SeaDawg

My husband and I are the happy owners of an early Elite, bought back in 2008 when the smaller trailer was the only option. Since then, we've towed the trailer close to 100,000 miles, and many times spent upwards of 60 days together camping in the small trailer. We're still married. 😄 There are certain advantages to the smaller Elite. Fits in even smaller spaces than the II, and opens up a wider range of tow vehicle selections with its lighter weight. Two tires to replace, (three if you regularly replace and rotate the spare) ,one axle to maintain. It offers less storage, but that helps keep the weight down, too. You won't be as tempted to carry a lot of stuff you don't need. Both campers live really big on the outside, which is where we spend the majority of our time when camping. It can become a little tight if you encounter a string of crummy weather days, and have to be inside a lot. If we can't move on, my husband usually sits and works at the little dinette, and I tend to read on the bed. The bed in the Elite is also smaller, more like a queen length full size bed. Frankly, I would love to have a slightly larger bed, but it's doable. We're not exceptionally tall or big people. I believe there is a bit more headroom in the larger Elite, as well. That would be important to some. We leave the big dinette set up as the bed. I'm not really sure where the table leg is anymore, it's been so long since we've used it. This arrangement gives me room under the bed to store three large crates of extra bedding, supplies, coats, and clothing. If we have a group over for dinner, we eat outside. There is a little more prep, work, and storage space in the larger Elite. That, too, would be nice to have. We replaced our defunct microwave a few years ago with a big storage cabinet, so I am ok without the pantry. (I only used the microwave a couple times in ten years. We mostly cook outside, unless the weather won't allow it. I even like to prep and wash dishes outside in a dishpan when camping, so it's again only an inconvenience if the weather is poor. The bathroom and closet are pretty much the same size in the I and II, as is the fridge and cooktop, so no big advantage or disadvantage there. Except, I think there may be a little more headroom in the EII bath. Again, unimportant to us folks of average height. We usually travel with one small dog, sometimes two if our daughter's dog comes along. I wouldn't want to share the trailer with a big dog, though others have. Some make up the small dinette as a sleep space for a larger dog. Two couples I know have even fulltimed with two (or more) dogs in the smaller Elite. There isn't a huge price difference in moving up to the larger Elite, and I think that drives the choice sometimes. For us, the smaller trailer has been a good choice, giving us a great camping experience for over 12 years. It's a big decision. If you have any specific questions about camping with the smaller trailer, I'd be happy to help. I hope you hear from other Elite owners, as well, though we're a much smaller per centage of the group. Sherry

Back in the day, Airstream sold some pretty cool wooden "Legomatic" folding chairs for their trailers. I still see them once in awhile on ebay, etsy, and some mid century resale sites. They would probably fit in that aisle, as they have a fairly narrow seat and footprint. They fold flat to something like 18 x 6 x 16. I use mine as extra chairs when we have a big group for dinner at home. Never tried it in the trailer. Mine are still rocking that 60s gold marble look vinyl seat upholstery. 😄

We have an older LE I, with the firm cushions. We used a "down alternative" thick topper for 8 or 9 years, and changed up to a 1.5 inch memory foam topper a few seasons ago. Great sleeping with the firm support, plus memory foam. If I ever have to replace the cushions, I'll probably do what I did with the boat cushions. They're three or four inches of firm foam, with a one or one and a half inch layer of memory foam glued to the top. Best of both worlds. No topper, comfortable seating, and comfortable sleeping as well. Sherry

Have you tried calling Jason in service? It's possible they have a used one. I've also had some luck with adventurerv dot net finding some odd bits in the past. Good luck. Sherry

Might want to remember that his trailer was transported quite a distance . What worked in Honenwald, may have had an issue along the way. Seriously, do you think Oliver would load a trailer for delivery that didn't have working lights? I don't think so. Knowing they'd have warranty issues? I don't think so. It's life. Stuff happens. Let's jelp with troubleshooting, and move on. Sherry

That's really nice of you. Thank you.

I bought a "bed extender" for my short bed, regular cab Silverado for hauling plywood, long lumber, etc. It attaches to the hitch. I also used it on Paul's truck, which is a 4 door, short bed ram 1500. Worked well for us while building our home. I did a lot of lumber runs. I would not want to drive an extended or crew cab with a long bed in city traffic. Not for me. Sherry

A number of the smaller units are 110, like smaller window ac. Our garage unit is 110.

