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Trail Ridge Road -RMNP. IMG_9722.mov IMG_9714.mov

All of the cigarette and USB ports that I have seen have a nylon retaining nut which match’s the threaded body of the device. You can remove the drawer and locate an access panel. Remove 4 screws and you should be able to put the retaining nut back in place. Mossey

My wife and I have recently acquired hull #266 and are happy to be one of the few west of the Cascades. We've been lucky enough to try several campers over the years ranging from an RPod, to a Bambi, then a Basecamp, and now the Oliver Elite II. Each worked for us at the time but we learned what worked and what didn't through each trip. This thing is going to be well traveled and well loved!

@Wandering Sagebrush The panel that closes off the back ~3" of the drawer cavity in my Ollie has a black access panel that covers a 6"hole. The attached picture shows the access panel resting upright on the deck above the basement area. It also shows the access hole which I can reach through and touch the back of the 120V receptacle as well as both of the 12v ports. Mossey

Normally after loading for a trip and connecting our LE2 Ollie, our Tundra’s weight normally comes in around 300 pounds or more under gross weight and under both axle maximum weights. Even though our current 2022 Tundra has a lower gross weight than our previous 2016 Tundra, it has a higher load capacity, that I appreciate. We never get close to our current Tundra’s gross weight. Like I say, we never exceed any placarded weights and appreciate Toyota being conservative with their weights. This practice takes care of insurance concerns.

@Patriot: If you depart RMNP to the south - be sure to hit the Grand Lake Lodge Restaurant for either lunch or dinner! You won't be dissapointed. Cheers!

We keep Ollie in a 36'X36' hangar with three sides. It does not have power, occasionally take the solar panels or gen-set to the hangar to charge the battery in the winter. It has an asphalt floor. We have had mud daubers to get into Ollie's window drains stopping them up. Now we put tape on the drains to keep the daubers out.

As requested, it’s the USB PORT.

Yep, agree. Our 1/2 ton 2022 SR5 Crew Cab 3.4L twin turbo non- hybrid Tundra towing our LE2 does a fine job for our needs. The Crew Cab Tundra does a good job when Grandchildren visit, too. On a camping trip last week on the way to the campground decided to weigh the rig. We always weigh with close to a full fuel tank, two souls on board, and empty black/grey/fresh tanks except for full 6 gallon hot water heater. This trip we took our normal camping gear in the pickup bed with golf clubs, gear, and cooler in the back seat area. We played a neat mountain course on this trip, too. CAT scales weights Tundra and Ollie connected last week. TV steer axle 3080 pounds TV Drive axle 3560 pounds Trailer axles 4460 pounds Rig Weight 11,100 pounds Normally tongue weight is around 480 pounds how we normally load, did not disconnect TV this time to see tongue weight on this trip. The ready to camp weight of our LE2 is under 5,000 pounds. 2022 SR5 Crew Cab Tundra Maximum Weights GVW 6990 pounds GAWR Max front axle 4,080 pounds GAWR Max rear axle 3,860 pounds TWR Trailer Max weight 11,400 pounds GCWR Combined TV/Trailer 17,250 lbs Edit added document:

And, some of us don't carry folding picnic tables, nor bikes, awning screens, massive tool kits etc, etc. Some people camp a lot, in home state. Others travel a lot. Either way, what you carry depends on your own judgment. I think it's important to point out what you really should have, if you feel the need to carry a lot of gear. It's also important to recognize that some of us DON'T carry a lot, and don't "need" it, and don't need a huge truck. It all depends on our individual camping styles, and where we go. I've been super happy with my Silverado 1500 for over a decade, and it's my daily driver. But, my mom (88) now has a hard time getting into the cab, even with my smurf bars. I'm considering replacing it with an suv. (My husband's truck is way bigger, and impossible for her.) I'm watching the new , and used, offerings. I love my truck. And I can borrow an suv from my son-in-law, but that's cumbersome. I hate change, but, hey, sometimes it is what it is. Sometimes, we have to look ro the happy medium.

Very well stated, Frank.

There are a lot of opinions on tow vehicles, but a tour of any campground shows that the vast majority of people choose full size pickup trucks, 1/2 ton and up, as their tow vehicle. And that’s because it’s about a lot more than just the rated towing capacity of the vehicle. The payload (cargo) weight rating and tongue weight limits are important too, but as John mentioned above, also cargo volume (space) is a major issue. We tried towing with large body on frame SUVs (a Ford Expedition EL extended length, and a Nissan Armada), and found that while the towing weight capacity and cargo weight rating was adequate, the bigger issue with the SUVs was not having enough space for all the things that go along on extended long camping road trips. Things such as bicycles, outdoor rug, camp chairs, awning screen, folding picnic table, clothes drying rack, portable grill, Andersen jack buckets, leveling blocks, large rubber wheel chocks, X-chocks, portable solar panel, water filtration system, generator & gas can, portable waste tote tank, tools, some spare parts, roadside emergency gear, etc. It’s all stuff we actually do use on trips, some folks can get by with less 🙂. And a lot of the camping gear gets dirty/muddy at the campgrounds, so better to store that stuff in a truck bed than the carpeted/upholstered interior of an expensive plush SUV. We finally ended up with an F-250 which meets our needs.

