Jim_Oker

I got the lithium from the factory because we dry camp (no hookups) a lot including in darker wetter months here in the PNW and /or under dense tree canopies and I'd like to be able to not have to use a generator frequently,especially on shorter trips. I see the expense as worth it even just for that but it looks like the lifespan may also be enough longer that in the long run it may also pencil out well financially. When we're called with even a half day of sun during the longer days of the year the solar more than keeps up with our daily usage so if that were our only camping scenario the lithium wouldn't make as big a difference for us.

I would think inspecting any caulking also - particularly in spots like around the Oliver logo'd light on the rear.

One of these buffers (or similar) will make the wiping off/buffing in of the wax a bit less strenuous and maybe a bit faster. I got one of these because I have a small boat and a van roof that needed oxidation buffed out with a few rounds of polishing compound - I definitely didn't want to do that by hand. Then I finished with paste wax rubbed on by hand and buffed off/in with the Shurhold. Worked well for me. There are single action electric buffers like from DeWalt that will do such jobs even faster but you run more risk of burning the surface you're trying to polish and buff. Not being a pro I figured I was safer with the dual action Shurhold. Thanks to a reco from SeaDawg I found some great articles on the process and reviews of tools etc. at the online Practical Sailor magazing.

Another thought - have you looked at the burner area? The manual mentions cleaning it as needed, and I've read of folks having this problem and gaining at least some extra altitude capability by cleaning carbon deposits off that area. Makes sense that this might shift the margin of error down a bit.

I'm at just under 3,500 miles. I would imagine mine won't need any additional tightening - just that periodic checking, at which point I'll likely leave the torque wrench at home too. I'm guessing there's a bit of imperfection to the holes in the aluminum wheels and that by now any flattening out that was happening is probably done with.

I bought a decent quality torque wrench for checking the lug nuts as well as other important nuts and bolts. This let me verify that they're at the correct tightness but allowing me to not go over that. Which seems worth a little money though it also adds to payload weight. I've found with my new ish trailer and its aluminum rims that some of them have continued needing a little more tightening from time to time to be at the recommended torque. No way I'd have been able to judge that just by feel

I had a heck of a time getting my van's dometic fridge to ignite (manual piezo igniter on this one) at 10K ish at Bryce Canyon NP. Haven't had the NorCold up that high yet. I'm also curious whether you tried or just skipped it due to what you read in the manual?

Yes. It is in fact how I changed the four settings that Jason told me to customize (btw in his mail where he shared this link to the inverter settings customization guide for various Oliver configurations, he mentioned that I could use a 120a "charger current" setting instead of the 150 listed in the table for my config with the LifeBlue batteries, and btw 120 matches what LifeBlue suggests in their documentation). And I also finally realized I can scroll down on the settings page and see my Inverter's serial number on my phone via this app 😉 - you'd have thought Xantrex support might have told me that when I told them that my serial number was fairly well hidden as installed in the trailer by Oliver but hey now I know. I will also be using the app to switch between 15 amp and 30 amp "AC input breaker" settings depending on whether I'm plugging into a standard household 15 amp circuit or a 30 amp circuit.

TL/DR so I don't have feedback on the details of your long lists, but I'm wondering if you've seen the checklists for getting ready for towing and for setting up camp that are in the Oliver user manual (available on this site at the Oliver University section)? They strike me as a great starting point and a nice balance between being thorough while avoiding numbing the mind with detail. They also have good steps for sanitizing as well as winterizing the water system. I've added a few things on top of their list for my pre-flight process but only a few.

That worked briefly for me, then the error came back. Hopefully you are now on the other side of it for good! I've installed the replacement that Xantrex sent me (following nudging by Mike in Oliver service on top of my requests) and in a few fairly brief rounds of testing it's all looking good.

Yeah I also looked at Escape from British Columbia but the Oliver beat it out on a free important counts despite the Escape factory only being five hours drive from me. But they’re another interesting fiberglass option fwiw

Thanks for the post. After reading some threads about leaks emerging at fittings after some travel time on some trailers, I bought some tubing and a mix of fittings and a few tools (crimper for crimp style fittings and a cutter made for cutting the tubing) and have that strapped and taped down under the curbside bed. It indeed takes little space and is not heavy and it was fairly inexpensive even going with decent quality tools and fittings.

Yes. Hence my comment that between that and the shorter length it will fit in some spots that won't be doable with the E2 I don't know the sleeping area dimensions though, nor the height of sbuchanan25

Are there other distinguishing features for your intended use that might lead you one way or the other between those two campers you've identified? E.g. for me the four season (ish) ability of the Oliver was important versus a few other brands I was considering, as was the great ground clearance and at least OK axle for doing things like potholed dirt roads at a slow clip (and the impossibility that the cabinets would fall from the walls on those potholed roads and other related build quality/sturdiness benefits). Adding in a reputation for pretty good service followup it became a fairly clear choice for me/us.

Your post leaves me wondering how hard it would be to modify the Elite 1 to put a 30 inch bunk on one side of that bed area (same width as the Elite 2 "twins"). That might be a nice tradeoff if you can stomach the height in the E1 - you do get a bit more flexibility for fitting into smaller or more convoluted-to-back-into sites with the shorter and slightly narrower E1, along with being able to just drive that Tacoma into the ground instead of looking to trade up.

Wow. I can sort of get that they may not have really been on top of this issue when mine was delivered in Late December (though from a separate thread on the forum I have seen that at least one owner had raised the E20 issue directly with them at least a few weeks before and multiple others noted having the issue but I don't know if they'd contacted Service yet). But by June both the E20 AND the problem with not being able to update firmware on some units (the two issues don't always co-occur based on comments from some folks who indeed seemed to resolve the E20 issue with successful udpating of firmware). So I'm scratching my head wondering whether dealing with the downstream service issue and associated customer frustration is really worth whatever they're saving by not testing for both problems and resolving them pre-delivery. I've been generally happy with my limited need for responsiveness and help from Oliver service folks but I'm underwhelmed by some details of delivery particularly though not entirely limited to this pair of issues. When I pay a premium for a premium product my expectations around such details are higher than when I go for cheap and cheerful.

I learned more in my older sister’s manual Volkswagen bug

Yeah my mother’s Galaxy had the 450 V8 which was more than enough for a teenage boy 😀

I passed mine in my mother’s old Galaxy 500 which I think was more or less in the same vein

Yes, and my interior BC based mountaineering friends have said they like to have "bear bangers" along too, though you do have to know how to use them so as to avoid scaring the bear in a way that makes it run toward rather than away from you!

Maybe don't share this article with her 😉 A Grizzly Bear Terrorized a Man for Days in Alaska. The Coast Guard Saw His SOS.

Looks like a fun adventure. Regarding the one lane sections, I wonder what the truck traffic is like, particularly whether there might be loaded logging trucks coming down (which may need one to get off the the side ASAP as they tend to need to stay centered on the crown to avoid dumping their load off the side, and they have mucho momentum).

I found no such thing in my packet (December 2020 delivery)

That would be handy!

Guilty as charged.