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Wishing everyone a very happy Thanksgiving filled with many blessings, love and gratitude.

Happy Thanksgiving! We are thankful for all of our Oliver friends!! Mike

Happy Thanksgiving, all!

Thank you! We are on the mends, so very grateful.🙏🏼

Happy Thanksgiving. Hope you both are feeling better, @Katjo.

Happy Thanksgiving Oliver family! We enjoyed incredible venison tenderloin last evening with a little char, as we gotta have a light crunch 😋. Today another feast of deep fried Turkey and sides at our friends farm. We said we would bring desert. So my amazing bride baked up a cast iron skillet apple pie and a blueberry crisp! Who needs dinner? 😂

I have received multiple requests to post the inspection checklist I created before we took delivery on our Elite II on November 10, 2022. I have been hesitant to post it publicly, as it was not initially created with public consumption in mind, but only for my private use. My original version contains many personal notes that will not apply to others. I am also concerned that the inspection checklist may create the mis-impression that Oliver makes lots of production mistakes. Please remember that this list was compiled from hundreds of posts on this forum covering more than 5 years, and that only a few posters found multiple issues with their trailers. But, I reflected on the fact that Oliver encourages buyers to conduct careful inspections after delivery, and to bring their trailers back to the Sales and Service Center before leaving Tennessee (like we did) so any issues can be addressed. In the spirit of that commendable policy, I have created an updated and edited version of the document which does not include personal notes, but does include some additional comments in bold font based on what I learned during the delivery process. Thus, a Word version of my edited inspection checklist appears below. It now has fewer items, as I found during our delivery process that some were not relevant to the trailers being manufactured now. Please remember that my thorough inspection after delivery revealed only one production error, of the nearly 100 defects on my original list, in our trailer (a roof leak). It is my impression that Oliver is now paying much better attention to detail than at some times in the past, and that my fears that arose from compiling that long list of defects were mostly unfounded. Please keep in mind that the Oliver team, including Operations Manager Rodney Lomax and Service Manager Jason Essary, did an outstanding job of promptly and effectively responding to the issues we raised when we took delivery. They are great people with outstanding business integrity. It would hurt me deeply if my list were used to cause them grief, after they went the “extra mile” to take such good care of us. SO, PLEASE USE IT RESPECTFULLY AND WISELY. Ralph Pond a/k/a Rivernerd 1010819054_THINGSTOCHECKONOLIVERELITEIIONINITIALINSPECTION.docx

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone !!! Safe travels and we hope to meet many at the rally this year.

Happy Thanksgiving to our Oliver Family!!

Certainly so many things to be thankful for and our Oliver Family is certainly not the least among them. Bill

Amen to that! I pray that all our Oliver Families are able to enjoy this special day of thanks. John and June

Just the two of us this year. The food coma will soon commence! 😵😆

A reminder to all, from the Forum Guidelines: "Welcome to the Oliver Forum, a great place for Oliver Travel Trailer owners and future owners to interact, share knowledge, solve problems, and most importantly, to develop friendships. Respectful and considerate responses help build this community." This forum exists to help current owners and future owners understand all the intricacies of an Oliver travel trailer and to get the most pleasure from it while exploring this wonderful land we all give thanks for. Please keep all comments aligned with this purpose in mind. Thank you, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Wow, just wow!

Wow! Everything looks amazing! What time is dinner?😃

Happy Thanksgiving, Enjoy the Turkey day. May your travels be safe, and your time with family memorable. For those that do have to work on this day - Thank you for your sacrifices.

