure.. I had a 2011 Tundra which I put an after market brake controller in, as at the time Tundras didn’t come with them. The 2016 Tundra which I currently drive came with the stock version, I believe it was the first or second year Tundras were equipped with them. The problem with it was it was very inconsistent, sometimes it worked, most times not. It was a common, well documented issue. I was able to get mine fixed a couple of years ago, by a service guy at a Toyota place that owned a Tundra and knew what the issue was. Not sure what he did but It’s worked fine since.

We’ve also stayed at Cedar Creek COE campground. It is only W/E, but has a dump station. It’s open through the end of October. We enjoyed our stay there. It is close to the Opry and an easy drive into down town.

@Mcbcan you share why you are dissatisfied with the Tundra electronic brake controller? I have a 2020 and I am very pleased with the brake controller. I am curious to know what issues you may have had with it. There are a number of features on the 2022 model that I would be happy to have, provided they have been vetted and all work well. However, I just can't get past the new body styling. I just don't care for it. I don't like the huge touch screen either. I do appreciate the comfort and safety features of modern trucks, but I often miss the days of old when trucks were just trucks. I wouldn't want to tow with an old truck, but sometimes I really miss my 69 Chevy short-bed. No frills metal dash, spartan gauges, bench seats, oak plank bed, chains on the tailgate... oh, I can almost smell it (sigh).

Advanced rv in Ohio has been installing the Quiet AC (made by Hiughton) for some time. It's the same or similar Houghton units several of us have installed, from recpro, though the new interior grille/adb is much nicer in ours, than in your photos. Katanapilot was the first. We have all been quite happy, so far . By doing the installs ourselves, we saved a lot. In my case, our 9500 unit was less than $1000, usd. It's gone up a bit. The larger unit is more .

The tray that Oliver uses is the MorRyde SP60-042 Utility Tray, inside dimensions 14" x 21" x 2.75". There's 12.75" clear from the floor of the tray to the bottom of the aluminum catch for the lock. The Battleborn 270Ah batteries are 21.3" x 11.6" x 10", so I don't see how you'd fit even one without removing the tray. Three of their standard 100Ah batteries will fit easily, and four will fit tightly; i.e., it will take some work to wire them up.

Couldn't they have designed a more intimidating grill??

Here is a pic of our battery tray in our 2020 LEll. No issues to date. It appears quite robust and solid.

As I'm guessing that Ken has found out by now - this is not a "hard" job as long as you have the right tools. Zerks (the things that you attach the grease gun hose to) can get plugged making it all but impossible to get any grease flowing. The grease gun can be difficult to attach and remove from those zerks. The entire job can be a bit messy given that you are dealing with grease and crawling around under the Ollie. But, the job doesn't really take that long to do and it creates a good number of points for your "man" card. Bill 👷‍♀️

I have just noticed some suspension creaking noise. My last suspension was at Oliver last September and have certainly traveled over 3000 miles since then so it is time to buy a grease gun and figure out what to do. You Tube to the rescue.

Styling changes don't come readily to Toyota products. I, as most, drive them in spite of their Toyota-signature styling. The more important attraction is the long road ahead with no CELs visible. Rather than concentrating on appearance changes, my hope would be for a payload that is more insync with the tow rating.

i think that a 22 tundra and a 22 ollie would be a good running hardware for the next 10yrs...should make an interesting retirement.?

Thanks for bringing that up, @bhncb. Since the newer olivers have a thermostat controlling both ac and furnace, that's a consideration. Our older unit had a separate analog control for the furnace, and ac controls were on the inside unit of the ac, so our swap was much simpler. @IL_Travelers, I looked up current pricing at advanced rv. The $2500 is the ac unit, alone, installed, starts at $3143. That's a pretty good chunk of change, when the 13.5 low-profile unit is the same Houghton unit, same 2 year warranty. We (three people, my husband and I, and a younger friend who did the rooftop work) completed our removal and install in under two hours, without the lift and scaffold that a shop would likely have. Last time we had anything done at an rv shop, shop time was roughly $150 an hour. That's awhile ago, so probably more now. If it were me, I'd check with local rv shops to see if someone near you would install a Houghton, and offer a complete quote, including rewiring the existing Dometic thermostat, or replacing it with a simpler model for operating just the furnace. The Houghtons come with their own remote, and I don't think any of their models accommodate a thermostat. Many rv shops do ac installs. You might even find a mobile service that would come to your place. Just a thought, since you have a price difference of over $1600 plus, to work with, plus a trip to Ohio.

