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After the rally , when we got home i used the pump a times.. nothing.. fuse was good . I started to check, no 12 v to the pump.. i didnt want to to tear into the vanity sw. or the other one on the monitor panel.. I let it go for a while .. i thought i hope i didnt want to trace wire.. I started with the purple from the fuse box ( that feeds the pump 12v). To my luck i guess there was a terminal block that was lying loose, there is a small relay .. connected .. Success.. It was mounted on the street side under bed.. 😅. Major job diverted..

I have the Truma Aventa Eco in my LE2. I believe it is a 13.5 btu unit. It seems to drop the temperature down from mid 90s within about 10 minutes or less and that is in full sun. A smaller unit should be able to handle it, but it will run longer. On the flip side, an AC unit that runs for a longer amount of time will remove more humidity, so if you live in northern climates with cooler temps and higher humidity, a smaller unit is the right way to go in my opinion.

This video should make those of us who joined the Oliver family feel pretty good about our choice.

Agree with Ray, We will likely replace with Cooper Discoverer HT3 LT225/75R16 if they are still available when we are due. We will likely replace our original tires next Spring. Our current set has served us well.

We installed the same tires as Ray, Cooper Discoverer HT3 LT225/75R16. https://www.discounttire.com/fitmentresult/tires/size/225-75-16?q=%3Aprice-asc%3Abrands%3Abrand-COP&sort=price-asc&page=0 Goodyear Endurance does not come in ST225/75R/16. https://www.goodyear.com/en_US/tires/endurance-trailer-tire/24464.html When visiting local Discount tire within the last 30 days they said they would mount LT tires on a trailer if you can show them the LE2 7000 pound GVW, it's on the VIN tag on the front street side of Ollie. They said the total weight capacity combining 4 LT tires has to meet or exceed the trailer's GVW. Some folks here had Discount Tire to refuse mounting LT tires on a trailer, that's why I asked our local store recently, they price match, too.

I installed Vredestein Pinza AT LT's on my Oliver last year, love 'em. Also put a set on my truck as well. Amazingly quiet ride for an aggressive all terrain tread. Can't recommend them enough so far. Hope this helps

In our small town here in western North Carolina we have a "small" WalMart. As with most WalMarts, there is a "Clearance" section and even some departments within the store have their own "clearance" areas. In the Automotive section of our WalMart they currently have Prestone RV anti-freeze on clearance for $2.00 per gallon. This stuff is rated to -100 degrees. While I always try to have at least a couple of gallons in my workshop, I just could not resist picking up an additional few gallons at this price. Bill

Congratulations. My wife and I are coming up on 10.

Yesterday high was 97 in Prescott, today milder and although this is more like August temps, we sat on our deck and do so every evening. When 90+ is the daytime high, we will be in the 70's by dinner time, sitting on our deck that gets the evening shade. We lived in the Austin burbs for 9 years. If midday in the summer, it Could be 107 and dry, or 93 and humid if the winds were coming from the gulf. Had a tennis coach once say, who was brought up in the country between H-town and Corpus, for 5 months it's Swamp-A$$! His words. We always remembered this coach for this and many reasons. That would be your hood @Ronbrink and not much different from your location @CRM, both coastal gulf swamp-a$$ locations. Yes, everything is bigger in Texas! Loved our time there. We also spent 4 years in S FLA in the WPB area, and if it was possible, we would have preferred being closer to Ft Myers, or miles +/- from there on the gulf coast. Our country has so many great spots to visit, just travel at the right time of year. No swamp-a$$ out here. AC units run more efficiently in dry air. Why are we home for 4 months of the summer, every year, while y'all are pulling you Olivers out of storage and traveling, some of it climate painful!? If say today, tomorrow, or over the next 3 months, we venture off the mountain to go ANYWHERE, in ANY direction, we drop 3000 FT elevation and climb +20F in the first hour. Our ONLY future summer trip would be to leave in May to get to ID, WY, MN, ND, Canada or en route to Alaska, before it gets too hot. We're home this summer, doing M&R on our newly purchased Oliver and will do a local trip in September, followed by our travel to the 2024 Oliver Texas Rally. Hope to meet you Ron and CRM if you venture the longer trip. We'll see some of you, hopefully more of you, and next thing you know it will be time! 😂