Thank you for your efforts and words of caution and use Rivernerd.This website is the best I’ve seen in its attempt to share known issues, non-issues, and resolved issues with the members. Very, very helpful for a soon-to-be owner! Regards, Jeff

I have the GM accessory rear-view trailer camera. I'm assuming the Ford would be very similar but I don't know. I ordered it from a Chevy Dealer online to save a few bucks and installed it myself which turned out to be pretty easy. I've copied the link to that post below. Anyway - my favorite feature, by far, is that the "guidelines" that appear on the screen when backing up the trailer move when the steering wheel is turned to "forecast" where the trailer will go in reverse. It's been super helpful when backing into tight camping spots at angles. I doubt any aftermarket cameras can do this but I bet the Ford version can. Also - at first I was dissapointed that the rear camera was not wireless. However, the crystal clarity and zero latency of the view on the screen is due to the hardwire and I appreciate it. It seems GM and Ford make hardly any info available about these trailer cameras and that makes it hard know much before install. My local GM dealer knew almost nothing about them and was no help. I'm really glad I went with the manufacturer system on my Silverado.

well that looks to be exactly what i was thinking of making. probably just gonna go with this rather than messing about trying to design my own in the limited time i have off from work.

For anyone that needs a trailer camera workaround, these folks offer some wiring solutions. Here's an example that applies to the '13-'20 f150 with 8" screen: https://www.camerasource.com/products/commercial-second-cam-option-for-ford-trucks-w-8-factory-display?make_filter=6011&model_filter=6108&year_filter=6284

See the 1st, 3rd and 4th pictures in Rivernerds post above for the supply vent and both the front and backside of the vent that "returns" the air into the area between the shells just aft of the black tank under the forward dinette seat. Bill

I have the Ford accessory trailer camera, but no Oliver yet. The camera comes with a wire harness the runs from the trailer camera to the video plug at the bumper. It will be a direct feed to the dash screen. This is a sample picture provided by Ford for the view on the dash from the Trailer cam: Ford also offers TPMS sensors for the trailer as well that integrate on the dash with the truck TPMS system. They can all be ordered in the same kit.

Happy Thanksgiving Day everyone. So much to be thankful for. And thank you @Katjo for starting the thread. 😉

Great photo!😍

Since the reference is vague, I don't think so. We'll go on, apolitical. I am glad to see a few spots here in Florida, under $3. A week ago, we paid $1.40 or so, a liter. In Chile/patagonia . Happy Thanksgiving. Tree is up, lights on. Ready for decorating tomorrow.

Fuel prices Denver NC today:

