Ralph Mawyer

Thanks, I stayed at Mammoth three years ago in May, in my Casita. This was right after a late season snow storm that delayed arrival by a day from the Grand Tetons. No furnace in the Casita, but beat being in a tent. As noted above, Mammoth does allow day use of generators, <=60 DBs.

Most generator discussions focus on 2000cc units that allow for soft-start of the AC. I've got a very old, but like new-in-box, Yamaha EF1000cc unit that I've thought about taking as a backup for charging the batteries if the weather is marginal for a large number of days. I expect I'll be in Yellowstone with no AC for 7-14 days, with a chance that days before and after will be boon-docking also. If I just want to be able to top off the batteries, any downside to just using the small 1000cc generator? (Solar Pack with four wet cell batteries) I'll be traveling with a couple of friends in their 23' Airstream. They have a 2000cc dual-gas generator, but if we don't need AC, the smaller generator has more appeal. Thoughts?

FWIW, Oliver now officially recommends and is delivering EII tires at 55psi, per the latest new owner walk-thru video.

It's a big state, so are you thinking snow bird life in the Rio Grande valley, or Dallas, or San Antonio, also west Texas can be awesome, e.g., Alpine (Lost Alaskan RV park) More ice and some snow in Dallas area, but it is Texas, so just depends on what the cold fronts do. Might also start shopping commercial and state campgrounds (2 week limit) to see how availability is.

Only upside is at least you had two bolts and one is still there, so doesn't look like it dropped on to the Wheel Well. I'm pretty sure, the installer put my bolts down and never came back to finish the job...just glad I found it.

I pulled my Casita 17 with the Lexus LX 470. So that's 3000+ lbs with the 4.7L V-8, similar to the GX. It was doable and definitely better than with my 1997 LX 450, but the 570 I use now made it truly painless. That said, the E1 is about 5000(?) lbs and payload of the GX will be limited. The GX is an awesome truck, but if you want a great SUV for the E1 I'd look at the LX 570 or Land Cruiser with the 5.7 Tundra engine. It would be perfect, if your budget allows. (2013+ @ $40-50K) I'd not want to be shopping in this market, but most LX 570s are owned by folks that rarely go Offroad and you can get the service records via the VIN by creating an account on driverslexus.com. Look for trucks coming off lease or anything 2013 or later with under 100k miles with good service records. John Davies and I both pull the E2 with a 200 series. It's not a 3/4 ton diesel, but gets the job done and doesn't break.

Nice to know, thanks...

I just got two new pads and they seem to be the same as the original in my 2020 build. I also had to replace the PC board, which was more of a hassle. It would not allow the code to be reset. Silicone under pad was fine. PC board plug to locking circuit originally had some type of black sealant to hold it tight. I may be going back in there, if it wiggles loose. Board is held in frame by two small protrusions, tedious to get it out and in, without damaging board.

Why not just add soft-start to AC?

If you had this happen, I’d be sure a file a support ticket, just to give the guys some data points on when this occurred.

Just to put some closure on this. Service and I agreed that it was likely an installation failure. It looks like someone put down the two bolts in a crevice near the support beam and didn't return to finish the job. I never found nuts and washers and the bolts were unlikely to fall, together, into the space I found them in. Still worth checking yours, but I would not expect this to be a common issue, though it has occurred else-when, as noted above.

Or don’t do what I did and throw the wrong switch, and wander off, without verifying power.

Does AC work without the surge protector? You already have one built in to the Oliver, so not much risk.

I think I met Imelda while at Big Bend NP on Mon, 18 Oct. Was surprised to see another 2020 E2 in a campground of 20 or less rig, everything from a tiny tear drop to a 40' Class A, all boon-docking. The days were hot. No cell phone connectivity at Rio Grande Campground and limited wifi at the store. They were headed to Ft. Davis State Park. If that's her, she was running with only a 2000 watt generator. We think it might have done something to the inverter when trying to start the AC w/o soft-start. When I left Wednesday AM, she and my camping neighbor, an electrician, were discussing some diagnostic approaches with fuses, reset, etc. No solar. I expect she'll check-in once on shore power at Ft. Davis. If not Imelda, just delete this. 😉

Probably what would happen is to find a newer Elite I and have to grab it, then decide which to sell. First world problem. 😉

I was wondering if Oliver should have bug awards like the software companies do, e.g., for every QC failure you get more points if it's an original finding, like hold down strap breaking or battery box support bolts vibrating out, vs repeatable events like fiberglass in the water line. 😉

Is it OK to own one of each... 😉

Has anyone downsized from the Elite II to the Elite I. I've been on a few trips with my 2020 E2, but mostly solo, since my wife still works. I miss the maneuverability of my 17' Casita, but love my E2 once I'm setup as I'm 6'3'. 😉 Just curious if anyone did the same for solo travel. I'm assuming the technical specs are essentially the same, but hope to check one out locally at some point. Thoughts...

Seems like everybody should check. Rare, but if it happens… From Service… “did get a response from engineering that a flange bolt is used on that connection. I would prefer a nylon lock nut, a lock washer & nut, or the double nut method myself. I will be reviewing this with engineering further.”

Might want to add these: 1. Tank hold down straps under passenger-side bed. 2. Battery Box support bolts

The change to the two axle E2 does make backing less exciting than your ‘highly responsive’ Casita, but it is longer and you will notice the difference from the easy in-out ability of the Casita. I still miss it. I pulled my 17’ Casita for years using three different different generations of Toyota Land Cruisers. At 3000lbs it wasn’t until I got to my 2013 with the 5.7 Tundra engine that it felt painless. Moving to the the 5-6k lb E2 was like taking a step back to the 2007 4.7 small V8. That said, after a three week, 2500 mile trip from Texas to Ouray, CO this summer I found it worked well. 4th gear is standard, but I was able to stay with traffic pretty easily, generally 45-65+. Gas mileage was abysmal, but comes with the territory. A big 1/2 ton or easily a 3/4 ton is your friend, but my truck lets me do stuff others can’t, once I get to my location. Try it for a year and decide then. Might be able to actually buy a new truck by then.

Little 2-ton bottle jack that would fit, and slowly inch up. Wasn’t that dramatic, but not easiest space to work around and not stress other stuff.

I thought beginning in 2022 a manual street side awning was standard and 'automatic' for it was the only option.

Agree, really meant gelcoat. My guess is there is enough flex across the wall where the battery box is fitted to mitigate it or I would have seen damage from the unbolted condition. Looks good now...