Maybe check out some of the vehicles in this article, below. Honestly, many of us,want a tow vehicle that does more than just tow. https://www.roadandtrack.com/rankings/g44424091/suvs-best-towing-capacity/

As most everyone knows, the blinds hang on two tabs at the top and snap onto two brackets on the bottom. To take them down, pull out sharply at the bottom and then lift the whole frame off the two top hangers. (Later Edit...some have the same snap in brackets top and bottom, but you still just pull them off, If you don't know which you have, pull the bottom off first to allow you to check) If you’re traveling on a bumpy enough road the bottom will eventually pop loose from the bottom brackets and then it’s only a matter of time before the top will jump off the hangers. The best way I’ve found to prevent this is to take the blinds down, squirt some adhesive caulk on the two surfaces of each bottom bracket and re-install the blind. Once the caulk sets up, they’re unlikely to come loose accidentally. But, they can still be removed as described above albeit a little more difficult at the bottom.

An issue that Oliver must address is what John describes. We’ve had doors open, window frames fall off and TV drop. We don’t do much off-roading, this was on crappy interstates and rough backroads. Mike

Please join us! This morning I counted the number of guests versus the number of members on the Forum. 138 guests versus 7 members! Just think of all the additional information, history, advice, knowledge, interesting stories that exists and could be shared. You can make this Forum so much more valuable than it already is! Joining us is simple, easy and we go to great lengths to not share and protect what little information is needed. Bill

Are they also getting in your A/C? I have to plug all the holes in the A/C shroud. Can't use A/C cover because we are located in a very windy area of eastern Washington state.

Just got back from a trip to Steens Mtn, where I noticed the curb side USB was loose from the side of the nightstand. I am afraid of the possibility of there being a metal nut that might short the wiring and cause a fire. I haven’t looked to see if the two ports are in a front panel that can be unscrewed, but before I start tearing things apart, are there any words of wisdom about how to access the back of the USB port. The Steens were stunning as usual, with the first dusting of snow at the top. From the Alvord Desert side.

And here I thought that you were working on building those quads!😉

I have to ask, how long does it take to fill that Ollie spare tire with the foot pump? 🤔 Mossey

NandN Sounds like it took you long enough to find us. You've found a family and (probably) your "forever" camper. Glad you're here! Bill

2023 F-150 Lariat 6.5 foot bed, 3.5 liter Ecoboost engine, max tow, FX4 (mild offroad 4x4), power tailgate with entry steps, power runningboards.

@SomeDaySoon, I'm sure you can add to the conversation on Canadian campgrounds, among other things. A lot of us truly enjoy the welcome of our northern friends and neighbors, and your beautiful Provincial and territory parks. Welcome from #12. Love your chosen screen name, but I'll probably be listening to that old Judy Collins song (that I loved) in my head for awhile....🤣

I was thinking of vehicle compromise where you could haul some grandkids one weekend and pull your trailer the next. Good points above though. Probably our Tundra with the maxi cab is still our best option. I guess Grandpa could just stealth ride in the back on a sleeping bag with the dog.

Unless you only travel with one other person you are going to find the cargo volume to be extremely lacking. Eventually the aftermarket will come up with a full length cargo floor going across the second row, but it hasn’t got there yet. You could pull out that third row and build your own platform, or commission a custom build…. But what a PITA to have to do it. They need to offer a non- hybrid stripped model (no third row, no hybrid battery poking up out of the deck) for people who actually use the truck for other things than carrying a kid’s soccer team. Then they could add extra fuel capacity there to compensate for the big fuel economy drop. If you plan to tow a lot, you won’t get great mpgs with the hybrid anyway. I like a lot of the truck’s features, and hate a few, but would never buy the hybrid. If you haven’t seen one in person, go to a dealer and take a close look. Compare the cargo area to a 2022 model with the IRS instead of the solid axle. I looked at a TRD Pro (my favorite) and was pretty darned depressed afterwards, and by the $80k sticker.…. John Davies Spokane WA

I have been a regular browser of the forum as a guest for quite some time now. I don't own a travel trailer or any sort of RV. I do, however, dream of travelling with an Oliver trailer and seeing all there is to see in Canada and the USA. My wife wonders why I visit the forum. As I see it, lots of people buy lottery tickets and dream of what they will do if they win. I skip the ticket buying and go straight to the forum to dream about hitting the road with an Ollie in tow! Given the significant number of people visiting the forum as a guest, I might not be the only one who enjoys the forum for this reason. Yesterday I acted on Bill's invitation and I am now a registered user of the forum. I may, from time to time, be able to contribute to the discussions. I am very familiar with national parks in Canada, having lived and worked in them for many years. Perhaps I may be able to provide a bit of trip planning advice to someone considering a trip north of the 49th parallel? Despite my chosen user name, Oliver ownership, for me, is not likely to happen "someday soon".