OLIVER HULL #1291 DELIVERY, INSPECTION AND WARRANTY SERVICE EXPERIENCE This very long post details our delivery, inspection and initial warranty service experience with our new Legacy Elite II travel trailer picked up on November 10, 2022. I begin with our overall impressions, for those who want just the “bottom line.” OVERALL IMPRESSIONS The Elite II is a quality trailer worth the price paid. We are glad we waited to get the Truma upgrade package including the AC, the CP Plus Varioheat wall control and the Varioheat furnace. Oliver does not lap seal all screw holes on the roof during production, but does lap seal as part of the first year’s annual maintenance. Oliver’s production staff continues to make some mistakes, but Oliver’s Service Department promptly and effectively addresses flaws for which service tickets are submitted. If you are interested in more detail, including how our delivery process went, the specific issues with our Hull #1291, and how they were resolved, keep reading. DELIVERY Ryan from Service did a generally good job with the delivery process. But, he failed to provide instructions for running the AC on battery power, which is one of the reasons we bought the Lithium Pro package. We had to figure out on our own that the AC remote must first be electronically paired with the CP Plus Varioheat wall control, and that the inverter must be switched on, or the AC unit will not be recognized by the CP Plus Varioheat wall control. Once we completed those steps, the AC worked well on inverted battery power. Our trailer has Goodyear Wrangler Workhorse LT tires mounted on 16” wheels. I was advised by Oliver Operations Manager Rodney Lomax that the ST tires on 15” wheels will not be installed on new trailers until March, 2023. I asked Ryan if the tires contained balance beads. He replied that after the balance bead/valve stem issue, Oliver determined to remove balance beads from all tires going forward, and leave them unbalanced. He asserted that trailer tires don’t need to be balanced. Jason Essary and Oliver Operations Manager Rodney Lomax also advised they are satisfied that trailer tires do not need balancing. Note Added After Towing 2000+ Miles Back to Idaho: I do not feel the need to get the trailer tires balanced. The trailer towed smoothly. SPECIFIC OBSERVATIONS ABOUT THE TRAILER Hull #1291 is the third trailer delivered with the new Truma package including Aventa AC, Varioheat furnace and CP-Plus integrated thermostat/control for heat/AC/water heater. We deferred our delivery from September to November 10 so we could get the Truma package in our 2022. #1291 is also the third trailer to get the Victron MPPT solar charge controller, which is standard with the 2023 solar package. I mistakenly presumed that since the Victron BMV-712 Smart Battery Monitor is mounted in the same place that the Zamp monitor was that it, too, reports solar panel charging data. It does not. It reports only the battery charge status. In trailers with both the solar and lithium packages, it is one of four ways to access battery charge data: (1) by reading the Smart Battery Monitor; (2) through the Lithionics app; (3) through the Victron Connect app and (4) by pressing “Batt” on the Seelevel monitor. Those who order wet cell or AGM batteries without a solar package have one way to check battery charge level: the Seelevel monitor. To check on solar charge data, there is only one option: you must access the Victron Connect App and click not on the Smart Battery Monitor icon, but on the Solar Charge Controller icon. You can then see real time solar charge data (if it’s night the charge data will be 0), and historical data for the past 30 days. The Truma AC is quiet. Although it produces 62 dB on high, the low and night settings logged in at 48 dB. It is easy to carry on a normal conversation at those levels. The Varioheat furnace includes much more substantial ducting than what I have seen in photos of Suburban furnace installs. It is not kinked or twisted, as some have reported with previous furnaces. Hull #1291 also includes a return air vent in the bathroom, which allows cold air to be returned to the furnace through the service area in the bottom of the trailer. This results in a much better balanced forced air heat system. Previous posters with the Suburban furnace noted that the “bilge” area under the street side bed where the external faucet is located stayed about 5 degrees above the outside ambient temperature on cold nights in the teens. We found that, with the Varioheat furnace set to heat the cabin to 70 degrees F, the “bilge” area stayed at 38 degrees F with outside temps at 11 degrees F. We did not then worry that the plumbing and tanks below the floor would freeze. The CP Plus Varioheat thermostat requires a learning curve, as it is not yet covered by any Oliver videos. It controls the Varioheat Furnace and the Aventa AC, as well as the Aquago water heater. AC control appears as an option on shore power, but not on battery power until the inverter is turned on. We were shown how to use it on shore power during the delivery process, but we were grateful that Oliver also provides a notebook containing owners manuals for the Truma products, as we had to study the owner’s manual later to really learn how to operate it, including when testing the AC on inverted battery power. The fit and finish inside and outside the trailer is improved over that reported by some on this forum. The interior caulking, such as in the shower, is nicely done. As an example, the plumbing vent hole in the closet is now sealed with a gasket, rather than just caulked (sometimes incompletely) as noted by earlier posts on this forum. INSPECTION AT DAVID CROCKETT STATE PARK From review of posts on this forum, I had compiled a long list of nearly 100 production defects noted by posters over the past several years. I spent most of the next 3 days at David Crockett State Park inspecting the trailer inside and out to determine if any of those defects were present in our trailer. None of those issues, ranging from improperly installed windows, to missing caulk around stabilizer jacks, to improper grounding of the inverter, were found in our trailer, save two: (1) there were no rubber plugs in the drum brake backing plates and (2) there was a roof leak. We found 5 significant issues, for which we submitted service tickets: 1. A leak appeared onto the standard bed area below the Truma Aventa air conditioner. It rained in Hohenwald the night we took delivery, then we found the leak the next day when we arrived at David Crockett State Park. As we had not used the AC, we suspected something on the roof needed to be resealed to prevent rainwater from penetrating the hull when on the road. This issue was on my list. 2. The Truma Aquago Antifreeze unit we purchased from Oliver did not yet communicate with the Truma CP Plus Varioheat wall control unit, so it could not be used. 3. The grey tank sensor gave erratic readings that did not correlate to water usage. 