wjpatter

Mark, Good posting, good questions. I also appreciate your posting the links where I can go to learn. My battery technology is 30 years dated so I know I’m going to be of no help to you. My last touch point was to learn why a die hard lasted longer than conventional lead-acid batteries. Let me ask about high charge rates for the class battery that is going into the Oliver. Does that effect the battery life (charge/discharge cycles) and where does the heat go. A charge rate of 80 amps is somewhere between 1000 – 1200 watts, about what an iron draws. Is that a concern? Is there a concern about the venting with these fast change rates? If you are off the grid, I would be interested in accessing some of your links. I’d like to learn more. Bill Patterson

What is the option about anti-sway equipment? I talked to a Casita owner who had one on a hitch with it built-in but he was unclear whether it was needed. Bill Patterson

Folks, Thanks for your response. The discussion has helped me a lot. Like I said, I have no experience towing anything with a brake and was naive in thinking I show up and drive out. I did a bit of research a couple of years ago when I had the hitch put on. The auto dealer and RV dealer when they spoke to me were speaking in tongues. It didn’t register and I couldn’t connect the dots. The wiring was secondary because I really need the hitch for my bike rack. I did see enough postings to know the XC-90 harness installation wasn’t straight forward and had planned to have the dealer do the work. What isn’t clear is whether the dealer installation included the break controller. It is a conversation that I have to have. I’m in Los Angeles now and probably won’t have the work done here. These people are very proud of their work and have a 20 – 30% cost premium for everything they do. I’ll be in Dallas for a couple of days and in Fayetteville, AR, for a week plus before to picking up the Oliver in Tennessee. I trust people in that part of the country to do the work. They do enough of it. I will have to sort out where to put the control head on the dash. There isn’t much room for add-ons. Cherie’s comment about access from the passenger’s side is very appropriate. I have questions about anti-sway equipment but think I’ll start another thread. Bill

Thanks Steve. I have a class III hitch on my Volvo for my bicycle rack but never had the wiring installed. I might think about installing it my self if I were home in Florida where I have a garage and tools. I’m on an assignment in Los Angeles and will be picking up my Oliver on my drive home. I have seen some blogs about pulling a trailer without brake but for short hauls but the trip to Florida is over 800 miles and I don’t think I want to chance it. I’ll be in Fayetteville Arkansas for a couple of week before pickup. I’m sure I can find someone to install when I get there. Installation will take what? Maybe ½ day? Bill Patterson

Thanks, I appreciate the response. How important is a controller for a trailer of this size? How will the trailer respond without a controller? It doesn’t sound like there is much options. Bill Patterson

I’m preparing my vehicle to pick up my Oliver in October. I have some questions about the tow package that I need. Beyond boats and u-haul, my experience level with towing is low. I have not pulled anything with electric brakes so I may be asking really dumb questions. What is a break controller and when do you need one? Before we get into what a controller is and whether I need one, how does the trailer brake system work? From what I can get from Google, controller seems to come in 3 types, proportional, inertial, and timed. The names are pretty descriptive and I assume that performance and setup will varies with each. My problem is that I won’t have the slightest idea of how the Oliver system works. What keeps the trailer from laying down a long black rubber strip each time I touch the breaks? How does the trailer system interaction with the tow vehicle abs? Who makes the brake system on the Oliver? Will the brake system on the Oliver work without one? Thanks Bill Patterson