Agree, after doing the modification started seeing other/better ways to do this modification. I took care tightening nuts so not to put too much stress on the sandwiched fiberglass and that could allow slippage with slots. The housing will hold the tire up, but I did not want the full tire's weight resting on just the fiberglass cover. Guessing folks with the 215/70R/16 spare may not need to move the tire mount, but if someone has a 225/75R/15, would try it first before buying a new spare. I'm in North Carolina and would be glad to test my spare on anyone's Ollie to see if it will fit without modifications.

Another option might be to simply drill four new holes in places that allow you to use the existing plate and move it up the amount needed and still have round holes instead of slots. That way there would be no chance of the mount being able to slip back down.

Our Anniversary night ended well. After a few hours watching a local P-ball tournament, and a little rest at home, we went to Papa's Italian in Prescott. It was a great weekend! Her birthday is still to come this Friday. Certainly cannot afford another Oliver, Lol!

I love my wife Chris, and as each year goes by it becomes ever more so apparent! We purchased our Oliver just days short of a year ago and we love being together in our travels, no matter where we camp for the night, good or bad. I share this thought today with my virtual Oliver family. I do my things and she does hers and the best things are the times we spend together. She often asks, “How’s the blog going?” She’s referring to this forum and she is always interested. I tell her stories regarding y’alls antics, often over a drink or two before dinner. She listens and smiles, what a smile. Today is a very special day for us, as it is our 30th wedding anniversary! I have a difficult job every year from June 1st to June 7th. Her birthday being the latter date. Last year, as you can see, it was easy as can be, as to her surprise I brought home an Oliver! 😊 What in the world can I do this year! Good thing we do not need to top the great times we’ve had and will always have together. I write this for my partner in life. Love you, Chrissy.

The inverter breaker is under the street side bed, at the front (battery box wall). The sequence is as follows: Turn off solar. Trip the inverter breaker, then turn off your Lithium batteries. To turn back on reverse order. You don't want to put loads on the inverter by turning a battery off or on, one at a time with the inverter on. Again, 1. Turn off solar 2. Turn off inverter at breaker 3. Turn off batteries This information was provided by Oliver, and confirmed by Lithonics. Our winter storage needed a conversation with Lithonics.

In 2020 when Oliver could no longer get the MIchelins they switched to Cooper Discoverer HT3 LT225/75R16. They have held up well for us. I am not sure what they are using today.

I checked my shelf stock and I am good! Thanks for the heads up.

Will make four UHMW plastic plugs same thickness & shape and install in unused portions of the milled slots to prevent the wheel mount from slipping down with existing flat washers holding plugs in place.

Will check out our local Walmart, hopefully they have the same price. Thanks,

I looked into this as well definitely an option with the LiFePO4 batteries.

My cows always peed in the pond while drinking their fill.

Thanks for the article link. It went back to the Victron SmartShunt, gotta love it! Change your charge settings to 13.9 and 13.4 as stated. This makes total sense yet blows many LiFePO4 manufacturer's recommendations (grain of salt). Many people leave maintenance chargers on 24x7, not a good idea IMHO. I connect a charger only when needed, and I keep shore power off unless we need to run AC. I'll trust our old-school Blue Sky SC, never see voltage over 14V with it on alone. Don't trust RV shore power/120V chargers or inverter/chargers either when connected fulltime and more so for storage. Just don't do it. Recently I'm more interested in Epoch without the Victron Comms. Was thinking of two of these 300AH batteries to start and perhaps a 3rd or 4th later with some installation wizardry (that is a word, right GJ?). There is room in the bay for a 3rd with a tray mod and maybe room in the basement for another one to two! This could add up to 900AH, 1200AH, OMG 1500AH! ~🤣 Too bad the 2x 460AH Epochs w/o Victron Comms will not fit no matter what you do. 600AH at 80% = 480AH (conservative estimate with a 20% safety factor) is more than 2x what I have today in 450AH LA at 50% = 225AH (2.13 more available AH). I believe you made the right choice Mike. Who has more LiFePO4 AHs than you in an Oliver (nobody)! If they run another Black Friday sale at an additional 15% off, you can source 600AH OTD under $2,000, a nice number for a LiFePO4 upgrade and I have all the 4/1 cable, lugs and tools I need. I see these in my future, look for my upgrade TBD: 12V 300Ah Heated & Bluetooth LiFePO4 Battery - Epoch Essentials (epochbatteries.com)