4. The bath fan vent and plumbing vent screws on the roof were not sealed, providing possible leak points; and 5. The one other item that was on my checklist: The drum brake backing pads do not have rubber plugs to protect the adjustment mechanism from road grit. When dumping the black and grey tanks before heading back to Hohenwald, the grey tank cable pull handle came out in my hand, preventing me from dumping the grey tank. When speaking with Mike Sharpe from Oliver Service, I also advised him of this issue that had come up that morning. RETURN VISIT TO HOHENWALD We delivered Hull #1291 to Oliver Service the late morning of Monday November 14, 2022. Later that afternoon, Jason Essary advised that his techs had verified the water leak and believed its origin was around the ventilation fan. They resealed that area, but then also applied sealant to all of the exposed screws on the roof (at no additional charge), because I had expressed concern that they were potential leak points. Operations and Sales manager Rodney Lomax advised that those screws are not sealed during production, but that the Service Department applies lap seal to them if annual maintenance is scheduled. I suggested that, like the screws that secure metal roofing to sheathing, those screws should be either gasketed or otherwise sealed as part of the manufacturing process. We were asked to leave the trailer overnight, so the sealant could cure before leak testing the next day. Because rain was forecast for that night, and because we asked to be able to sleep in the trailer, Operations Manager Rodney Lomax arranged for the trailer to be placed under a large awning/overhang at the Sales and Service facility to keep the roof dry. We noted when we slept in the trailer that night that all of the service ticket items had already been addressed except the water leak and the plugs for the drum brake backing plate. The grey water tank sensor was now reading consistently and the CP Plus wall unit was recognizing and controlling the antifreeze kit. The grey water tank pull handle had been reattached. [My later inspection suggested that the set screw, which secures the aluminum shaft (to which the grey tank drain handle is attached) to the guillotine valve under the street side bed, had come loose. I expect the handle with shaft simply needed to be reinserted and the set screw properly torqued.] We were advised that the brakes come from Dexter without plugs for the access holes, and Oliver does not supply them. So, I determined to cover the access holes with Gorilla tape until I could buy plugs online at home and install them. We yielded the trailer to the service team the next morning, expecting that after a leak test, we could be on our way home. But, we were advised a few hours later that when leak testing, it was discovered that our windows had not been installed according to a new protocol recently implemented by Oliver, so Jason had instructed his techs to pull and properly reinstall all windows, including re-caulking exterior flanges. That took the balance of the day. Jason and some of his staff stayed until after 6:00 p.m. that evening to complete the work and return the trailer to us, so we could camp another night at the Oliver campsite rather than find a motel. The process of addressing our multiple service tickets required us to hang out in Hohenwald for another two days, and delay our plans to return to Idaho. But, we had planned extra time for this purpose knowing that such a delay was possible. In total, we spent 6 days in Tennessee receiving delivery, inspecting and testing systems, and coordinating repairs. We appreciate Oliver lap sealing all of the screw heads and holes in the roof of our trailer, at no charge to us. We believe all Oliver trailers should have all roof screw holes lap sealed as part of the production process. Had that been done to our trailer before we took delivery, it would have saved us a day in Hohenwald. We also appreciate the Oliver service team for promptly addressing our service tickets right after we arrived back at their facility, and, even though it took an extra day, for ensuring that the windows were properly resealed though we had noted no issues with the windows. It is a concern that Oliver’s production staff overlooked the items for which we submitted service tickets during construction, and failed to follow the new protocol for window installation when building our trailer. But, we left (two days later than we had originally hoped) with what we believe is a high quality trailer that is worth the premium we paid for it. And we left with great respect for the integrity and commitment to quality of the Oliver service and management team. HELPFUL THINGS LEARNED FROM FORUM POSTERS I learned many things from posters on this forum which have made using the trailer much easier and safer. These include: Inserting turnbuckles into the chains of the Andersen WD hitch, with the extra chain links required to fit the Elite II. This has made it easier to attach and detach the Andersen by turning the turnbuckles to create slack. It also makes it much easier to get the “whale tail” back on if it was detached at an angle—just loosen the turnbuckle on the long side even more, and the whale tail can be installed at an angle. Then, of course, tighten the turnbuckles to tension the WD hitch. I use Robogrips to complete the tightening process. This is much easier for an old guy than crawling under the trailer to loosen the nut with the Andersen provided socket. Using a Camco water filter and a brass hose elbow when hooking up city water Installing a dash cam Using a PUR water filter pitcher Installing a Tire Minder TPMS system Using a squeegee to wipe down shower walls Installing X-Chocks between the wheels on the two axles. If you posted about these items, THANK YOU!

