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When we first purchased our Elite II in 2017 I owned a 3/4 ton diesel Dodge truck that was over 20 years old and with more miles on it than I cared to use for towing a new camper with. I purchased a new Toyota Tundra which was I my humble opinion was a mistake. Right away I started installing “band aids” on the truck that were to allow it or tow better. On level open roads there wasn’t an issue but in the hills and mountains I really noticed a deficiency. Anyway, I ended up trading that in on a 3/4 ton Chevy with the Duramax engine. I couldn’t be happier with this truck. Some say it’s a bit overkill, well maybe. Just last week while on our way home from a three and a half month trip I had to make an emergency stop on the highway from about 65 MPH. Overkill? Not really. The truck handled the trailer not the other way around. Just as it should be! We were able to stop quickly and in a straight line. The trailer didn’t even try to fishtail but just stopped straight. This told me that my brake setup for the trailer is right and that the truck has enough brake power to handle the load. Not overkill at all. It’s always about safe handling in emergency situations.

Well, OH - It's borderline in the "Overkill" category - but what the heck will we use those locks for anyway, right? HA!

I'd bet that Matt is presently working his butt off showing the Olivers down in Georgia. Probably will not be back in the office until Tuesday and then will be trying to play "catch-up". Bill

Campendium and Campendium360 provide insight to those near the National Parks. Go to https://www.campendium.com/national-parks and then you can use the "near" filter to find those close to the "real deal." Charlie.

From what I've heard - there is a ton of boondocking in and around that area. You might go on over to YouTube and type in the search box something like Moab boondocking. Good luck! Bill

@MDuncan You've got mail! Is this your area of expertise? We have 18 days until delivery, and while we've already watched the 2020 delivery video, I'd sure like to see the ins and outs of the new AC/heater, fridge, and solar controller ahead of time. Thanks!!

Last November, I, too, looked forward to the opportunity to thoroughly inspect the build quality of our new Elite II. I found several issues while camping over a long weekend at David Crockett State Park. It took two work days, but they were all promptly addressed by the Oliver Service team once we returned the trailer to Hohenwald the following Monday. My report of that experience is detailed here: I am looking forward to your post-delivery report, given your experience and training. I expect I will learn things that enable me to address potential issues while our Elite II is at home with access to all of my tools, rather than out on the road.

Well, Patriot - I totally copied your great idea for the LPG tank crossbar wing nut & Springfield XD slide-lock mod... "Tanks" a lot, brother!

Thanks for the reassuring words. I'm confident that Oliver is trying to bring their standards up when and where they see the need. I'm not as worried as I may have come across but I'm realistic when it comes to quality control. I've worked in industrial manufacturing for over 40 years and know first hand that people have bad days, and some will take short cuts when the bosses aren't looking. People are people. Besides, compared to most RVs on the market the Olivers are better by far in every way. I am a trouble shooter by birth I think, guilty of taking my toys apart when I was a kid just to see how they worked. "Fixed" my first small engine when I was about 12 years old. After replacing a broken connecting rod, valves and bearings, dad's rototiller went on to several more years of summer gardening. I'm actually looking forward to digging into the hidden areas of the Oliver to learn my way around and make an improvement here or there when I see the need. My goal will be to become very familiar with where everything is, and prevent those situations that happen on the road when trouble shooting and repairs are much more difficult. Entering week two of construction on Monday and counting down the days. No worries, just excitement.

I shared your concern, based on those same threads, until I took delivery of our 2022 Elite II, Hull #1291, last November. My inspection of the factory wiring, bus bars and other electrical components visible through the access ports and hatches in our trailer appears to me to be done with greater care, and often with higher quality components, than are shown in John Davies' photos from his 2017 Elite II. This suggests to me that Oliver has raised the production quality of the electrical installations in the interim. It made my feel a bit better about paying so much more in 2022 that Oliver was charging back in 2017! In fact, my impression upon inspection was that the electrical issues noted in John Davies' many posts appear to have been passed on to the "right" people at Oliver, and that they have since implemented needed improvements in component and production quality. Time will tell if our 2022 electrical system is less trouble prone than earlier models. Ollie-Haus, I hope you are pleasantly surprised by the quality of the electrical components and work in your 2023. As you are obviously more knowledgeable about such things than I am, I look forward to reading your observations following delivery!