It was a good idea but unfortunately after testing with MPPT off no difference in results. Battery SOC 50%. I also tried turning off the Epoch BMS and changing some other settings to no avail. I know you had shown some interest in the EPOCH batteries. This link has some helpful insight to their Pros and Cons. I still think they are great but there are some things you need to know about them. I am still using the Victron comms. Link: https://panbo.com/update-epochs-460ah-battery-what-weve-learned/

So far, the hottest we've camped in is 101 with 90% humidity in full sun. There's got to be a breaking point, and I hope to never be camping somewhere to find it!

Understood, but everything is bigger in Texas, including the heat and humidity! Waiting to hear from current installers about unit size in a few Sprinter Class B motorhomes, which appear to have comparable interior space as an Oliver, as well as other performance measures.

I agree in being against custom fiberglass work, and with Truma you must purchase and install through their dealers only, no DIY units or replacement parts available in the aftermarket. Re Houghton, it appears the relay install is quite simple, instructions on this forum. It could be easily reversed if you had to return the AC unit for warranty replacement. I would work this wiring on the workbench and then install. Being careful, perhaps an hour of work. We have little in humidity concerns out west, but I would install the relay just so most of the night when the temps drop considerably in the mountains the fan stays OFF! My main goal is hush... being very quiet... I have not heard another product recommendation in this regard. Still wondering if their 9.8K BTU is feasible on an Elite II. They say it covers 400 SF which is double the E2 footprint. It is much cheaper, especially without the heat pump and we'll just run the furnace when heat is needed. The smaller unit would also pull less amps on the batteries and would be easier on a 2KW inverter.

Very good point, thanks for stating! @Geronimo John, I failed to emphasize that the Cerbo can be set to disable charging of my LiFePO4s at low temperatures, thus eliminating any concerns of damage during freezing conditions. The SOC can also be set to maintain a partial charge (40-60% range) for LFPs being stored for more than a month.

Yes Bill, they are actually motorized ball valves. Here is the upgrade thread:

Ron, Thanks for the post. It is a good reminder for all of us (especially single axle Elite owners) to use a TPMS system to monitor the pressure of our tires. Question: Did you have a metal valve stem? The centrifugal forces exerted on the valve stems by the mass of the monitor can result in over stressing a rubber valve stem, so metal stems are preferred with TPMS. So glad your system alerted you to the loss of pressure in time for you to safely get off the road. Pete