Frank: Thanks for sharing the graphic. One and a half gallons of RV Condensation for two while cold camping. That is huge. Sure explains the wet beds we at first experienced. To keep beds dry and CINC-HOUSE happy, I had to make a hard decision. Either: I had to shower & do dishes outside, and also sleep under the awning. OR Or open up the trailer. I think CINC-HOUSE was thinking hard about the first option. We found it best to open the Bathroom window. The reason for this choice is to draw cooler air in low and as far from the sleeping area as possible. As suggested above we also crack open the MaxFan just a little. Being high it will exhaust humid warm air quite well. An important benefit of this approach is that the make-up air has a chance to mix and warm up before it reaches our sleeping area. To facilitate this pre-warming benefit, I close the heater vents at the rear of the trailer, and keep the kitchen and bath vents wide open. GJ

I want to thank Rivernerd for the great content and information that he has provided. I am a noobie at RV’g and this will definitely make my upcoming inspection much easier to deal with. So thank you for putting this out there for all of us.

@Patriot I just drooled! That all looks so good!🤤

BuiltRight Presently all BuiltRight dash mount racks are 20% off regular prices. Unfortunately this is too late for me!😭 BuiltRight Racks

You do enough mods and accessory add-ons that you may find this item useful in some situations. It's also available from the above mentioned Video supplier: https://www.camerasource.com/products/universal-intelligent-12volt-power-source

When I took delivery of my Oliver, the very first thing I did was to mount a camera through the spare tire cover just above the license plate light. Over the years I've noticed that at least one person has mounted a camera on the top of the spare tire cover. In both cases the wires were run down the inside of the cover, under the trailer (basically on the curbside ) and up into the "doghouse" area (where the propane tanks are stored). From there it should be easy to get the wires run along with the "pigtail" to the rear of the tow vehicle. Bill p.s. One of the "problems" with this camera location is that when it rains the camera is subject to greater road spray and can become virtually useless. For this reason, I now still have the spare tire cover camera in operation but have mounted a Furrion camera in the "normal" location on the roof. The spare tire camera gives a better perspective when backing into a spot while the Furrion gives a better picture in rain or for generally traveling down the road such that you can see not only the vehicle behind you but even ones further behind that.

SeaDawg, your question got me looking into this as i have a 2018 f150. it appears that its a new feature on the 21 and 22 model years and i cant find anything about it for older models though apparently the super duty's have had it as an option for a number of years. got me thinking it might not be impossible to essentially create your own though. my truck already has the backup camera in the tailgate and im thinking i could maybe buy a oem replacement camera and wire it in with a switch that could be flipped to switch between the tailgate camera and the trailer camera. only issue i can think of initially is it would probably have to have its own plug at the hitch. gonna start researching this to see if its even possible.

I received a request for pictures of the Truma Varioheat installation and ductwork. Now that we are safely home in Idaho, I have had time to take photos. They are attached.

Yes please! I would also like to review your list for our 3/8/23 pick up. Great review of your experience, thank you. Brian

Ralph, thank you for the wonderfully detailed delivery/inspection report. Just curious why they want to switch to 15" wheels, I prefer the 16s for more clearance? Ralph, would you mind sharing your checklist with us please? Thanks, Rich

I would like to once again point out that an Ollie is a recreational vehicle, and it is specifically mentioned in the manual that it is not designed for full time occupancy. And that for winter use in frigid temps the water system must be winterized if the furnace is not used. A few owners certainly do full time them, but to live in them continually as a residence requires extra diligence in keeping all the complicated systems working as designed. Especially in frigid temperatures! I am not sure that anyone relying on the overwhelmed professional RV service industry should try this. I certainly would not attempt it if I could not fix stuff myself! My first suggestion to Margaret is to get the water and gas leak(s) fixed. ASAP. The latter is a huge safety risk, do not use any gas appliance until that is corrected (turn off the main valves!!!). Proper furnace operation combined with adequate air flow should correct the moisture issues caused by excess inside humidity… once that inside leak is stopped! The second suggestion is to move to a warm desert location for the winter. Have you gone door to door asking neighbors for help? RVers are generally a friendly bunch, maybe you can find one who understands and can repair your trailer’s faults. BTW with the furnace operating, warm (ish) air from the basement goes into the spaces between the hulls. That should stop any chance of ice forming in those locations. Space heaters inside the living area do not do that. Good luck. John Davies Spokane WA