Wonderful WX here in Almont CO right along side the Gunnison River - phenomenal fly fishing... Currently mid-60's, no wind and wall-to-wall sunshine! Magnus and D got their bike ride in this AM - 3+ miles at 8,100'MSL.

My 2018 F150 SuperCab, 6.5 ft bed, Coyote 5.0L V8 has pulled up over the Rocky Mts several times without having to lose any speed at all. The RPMs may rev high in the 3500-4000 range for a brief time, but that is well under the red line. While towing my 2008 Elite, I always put the drive train in the "Tow-Haul" mode, which locks out the 9th and 10th gears on the 10 speed transmission. "Tow-Haul" mode greatly reduces transmission gear hunting and reduces stress on the transmission. Non towing MPG is around 23 at posted highway speeds and 14.0 while towing at 65MPH. (My truck is short enough to fit inside my garage)

We camped at New River State Park NC this week. Very nice campground and great area to visit: View from Mount Jefferson:

Snapaction mini circuit breaker, at2, 15 amp, type 2. Remote reset. Technically, not a fuse, but a circuit breaker. https://www.snapaction.net/ Not surprised NAPA didn't have one. The 07092 isn't a part number. It's the manufacturer zip code.

I’ll try … it’s the black one. (The blue one was provided in my spare fuse kit from OTT.) I tried a local hardware as well as NAPA, neither carry it or know about it. It’s in the fuse box, with all the other fuses. I don’t believe it’s blown, but I want to understand how it differs from the other fuses, and how to gauge when it is blown.

Wow JD, this would be $700-800 in parts for 4x full brake plates and 4x Drums. Not for me this year! I just placed an order for new Timken bearing and seals. Went with eTrailer for $156 after reading your posts on fake bearings. I ordered Toyota parts once on eBay for a timing chain replacement, and they came all in legit Toyota wrap. They were fake, you could tell by the water pump casting, not the packaging that looked correct. Did the eBay return, got money back and purchased parts from Toyota and RockAuto. Yes, I will manually adjust if necessary. Drum brakes will auto-adjust only when braking in reverse, which is difficult to do in a trailer. First, I bought an Oliver (June), then the Ram 2500 (July), then suspension rebuild (August another $1200). Just bought Dodge wheels and upgrade parts to install 3rd Gen front disc brakes on my 2nd Gen (just last week, $1000 for both). Got to put my new tires on hold! Will need other Oliver parts soon, like electric water valves, etc. Didn't expect to buy bearings, thought I would merely pack bearings! So bad news on my favorite local trailer shop. It was called A-County Trailer and now the name has changed. They had 3-4 old-timers as mechanics. Once they adjusted the leaf spring shackles that were binding on a flatbed trailer I have. After 2 guys worked 15 minutes, they said, "You're good now, you can pull out" and no charge! Now just young guys who admitted, "I dunno know." So today was a wash. I placed my eTrailer order when I got home, and the Oliver will be up on jack stands for a while!

Mike, Thanks! we are headed there tomorrow! 👍🏻👍🏻😊

We are based camped in Estes Park Colorado at Spruce Lake which is about 1.5 miles from the entrance of RMNP entrance. We went on line and locked in 2 separate days of park access plus passes. Park plus gives us access to the entire park including Bear Lake. We will be here for a week with so much to see. We are heading into the park at 10 am this morning. A brisk 48d here this morning 64 and full sun is the high, great weather all week. Things can change fast in the mountains so we stay weather aware all the time. We could hear the Elk bugling while enjoying dinner last night, awesome! A small herd of 6-8 deer walked by our site yesterday afternoon.😋 Onward! Patriot🇺🇸 Dinner last night, I cheffed up season and garlic rubbed tenderloins with a smoked blue cheese crumble. Breakast- our own venison sausage, cheesey eggs and a waffle. Roughing it! 😊

Skipster, I just got back from a 5600 mile round trip to Glacier NP and Banff, Canada ..my Ridgeline performed good,but going up a down the continental divide was a little tough to keep the speed up..looking to upgrade to a Toyota Tundra.. one bright spot got between 15 to 17 mpg on the trip.. price of new trucks 😳. Stay safe out there!!