Do you have the special 1 1/2” thinwalled socket? breaker bar or impact gun? There are cheap stamped tools, but IMHO you should buy a quality one that will make the job easy. Turn off the shore power and trip the water heater circuit breaker! Open the relief valve lever so that the water pressure will vent. If you don’t have the other tools you need, go ahead and buy a socket for the anode rod so you can remove it. Use a water heater flush wand hooked to a garden hose to flush out any gunk before reassembly. Use teflon tape on the anode when reassemble it. The heating element should come with a new gasket, it doesn’t need tape but the surfaces must be spotless. John Davies Spokane WA

People should check with their manufacturer, but tow ratings are usually calculated with the tow vehicle empty except for a driver. Every other pound you add in the tow vehicle gets deducted from the tow rating. For example, a vehicle with a 4000 pound tow rating that contains a driver plus a 150# passenger, a 50# dog, and 100# of gear can tow a trailer with a maximum weight of 3700# without exceeding the specs. This topic is beat to death in every RV forum. Do people exceed their limits? All the time. Are they all dead? Nope. Could it contribute to an accident in certain conditions? Probably. If that accident caused harm to others, could the opposing lawyer use that against them? I think so. Should you do it? That's up to you. After 24 years of towing various trailers we have decided excess tow vehicle capacity gives us a buffer for unexpected situations and a more relaxed travel experience. I'm entitled to my opinion and so are you. If anything happens, either of us might have our opinions validated by a jury, one way or the other. We all have our own level of comfort with risks. But, information is always useful.

You are 100% correct that there is more than plenty of towing information both here and on the thousands of other forums and RV sites all over the internet. That “these people” apparently have not taken the advantage of this plethora of free information speaks volumes. They are either completely oblivious to the terrible danger they are placing on themselves and everyone else that shares the road with them OR they don’t care because everything seems to be “just fine” OR some combination of it all. I didn’t get the impression that any comment was “making fun” of them. If these comments have alienated them, I shudder at the thought of the way they’ll feel with a good lawyer bringing up the same points.

When sizing tow vehicles to trailers, the issue is not just how fast you can pull the trailer up a steep hill. It is overall control, particularly in emergency situations. Undersized tow vehicles have smaller braking systems, which can make the difference between an accident and a near miss. On the road, I steer clear of big trailers which appear to me to be hitched to undersized tow vehicles, for that very reason. Then there is the legal liability issue. This Motor Trend article is instructive: https://www.motortrend.com/features/1703-tow-ratings-and-the-law-discussing-limits-of-trailer-size/

At least it didn't have this problem............🙄

John, I like what you did with this particular upgrade and the other electrical improvements you've shared in previous posts. This is the exact junction box I was referring to in my comment above, that I would have expected Oliver to use as a distribution point for the trailer plug harness to branch to the other areas of the trailer. To say the least, I'm a little disappointed at some of the low quality connections used in the wire harness as is being reveled in these threads. And I'm even a little concerned that these connections are randomly buried throughout the trailer in loomed harnesses that would be very difficult to troubleshoot should there be a bad connection. With the potential for exposure to moisture due to condensation, I would have expected these connections to be made with heat shrink sealed type connectors. I see some improvement projects in my future I'm afraid. At least I know what to expect. I'm already working on a number of electrical upgrades/additions anyway so it will all be part of the project.

FYI, I had 2 polished Worthington LPG tanks on my AS for over 15 years, secured by double-nutting the aluminum wing nut. Never lost one... The cable locked wing nut inside the Oliver Doghouse gives piece of mind, for sure! Most non-Oliver folks probably don't even know what's inside the Doghouse, anyway...

Have any of you experienced objectionable noise with the Xantrex 3000 inverter? When plugged in to shore power, the continuous sound level from the fan is about 60-64 decibels in the cabin when batteries are charging, and about 72 decibels adjacent to the inverter. Once the batteries are charged, the inverter fan comes on about every 15 minutes for a minute or so. It is an unpleasant (IMO) drone/whine, and appears to reverberate between the hulls. Have any of you experienced something similar? Is this normal? Thanks!