Whatda, I like your idea. Last year, we installed a minisplit in our garage, and it does a great job. Pretty quiet, too. I've seen youtubes of these retrofitted into big coaches, where they put the outdoor unit in a basement compartment. Where do you propose placing the outdoor unit? Our garage system isn't huge, but I'd guess the outdoor unit is a little larger than a 20 inch box fan. Sherry

I have an indel b fridge made for a truck (Truckfridge brand), so why not have an ac unit made for a truck, right? 😁 My indel b fridge is so very quiet, and energy efficient with the secop compressor, that I can only imagine the ac unit would be very quiet, too. Indel builds a range of Sleeping Well truck cab ac units that are in use around the world, and I suspect one of them could cool my little Ollie, just using solar. Of course, it might mean I'd have to upgrade to Battleborn batteries. They still use significant amps on 12v, three to six times what my fridge consumes, but nothing like a Dometic 110 unit. https://www.indelb.com/products/automotive/sleeping_well Sherry

I'm pretty sure Advanced Rv imports a version of the Houghton Australian ac, reworked for US 110 voltage. I've videos of the Advanced ac installed and running, and you can't even hear it in the background. It's not inexpensive in Australia, either (even taking the exchange rate into account), but it's supposed to also be highly efficient, as well as 3 x as quiet as a Dometic. I'm still hoping that by the time our Dometic dies, somebody will have begun to market a danfoss/secop 12v rv unit that I could run on Solar. I I know there are some available for truck cabs in Europe and Canada. Hopefully, quiet, efficient, and not as power hungry. https://caravanandrvparts.com.au/product/houghton-belaire-hb3400/ The Advanced unit is definitely not inexpensive. I've read that it's around $2800 installed. Sherry

No, sorry. Just means a seadog, sorry. We're sailors as well as campers. Sherry

As much as I love our old (12 years) Honda, I would probably lean toward Yamaha, based on last two Honda recalls. We also have an older and much larger (12 or 13 year) Yamaha, that works great, but is way too heavy to drag around with us, without carrying a ramp to get it out of the truck bed. As a user of both, I would have to lean toward the no recall that I'm aware of Yamahas today, or even the Costco Yamaha motor 2000 watt units. They're pretty quiet, (my sister has one), so far reliable, for two years. And, cheaper, relatively. And when she bought it, it came with the parallel cable, no extra charge, to tie into a second genset. That may not be true today, so I would check. Sherry

Thanks, Nan. But it just sounded like it. My daughter had an ac issue this week, frozen thermostat, batteries good, weird signals, wouldn't reset . Ac tech changed out thermostat, and it's all good. For which I am grateful, as her company has sent everyone home to work, and her thermostat was stuck in the 80s. And, it's hot here in Florida. Take care, and I am so happy you found a good tech to fix the install of the new furnace of the previous owners. Sherry

Nan, I know I was one of those who suggested a thermostat problem. Sorry, but that's what it sounded like. At least your new one can be adjusted with your phone? Sherry

Did he change any wiring? Glad you have this resolved.

Whatda, you're more limited than i am, because I have the original/shorty elite. But, I wouldn't hesitate to tow either elite with our 2008 Ram 1500 hemi. It (might) stink on mountain passes with your bigger elite 2, but we don't really notice a difference with the shorty. How often do you cross the Rockies?

Patriot , a year ago, we were in Italy, visiting my husband's family. I talked to our cousin in Italy, Giuliana online. They're in the danger region,too, but ok, so far. Including Grampa, in his late 80s. For that, I'm very, very thankful. We know this virus is on everyone's mind. That's why we kept the thread open, but ask everyone to keep it nonpolitical, noninflammatory. We get enough of that on tv, radio, and web. And and we split it from the rally topic, as we need to keep that topic clear for announcements. We appreciate everyone hanging in there, and wish you all safe, healthy, and happy camping. Sherry PS. I'll add this, as a member, not moderator. I really get more than enough news on the web and radio about the virus. (I don't watch tv.) I really would like to visit the forum for camping info, and Oliver info. Sharing. Community. I've been here since 2008. We've all lived through a lot. Let's go camping! S.

We also get negative pressure if we forget and leave the bath fan on, and bath window closed. And, we have an older elite, without ac ducting. I think Maniac' s retrofit is a great idea. Like jump vents or undercutting doors in a stick and brick house without a return in each room, it allows for pressure equalization. The adjustable vent allows airflow when you want it, seals moisture from the main cabin while showering. Might be mod of the year. Imo.

That looks great, Maniac. Nice that you used an adjustable vent, so you can close it while showering, and running the exhaust fan.

Well, we did have to replace bearings last year. But, our trailer is over 12 years old. I can live with that. Sherry

I'm really sorry to hear this, but probably best considering the latest news on covid19. Best to let everyone make alternative plans early on. We'll continue sailing and camping, but not in big groups, for the forseeable future. Sunlight, uv, and outdoors are our friends. But not crowds. Sherry

Sadly, conventions and rallies are being cancelled everywhere. For a very, very good reason. Thanks for making the decision early, to allow alternate plans. Sherry

I really appreciate it when people like you post positive comments. It's so helpful to others in your area. Glad you found a good service center.

I won't likely be an early adopter, as the website failed with too many deposits on reveal night. I'm somewhere 250,000 down the list... but looking forward to the day, somewhere in tbe next two or three years. In the meantime, my little 2005 stepside Silverado is one of my favorite daily driver rides of all time, though I should replace the foam in the driver's seat. Sherry