This may apply to you if you have to replace one of the original 'Bright Way' AGM batteries supplied on earlier OTT's. Ours is a 2020, LE II. I am not familiar with other batteries physical attributes which OTT may have used over the years, so it may/may not apply. The carry handle for the Bright Way's sits imbedded in the top of the battery and can be lifted up to carry. If a Briteway is replaced with SoB that has the carry handle that extends over the side that hooks into a collar, it will be a tighter fit for that battery to 'play' alongside the Bright Way's. Worse yet, that side carry battery will cause those batteries post/terminal to be just a little bit further away from the post/terminal it needs connect to. For me it was LIKE 1/2 INCH further, rendering that old cable to be too short. For reference this is one of the longer 2-0 cables that connects the Curb-side terminal to the Street-side terminal. I did think for about a nano-second about using a cutoff tool to remove the offending side carry on the new battery, BUT NO. And there are probably some Electrical/Mechanical engineer types on the forum, that have a simple work around which does not require a new longer cable. I am not one of those blessed individuals, but I do try to keep my wiring mods simple, especially in and around the battery compartment. I am also not one of those that have the hydraulic cable crimpers or a supply of the heavier cables or connectors to just make one up. So, not to drag this out any longer... I had a new cable made (I went with 1" longer) and all is well, it now has a slight arch to the cable, in case I end up replacing another Bright Way with SoB. A bonus is, my used and maybe needed in the future cable, now resides in my used and maybe needed in the future parts box, in the dark regions of the basement. B~Out

I wonder how this recall will impact the fair market resale or trade in value of repaired/recalled trucks? Who would purchase a previously recalled used truck? Personally I would pass. The recall history and engine replacement or rebuild will be a permanent VIN record with Toyota. Toyota has a massive undertaking is an understatement not only in addressing this the recall, but from a PR and future buyers trust point of view. I have previously owned (3) Tundras and was very happy with all three trucks. It’s sad that the Toyota brand is taking such a hit. My hopes are Toyota steps up and does the right thing, it would certainly be in their best interest.

Thanks to all. This is something i obviously did not think thru. Basically, what is the root cause of my battery failures. We will head out as is, we know there are a lot of 'Canadian Tire' or 'Battery Type' stores as we travel on Canada-1 from Regina to Calgary, before heading north. We will monitor, and sort it out on the way or when we return. I will try a few 'Where's Ollie' entries in our future. No need to make it to Faro, Mayo, Keno City, Minto Bridge, Inuvik, Tuktoyaktuk, been there done that. As Usual, Kind regards to all who asked the right questions (saw the cable issue as a 'Red Herring' even though it was the Black/Neg one...), showed Concern & even offered up 'Reading Material'. B~Out, ...New Moniker to come, BMW (Bryan Maggie & Willis aka Kamper Kat).

So - That's 5 or 6 batteries replaced within 4 years - all due to the same type of issue? Even if the batteries were bouncing around in the compartment this seems a bit much to me. Bill

Sherry/Paul, The original build ones were replaced two seasons ago, by Oliver as they began to leak creating a strong Sulphur smell throughout the trailer. When i examined them, a couple were also VERY HOT. I was home by then and removed all from the OTT, sat them on the driveway, and it took a while (hours in the shade) for them to cool down. Last year on our trip to AK, one of those recently replaced by Oliver started to do the same, leak, Sulphur smell, but not hot. We were in Watson Lake at the time, I found the local NAPA and we replaced it with a NAPA Battery as they had in stock and we continued on our trek. (it was a deep cycle marine SLA, group 24, but i believe the 'cranking amps were a little less than the Oliver one it replaced.) I will check tomorrow. On our way home, towards the end of last year's trip I noticed the NAPA was leaking and it was more of a puddled gel type of leak. I believed it was due to the roads we were on in the YT & NWT. So, yesterday I now replaced the NAPA with an Interstate of the same type. Above when I say, "Same Type", that is to say, 'Deep Cycle Marine, SLA, Group 24, Cranking Amps 81-82'. One of my questions is, on the ZAMP, the 'Batt Type' should be 'AGM' correct? Apologies to @jd1923 & @Geronimo John, for not mentioning the background earlier, as the thread was on Cable length, not on root cause of the Battery issues. We leave AGAIN for Alaska on Monday the 10th. Just a different route than last year. B~OUT,