Not to worry you will be drinking water out of a fire hose on delivery day! 😅 All kidding aside, it will be a lot of info, and yet a lot of fun. My wife and I throughly enjoyed our delivery day. Oliver made us both feel special and it was very memorable as it should be. The Oliver staff were very good to us. We hit the books, developed our check lists and did a lot of reading in Oliver University while our Oliver was being built. It made a huge difference for us as first time owners. The more you learn the better it gets! Patriot🇺🇸

Yep, I figured that would be the case. I just wanted to post the question while I was thinking of it, based on a post in Ollie-Haus’ thread. I did send Matt an email on Monday, but maybe he’s away all week. The in-person walkaround will be great! But having never owned a trailer with plumbing, heat, or AC, I’m trying to learn (and retain) as much as I can ahead of time. 😁

Seriously, amazing!! ...We're going to look into what you've sent! Thank you! Dave

Thanks John! Beautiful photos!!

An example of the GAIA Topo map layer, zoomed out and then way in at Moab. John Davies Spokane WA

Dave, are you OK with gravel and rough back roads? Do you have rock protection? Do you mind dust? That early in the season, camping is all about elevation. The lower desert attractions are perfect that time of year, but the USFS sites up high and anything up on the Colorado Plateau will most likely still be snowed in. Make sure you have maps that include topgraphic features (elevation contours). You cannot rely on cell phones, you need a stand alone navigator that is better than your lame factory nav system. I use an iPad Mini 6 loaded with several mapping programs. If that sounds agreeable, search the forum, we have discussed this many times. I really love the Moab area, my wife and I have specified in our wills that our ashes be distributed near the White Rim Road (Arches). If you want to drive that road, it requires a back country permit and you may not be able to acquire one, unless your dates are very flexible. You would need a short wheelbase 4wd rental, ATVs are not allowed. Mountain bikes are OK. https://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/whiterimroad.htm White Crack CG milepost 39 is the one to pick!!! White Rim pics from 2013. John Davies Spokane WA

Matt is likely off for the weekend. Hopefully you will hear something back this coming week. Wow! Just think you will have a live and in person walk around of YOUR Ollie in 18 days! Whoo hooo!! Exciting times!

And here I thought it was jut me. 😉 18 Days. Those of you that corrected me when I said the next 90 days would drag on back when I paid the first half were right! I can't believe how quickly it's gone. Speaking of which, it's time to tag Matt Duncan in the YouTube thread.

Update- It's been 6 months now and I've had absolutely no issues with moisture or condensation forming under the mattresses. Left one of my dinette cushions without this underlayment as a test and found moisture under it at least 6 times during that same time. Definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a low cost Hypervent alternative..

Chris, I know you will be all over this mod with along with a list of many others after you take delivery. Speaking of delivery day yours is fast approaching! I know you both have to be excited. That’s awesome! David

Haha! Looks great! And a fine use of the XD cable lock. Tank you! Just passing it forward! 😅 Patriot🇺🇸

Very clean - nicely done!

Agreed We experiment with "stuff," (not as extensive as you, probably. ) But, we started with a very basic trailer. Like you, we report the good and bad.

I think a lot of good points have been made. I don't think content should be removed, maybe split off to a new topic, but not removed. The thread has wandered quite far from the original poster's intent. We have no idea of the specific trailer's weight, nor their equipment . Even the TV is an educated guess. I'd say, we could all lighten up a bit, since we're all working on conjectures.

I agree and it is all good advice. I spent hours and hours on this forum agonizing over whether my tow vehicle could tow the LE II safely. In the end, the many wise and experienced members of this forum convinced me that I could do so while staying within all limits as specified in my owners manual and placard on the door pillar. The wise advice of J.D. actually gave me the confidence to pull the trigger and I am grateful. I have been frowned upon in this forum more than once for my choice of tow vehicle but nobody on the forum has ever accused me of being a terrible danger to my family and everyone else on the road. Should the mystery owners of the subject Kia ever identify themselves, I suspect this is what they might say….. "Our very low mileage KIA (with tow package) is rated to tow 5,500 lbs with the Anderson hitch and 550 lbs tongue weight. It has a cargo capacity of 1,325 lbs. We spent a lot of time on this forum and paid particularly close attention to J.D.'s posts about towing with his Land Cruiser 200. We noted that the wheelbase on the KIA is a few inches longer, and the front and rear track width are the same but the KIA has a lower center of gravity and the distance between the rear axle and the receiver is shorter on the Kia than the Land Cruiser. Our tow package came with auto leveling rear shocks that allow us to always tow flat which increases safety without affecting rear suspension performance the way aftermarket air bags can. We then noted that J. D. successfully travels with a tongue weight under 500 lbs and thought that if we followed all the guidance on the forum, we wouldn't be putting ourselves and others on the road in danger. We are empty nesters with a small 20 lb dog. The combined weight of my wife and I and the dog is 325 lbs, our hitch weight typically 520 lbs (with half full fresh water tank), and the Oliver loaded with provisions is 5300 lbs and we carry less than 200 lbs of cargo in the car. So total actual payload is typically 300 lbs below the limit and gross trailer weight is 200 lbs below limit. Engine performance is definitely marginal on long grades but we have no trouble maintaining over 50 MPH climbing over the Siskyou pass on a hot day. We bought and use a tongue scale and occasionally weigh on commercial Cat scales to make sure we don't get careless or complacent. We have thoroughly enjoyed our Oliver in the brief time we have owned it, and had no idea what a danger we have been to others on the road. Now we are confused. Where did we go wrong?"