A thorough review of the development of the 2022 Tundra with Toyota's chief engineer who managed the process.

Geez, no need for an apology.. it’s been a great truck, about 150,000 miles and still going..

You need Starlink, no other system will reliably give you high speed connectivity in the wild. We just finished a four week trip into BC and Yukon, there were often four or more days before we were able to find an LTE connection that would give us even basic email and texts. Free wifi is practically nonexistant, and the few commercial CGs (that were open - MANY were shut down due to Covid) required paying, and the speed was very low anyway, with dropped connections. This may be an extreme example, but as you must be aware, there are VAST areas in the USA with zero cell coverage. My wife needs high speed connectivity, we will be an early adopter if Starlink mobile becomes available. The sooner the better! https://www.rvmobileinternet.com/starlink-update-first-shell-nearing-completion-next-gen-hardware-coming-still-not-mobile-friendly/ John Davies Spokane WA

https://www.recpro.com/rv-air-conditioner-low-profile-13-5k-quiet-ac-with-heat-pump-remote-non-ducted/

Thank you SOOOOOO much for this data. Geronimo John Lives in Hi, Ollie in OK. Somewhat of a PITA for project planning. But it is what it is.

Thank you everyone for these suggestions about Advanced RV! We are currently camping at Wild West Campground & Corral near Amherst, WI. I just now saw your messages and am overjoyed to think we could get this done in Ohio. That would certainly be a doable trip from Illinois. Although I must say that we are sort of getting accustomed to the jet plane loudness, we have not yet faced any long-term use during seriously hot weather. Like many of you, we lean toward trips in the cooler climes. Still, we like to be prepared and think Advanced RV will probably be the path we take. We appreciate everyone and their expertise. This forum is so cool.

Well, sort of, all the smaller wires should connect to the temporary battery positive and negative, with the exception of the two big inverter cables. Those can be taped and secured out of the way with some nylon ties. He can figure stuff out in detail later when he gets the trailer back home. A battery with eye type (drlled) terminal posts will be able to support all the cables, but it might require purchasing a couple of longer bolts. All the extra jumper cables can be stored away in a safe place, AFTER neutralizing any battery acid!!! Here is the 2017 schematic: On MY trailer #218 some ground wires were yellow. I have the optional (at the time) side solar port and that adds to the confusion. John Davies Spokane WA

Oliver is right and wrong about cutting power to the batteries. Yes, there is no ‘easy’ way to do so; but if you or your mechanic are at all comfortable with a screwdriver and 12 volts, you can cut the power by simply removing the charger section from the converter. The instructions on how to do so are in the manual. But I agree that it should be easier. Not to be a thorn in Olivers side on this point, but with Victron equipment, you just turn charging off from the control panel, and as always, a premium trailer should have premium components.

Agree with John. If I was in this situation on the road I would find a Walmart or auto parts store and get a cheap 12V battery. Hook the reds to positive and blacks to negative and continue on my trip - fix once I got home. Mike

You should be concerned, that is the function of a battery master switch, it completely cuts off the batteries in case of catastrophic failure or for service safety. Unfortunately it also kills every 12 volt device inside the hull, there is no way around that. In your shoes I would buy the cheapest single 12 volt battery I could find and install it until you get all this figured out. Good luck. https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/5450-how-to-battery-master-cutoff-switch-under-the-rear-dinette-seat/ John Davies Spokane WA

I found this company but it's too far from WA. Maybe you are closer? https://www.upfittersresource.com/collections/frontpage/products/quiet-air-conditioner-for-mercedes-benz-sprinter

I believe I said breaker 6 would kill all 12v in the trailer. It is powered by shore or any other 120v AC input you connect to the trailer. You can turn the solar charge controller off via the button on the face plate. And also try the breaker under the street side bed by pushing the red button. See the picture attached. Do you have a multimeter, test light or anyway to test voltage? Mossey

We stayed at Two Rivers Campground in Nashville for several nights a few years ago. Well run, friendly folks. We had tickets for the Opry and a couple of other events and it is very close to the Grand Ol Opry and Opryland. We don’t usually stay at commercial parks but this one was pretty good. There was another Oliver owner there at the same time. Mike