Congratulations on the new trailer! And glad you had a safe trip back home. Just to clear up a detail though, the furnace doesn’t push external air into the trailer or pressurize the cabin. The furnace draws in cabin air that travels through the return vent(s) in the cabin, heats it, and sends it back into the cabin through the supply vents. And it’s isolated from the air used for furnace combustion process. Older Olivers like mine only have one very large rectangular return vent below the curbside bed that allows cabin air to circulate back to the fan intake on the furnace. I’ve seen photos from recent owners that show another return vent in the bathroom now on the newest trailers. With all the windows, fans and door closed, there’s actually very little air exchange of fresh outside air coming into the Oliver, only what gets in through the under hull scuppers. That’s why condensation, just from people breathing, can be such a problem in the Oliver. We try to leave the MaxAir fan open a bit or crack open a window to get some fresh air exchange to help reduce the buildup of moisture inside the cabin when camping in colder weather while running the furnace. Someone posted this graphic about typical moisture that will build up in a trailer.

This is very incorrect. As long as you manage the AC loads correctly, you can certainly run off a 20 amp or 15 amp circuit. The 30 amp power is needed for running all the loads at once. When hooked up to a smaller supply, just turn off the hot water heater and fridge circuit breakers (run them on propane). Do not operate the microwave. Do not expect to run the air conditioner while charging lithium batteries. Do the latter early in the morning, until they are topped up, then turn off the charger and run the aircon in the afternoon…. I rarely hook up to shore power, and when I do it is hardly ever 30 amp. You can access the xantrex charge control settings and turn down the output current if needed, this has been discussed in several other threads. John Davies Spokane WA

Waiting for the leaves to change. The dogwoods are changing, a few tulip trees are yellowing, the cicadas are more quiet/less numerous. If we didn't have appointments at home, in Florida, we'd be out exploring. But, it's still four to five weeks til peak, around asheville, usually. Growing up in the Midwest, I love the leaf change, and fall. It can get cool/cold, but we're always snug and warm in our Ollie .

Yep, that's interesting about running full tank of regular when oil is changed. Never ran E85 in our 2016 Tundra and our 2022 Tundra is not flex fuel, it uses regular 87 and has 10,000 mile oil/filter change intervals except for 5,000 miles when towing. Finally achieved my 17MPG goal towing on hills and flat-lands yesterday four lanes and interstate, it's happy at 2200RPM towing Ollie around 61MPH in 7th gear with cruise on the interstate. Just washed Ollie, getting ready to put in storage until next adventure! 🙂

I mounted my Furrion TrailerCam high and tied it into the running lights circuit in the Attic. I often cover 500 miles solo, but after a long day, I really try to avoid trailering at night. As such, I don't generally put many excess miles on the TrailerCam. When backing, or if I want to see what's going on back there, I simply turn on the running lights. Works well for our situation. More germane to this thread though is that I contacted Furrion an Ford to see if there was any way their camera could display on our F-150 center 8" screen. Nope.

As reported in an earlier thread, Goodyear's acquisition of Cooper Tires forced Oliver to substitute Goodyear tires going forward. Although Oliver obviously can get Goodyear Wrangler LT 16" tires now, (that is what is installed on our Elite II delivered November 10), Oliver has decided to go with Goodyear ST tires on 15" wheels starting in March, 2023. They did not offer a reason. For what it's worth, we would have preferred the 15" wheels with ST tires. ST ("Special Trailer") tires are designed for trailer use, and have thicker, stronger sidewalls than LT tires, which are designed for "Light Truck" use. And, with 15" wheels, you have more rubber and less metal, which provides a softer ride.