I'm going to disagree. I think it led to an important discussion about choosing an appropriate tow vehicle. An overloaded tow vehicle endangers not only its occupants, but everyone else on the road. If a thread like this encourages others to choose wisely, it's good for them and us. If somebody had come into this thread with data that said the pictured vehicle was, in fact, rated appropriately for that trailer, we would have learned something there, too.

But... the salesman said he could tow it just fine!

Oh man....... Now I have to start cruising campgrounds looking for an unhitched LE2.......... Then just back up my Toyota Camry in front of it and take a picture to post! Only joking... Sorry... Couldn't resist. Scotty

We should all think hard about all aspects of each our mods. We really don’t want to annoy, burn, damage, explode or kill anybody. Adding extra access points or ID labels to boxes and wires for future owners is always in my mind, these trailers will be around looooing after all of us are gone to the Happy Trails Above. For example: But you also need to have a *** LOT *** of spare time. No hourly RV tech is going to do this stuff for you. John Davies Spokane WA

Yes, the light has to be removed from the chrome bezel first. This is not easy because there’s nothing to grab hold of to pull it out. You just have to keep at it and tease it out. If someone knows an easy removal method, please share. Once out, clip something to the wires so they don’t disappear back down into the hole. The bezel can now be easily removed.

I've encountered marker light problems with the OOII several times thru the years. I like the way Mossey described their locations, so I'll be using his nomenclature. First it was the front port upper corner. Now, (several years later) it's the bottom front both corners. The first time turned out to actually be a burned out LED. That was surprising. The second instance is going to be tougher but, since it is both sides, I suspect it will be a loose wire. All these lights have their wiring run before the outer upper hull is installed and can make rewiring a challenge.

Are you referring to the round amber dots located on all 8 corners? I say all 8 corners because the dots are both high and low. I understand it is just the curb side, but the round dots do not have a switch. They are powered by the 7 pin connector attached to the tow vehicle. Mossey

I’d check the switch first. Flick it on/off several times. If that doesn’t do it, check to make sure the wires are connected securely to the back of the switch. Mike

My representation of salespeople was the usual SOB brands, not Oliver. OTT is indeed more reputable than many others. One of the first questions I was asked when I contacted OTT for information was, "What is your tow vehicle?" OTOH, I have listened to many SOB salesmen saying, "Of course you can tow this (42' fifth wheel) with your F150!"

After all the discussions I've read on the Forum about appropriate tow vehicles, that was my first thought once I noticed that the Ollie is an LE2. There are quite a few long and steep grades on Interstate 5 between Redding, CA and the Eugene, OR area, with the highest point being at Siskiyou Summit (4310 feet) just south of Ashland. While some of the larger SUVs might have the horsepower to pull the trailer up the grades at a decent speed, I wouldn't feel comfortable on the downhills with a lighter tow vehicle.

Even if a 40# tank would fit inside the "doghouse," could you lift it into place, up and over the housing? Even only 80% full (which is the legal max), it weighs 72 lbs. I am not even comfortable lifting 30# propane tanks into that enclosure. That is why we opted for the standard 20# tanks in our Elite II, but carry two spare 20# propane tanks in the bed of our Tundra tow vehicle. On a related note, weight is also the reason we have two 2200 watt dual fuel Champion generators (with a Paralink kit ) rather than one 3500 watt unit. Our Truma Aventa air conditioner requires at least 3000 watts of capacity to run (since Truma will not allow installation of a Micro Air Easy Start in its units). The 2200 watt units weigh less than 40 lbs. each. The 3500 watt beast weighs 96 lbs. I can lift each 2200 watt unit into and out of the bed of our Tundra without significant risk to my back. Not so with a 96-pounder!