Yes it will, hopefully better than their first go around with electric brake controllers… It’ll be fun watching as things unfold, being longtime Tundra owners and fans.. We will be looking for a new TV in 2022 or 23, and it seems like there are some pretty good choices out there for 1/2 ton trucks. It’s the cargo capacity that is going to be a big factor this time around, and 1940 lbs would be great… but I suspect that applies to the 2x4 models, not the 4x4….probably not the crew cab either. I do look forward to giving one a test drive… maybe giving that new fangled back up system a try in a crowded parking lot full of brand spanking new trucks🙂 We will be looking hard at 3/4 ton trucks this time around…

BTW, I see that Battleborn have their standard 100Ah battery on sale for $799 right now, which is the best price I've seen since I bought mine in '17.

I’m sure Steve has three 100aH batteries based on what he told me before I did my installation. I installed two Battle Born 100aH batteries and there is room for one more. I don’t think three of the larger batteries would fit. Mike

If it's made in China, you can count on an Amazon knockoff eventually. Interestingly, these aren't all that much cheaper than the original, but they have the advantage of an aluminum backplate vs the wooden one that Lagun supplies. If I were in the market, I'd probably get one of these just for that reason, and save $30 in the process. https://www.amazon.com/EzeXpreze-Removable-Adjustable-Recreational-Accessories/dp/B096FSKBVG/ref=psdc_10961910011_t3_B094XX6TLF

So, here's an update. Tried the furnace today and realized no air coming from the vent below the sink. A quick investigation found that the duct was not connected to the furnace. The knock-out hole on the rear side of the furnace was knocked out, and that's where the hot air was coming out. No one in the factory connected it. Since I picked it up in mid-July, here are the other problems I've had. No caulking around kitchen sink, allowing water to seep underneath and drip to drawers below. Put duct tape around sink for quick fix. Need to put silicone around it. Screen door misaligned, with big gaps allowing bugs to get in. Jason suggested tweaking it to try to close the gaps. Haven't tried yet. Lettering on light switch panel rubbed off. Mike sent out new panel. Lettering on Dometic stove knobs rubbing off. Waiting for new knobs. Xantrex inverter shutting off and not rebooting due to improper programming from the factory. This resulted in a new Technical Service Bulletin (Aug. 3), and after Jason helped me change the settings, the problem hasn't returned. In another post I shared an article about the horrible (really horrible) quality of SOB RVs and the nightmares those owners are having. In that post I promised not to complain about anything related to my Oliver, and I'm trying. I guess my point here is to remind new buyers to do a super thorough check of the trailer before leaving OTT. I spent two and a half hours at OTT before leaving and thought I did a thorough check but I missed some things. For example I turned on the AC because I wanted to make sure it really could run off the lithium system, but I didn't turn on the furnace. I will say that I'm very happy with the trailer and all the components. The composting toilet is easy peasy. The lithium pro package works great. The Norcold fridge is big and cold. The suspension takes rough roads like a champ. The KTT bed is super comfy. The windows seal tight. Yesterday and today I gave it it's first wash and wax, by hand. What a job. My arms are sore! But, with a little elbow grease I got all the bugs off and with the marine wax got the hull shining.

You guys are nuts - you can't track a Bigfoot with a trailer in tow, no matter how rugged it is. You've got to go for a basecamp / chase vehicle combo. So just concentrate on softroad capability for the trailer, and then kit out your tow vehicle for when you're on the hunt. I'd recommend the Elite I and Mr. Davies' favorite Landcruiser.

You may want to search and read posts by Raspy, who has owned both an Oliver, and a Black Series, and has moved on to yet another another Aussie designed trailer. He's a boulder crawler/serious off roader. And, a winter camper. Off grid and off road are two different, though not mutually exclusive, terms. If I were chasing Bigfoot in the Rockies, (which is not my cup of tea) on goat paths at altitude, I'd probably look for a smaller, more nimble single vehicle, personally. Maybe a popup truck camper, (like xp) , maybe a smaller 4 x 4 and a tent, with a heater and electric fence. The Aussies have it all figured out, except for how to stay warm, much of the time. Folding tents and campers, rugged trailers with amazing suspension systems and hitches, etc. I have no desire to drag my smaller Elite over boulders, though we've done it, a few times, over relatively short distances, with the inept assistance of Google maps in the early days.