Yo GJ, the term "envisioning" truly suffices! That's like those who say "pre-vent-ta-tive maintenance" vs. just "pre-vent-ive." Please don't add the extra syllable! It drives me crazy when multi-million-dollar news anchors, paid so well but have not yet learned the English language, OMG. Chris' family has an old joke. Her Dad was a staunch old-school Irishmen, and very well-educated, a surgeon for the US Army during WWII, deployed in France. Yeah, his life was real. When one of his 8 children, educated in fine Chicago Catholic schools, said the word "irregardless" he would scream "GD-it, there is no such word! What are they teaching you in school!" Then he would rustle the ice in his empty drink glass which meant go get me another (Martini)! I got C grades in English class all through school, math & science another story. Just learned the English language little by little in business writing. GJ, just kiddin' with you buddy! Who's going to fill my glass, guess it must be me! 🤣

The machine shop slotted each mounting hole on the aluminum spare tire mount lower by 7/16" retaining original hole width. This allowed raising and centering the new Goodyear Endurance ST225/75R/15 spare tire fitting easily in the original rear fiberglass spare tire cover. 🙂 Keeping 16" LT tires on our LE2, just wanted a higher capacity spare tire that fits in the original fiberglass spare tire cover. Understand 2015 and 2016 LE2 Ollies had this 15" spare tire cover with later years having larger spare tire covers to accommodate 16" LT tires. Another way to modify this aluminum spare tire mount would be to relocate the round tube in the center by moving it up by 7/16" leaving the mounting plate in the original location. I normally keep Ollie's spare tire in the pickup bed, but when I started this project wanted a Load Range E spare trailer tire that would still fit in the original fiberglass spare tire cover. Before modification: After modification:

Fabio Holstein

Last week I had Oliver replace all of the touch lights with these Obeaming lights. I had three touch light failures, and it might have been more except that we hardly use the ones over the beds. Contrary to others reports, the touch aspect never worked well. The failures were fluctuating light, total failure, and the ability to turn off without using the master switch. They used screws to attach the new lights, and not the screws that came with the lights. Once installed, we found that two of them did not work. They were on when the trailer was returned to us, and my wife could not shut them off. After investigation, it turned out that the lights that had appeared to fail, there was nothing wrong with the electronics. I removed the covers and operated the switches directly. No problem. The issue was that the cover switch button was not reaching the light switch. This was because some of the screw holes were not perpendicular to the mount surface, and so screwing in the light was deforming it (it was not flush to the fiberglass surface all the way around). I removed the screws on one of the lights and elongated the hole in the light fixture so the crooked screw's threads would not catch on it. After reassembly and remounting of the cover, the light works perfectly. I also bought spares since I expect these to be phased out (just as are most things). For easy reference: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B093G795G2?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

Wow, that's really nice! The processor and display: Would be really handy for the full timers and especially the Tech Inclined owners. Certainly can provide a great visual of what's happening in our various systems. But for me and Crazy Horse, we get by with my slide rule and his solar powered adding machine. I just don't think I would trust it for 8 or 9 months alone though. Especially with all that AI running amuck now days. Lord only knows where it would take Ollie off to up there in the High Country of Oklahoma. Oh wow, I'm back. Ok, seriously now, I would not at all be surprised that in the near future OTT will be looking for advice on making this great Victron suite an option on new OTT's. It is bound to happen. Meanwhile, we'll just poke along. Anybody have some slide rule wax? After 60 years it's getting a bit sticky. Numbers seem to be smaller than before too! Oh slipped back to the other side. Sorry about that! Great system for sure.

Toyota has not been replacing engines - they have been replacing short blocks only. That requires the service techs at dealers to rebuild the engine using a lot of the “used” components - heads, etc. Some owners are now on their third engines. Others have gone the lemon law route, which is what I would do since I wouldn’t trust a dealer tech to have the skills and equipment to rebuild an engine vs. full replacement. Certainly they don’t have the clean room that might exist at the manufacturing facility. Hard to accept the “debris” excuse, as I believe the LX engines might be made in Japan, versus the Tundra and Sequoia engines being made domestically - unless exact same processes are being used in both engine plants. Anyone heard differently? This is going to be costly, both in money and in reputation, for Toyota. I’m glad I didn’t make the leap to the new generation Tundra, Sequoia or LX.