Had a chance to clean up one today. I got a big old-school Milwaukee grinder with a 7" steel brush wheel. Cleaned up the tire beads too. Here's the before and after!

For your Elite I, you don't need a "big truck". I would highly recommend a Mid Sized Pickup like the GMC Canyon or the Chevy Colorado with the 2.7L I-4 Turbo DOHC VVT DI with Active Fuel Management engine. This engine is standard in the GMC and the high end option the Colorado. https://pickuptrucktalk.com/2023/05/2023-gmc-canyon-vs-chevy-colorado-spec-by-spec-comparison/ There are some owners that use this small truck (or its diesel predecessor) to tow the larger Elite II. All report success towing the 2000+ pound heavier trailer. But, that "success" is dependent on what your expectations are of a good towing experience. To me, it's being able to carry anything I desire and still be able to power up a 12,000 foot pass at the legal speed limit and coast down the other side never having to touch the brakes, using only the exhaust brake and downshifting. This is easy East of the Mississippi River where the highest point you can drive to is 6400 feet. Compare that to the highest paved road in North America, Mount Evans Road in Colorado that rises to a height of 14,130 feet. Since you hail from Montana, I'm sure you're all too familiar with navigating the western highways. We've owned 5 different tow vehicles including a 1500, 2500 and now a 3500. I've towed with all of them - a lot. For me, I could have my choice as we own both a GMC Canyon with the 2.8L diesel and a Silverado 3500HD 6.6L diesel but anything smaller than our 3500 is too small for our Elite II. We get better towing fuel mileage with it than with any of the others.

We have a GMC diesel Canyon and we love it. Will pull our elite II at hi-way speed up and over every thing we’ve been over. Been over the smokies Aderondaks in NY and the Whites of NH with no problem. on Average we get about 24MPG and 19MPG while towing. The small truck fits in my garage and it’s my everyday driver.

Many, or at least some, of those "guests" may be registered members who don't bother to log in.

Sullivan Maine. Acadia seashore campground. Just beautiful

Last weekend we went to Art in the Park at Blowing Rock NC as we do every year, but normally it was in May, June, or October in our Aliner pop-up at Julian Price CG on the BRP. This time we decided to try July in our almost 1yr old Elite I (Hull #1209). We caught the peak of the Catawba Rhododendron bloom. We were in the clouds, a good bit of the time but 10-15 degrees cooler than the 90 degrees when we left home in East TN just 90mi, a couple or hours away.

Thanks John, so glad I found this thread, was hoping I could flip the blinds so the blackout is on the bottom! 🙂 Hope this function will still be possible on the newer 2023 LEII!

Collier Memorial State Park, Oregon. Full hookups and short walk to a logging museum.

Here’s our favorite campsite at COE Bandit’s Roost campground Wilkesboro, NC, site # 28. This site is hard to get, someone must have canceled, allowing us to camp on it earlier this week. It’s been 70’s during the day and upper 40’s at night. The Blue Ridge Parkway is not too far away for a day drive, too. 🙂 Blue Ridge Parkway NC

We’re heading north to Kansas City for a few days before we head to Tennessee. First stop on our escape from Texas is a nice COE campground near Gordonville on Lake Texoma, Juniper Point Campground. Nice concrete pads on the lake. Very pleasant overnight stay on our way north!

Ray, itwill take about a minute to flip one blind, if the clips are installed correctly. I suggest that you add inspecting ALL the clips personally, with your own eyeballs, to your delivery checklist. You or your Oliver delivery representative can take them off and look at the clips, then flip the blinds when reinstalling. If even one clip is cocked (outwards at an angle), tell them you need ALL of the plastic spacers to be drilled out and installed correctly and in alignment with the frame... Taking down the blinds should not worry you, it is so easy and you need to know how to do it anyway for cleaning and possible service. If your blind installation has a problem, then delivery day is the perfect time to have it corrected. Good luck and enjoy your new Ollie. And please report here what happens. John Davies Spokane WA

Don't see why not. Use the old proverb, "always give the man a chance to say no". Bill

Talked with Kelly at OTT about the idea of a store. She thought it might be time and a good idea. At least some stuff in the showroom? She was going to mention to Scott. We will see. Let's see, I'll take a hat, a coffee cup, some blinds, a water accumulator, and do you have that fleece in black?

Canoe12 - While I don't mind the "off-white" color of my blinds (it helps offset the abundance of pure white I think), I really like your idea of a Company Store. Unfortunately, with the growing pains that have received much discussion on this Forum, I doubt that this would be a high priority item for OTT at this time. I could see a bunch of "branded" items that I would have an interest in - t-shirts, coffee mugs, chairs, fleece, etc. Bill

If your Ollie is an early 2017 (or earlier), and the off-white color bothers you, you might check with Oliver on how much it would cost to get a set of their new, pure white ones. They do look 1000% better, imo.