tallmandan

I’ve posted about my TV. Know there are a few of us here with the GM 3.0 diesel half ton

I'm assuming the attached email went to all on the Oliver mailing list. RV show season is coming up and it appears Oliver is utilizing partner dealers to show Ollies at various locations. This makes it pretty clear who the chosen dealers are in these cities with each one referenced by each RV Show city. I live near Denver and was not familiar with B & B RV before seeing the name in this Oliver email. In looking at their website it states they are a "boutique dealer specializing in unique, off-road, off-grid, lightweight travel trailers" and they do list Oliver among their manufacturers. I'm pleased to have a small, specialized RV shop as an authorized Oliver dealer here in Colorado in the event that I need service beyond my basic mechanical knowledge. Anyway, this makes it pretty clear which dealers were selected in Oregon and Colorado to join those already listed on the Oliver website in Georgia, North Carolina, Massachusetts and Virginia.are a boutique dealer specializing in unique, off-road, off-grid, lightweight travel trailers Gmail - Dan and Teresa, Come See Us at These RV Shows for 2024!.pdf

I have the Retrax tonneau cover with the T-track sides. This allows install of Yakima crossbars. On the Yakima HD crossbars are two 1Up bike carriers. These are rated for E-bikes. The bike in the photo is my size XL E-MTB with 29er size wheels. This setup has worked well and is surprisingly stable for my beast of a bike. It’s 50lbs but I remove the battery to be under 40lbs. For me this setup works great. I am able to hoist it up on to the rack as I’m 6ft5in tall with good shoulder strength. It would be tough for someone smaller and likely would need something to step up on.

Another vote for Custer SP. We stayed at Sylvan Lake Campground which was great. Agree with SeaDawg about the wildlife loop either eary or late in the day.

Just joining in to say welcome! Your decision and your wait will most definitely be worth it! In the Summer of 2020, my wife and I were barely enduring a Colorado hailstorm in our pop-up trailer and decided it was time to upgrade. As I researched RV options, I found reports and stories of problems after problems. One of the guys I talked to said he wished he had just paid the money and waited for an Oliver. I said "what's an Oliver" and that was the begining for us. In a near-miracle, a 1-year old Oliver showed-up for sale in Denver. We bought it and have enjoyed it very much even though we only have time for shorter trips each season (still working full time). For us, the size is just right because it can fit in the National Park and National Forest campgrounds for boondocking, yet we have all the comforts in amazing, remote places without ever needing hookups. We've taken it to Canyonlands, Arches, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Custer SP, Badlands, Gunnison Gorge, Great Sand Dunes and Rocky Mt National Parks in addition to numerous tucked-away, awesome national forest campgrounds. Absolutely no regrets in buying it and look forward to adventures with it for years to come. Maybe use the wait time to research and plan cool new places to take your Ollie 🙂

I've commented in a few different threads about my experience towing with my 2021 Chevy Silverado 1500 3.0L diesel. In 2.5 years, it now has 32K miles and about 5k towing my LEII. I thought I would post a follow-up that may be helpful for anyone considering the GM half-ton diesel as a tow vehicle. After owning Toyotas for almost 20 years, I have to say I was hesitant about the reliability of a GM product -- but it's been great so far. PROS: Power/torque more than adequate for towing an LEII. I just returned from a trip that took me over Loveland Pass, Rabbit Ears Pass and Berthoud Pass in Colorado. The diesel engine has absolutely no problem and no stress getting up and over. No noticable loss of power at high altitude and no high-RPM downshift that can happen with a gasoline engine. Fuel economy has been very good. I average 17 mpg while towing and the truck gets around 30 mpg in highway driving when not towing. In Colorado, diesel is now a little less expensive than regular again (yay!) but a year ago it was more per gallon so that wiped out any significant savings. 10 speed transmission is super smooth Automatic engine brake is fantastic on the long downhill runs. It's very reassuring to have it kick-in automatically and only touch the brakes a few times. I've always felt stable and in-control - even rolling all the way down Loveland pass at speed with traffic! GM trailer tow package and 360 degree camera package is excellent. It recognizes and remembers my trailer. It checks and notifies me of a wiring fault (I still check my lights/brakes manually). I purchased and self-installed the GM accessory trailer rear-view camera and it works extremely well. The live-motion back-up guidelines are super helpful (see photos). The truck monitors the TPMS sensors in my Oliver tires (had the GM sensors installed) and it displays on the dashboard screen. Comfortable and quiet ride both while towing and when being used as my daily-driver. You can barely tell its a diesel engine as there is almost no "clack" sound No problems in 32k miles so far CONS: Payload is around 1500 lbs (like all half-ton trucks) and that could be limiting for longer trips and taking more "stuff" Have to use the WD hitch (like all half-ton trucks). I find the Anderson WD hitch to be a hassle - but one that I can live with to be safe and legal. Squat from trailer tounge weight was not bad but a little more than I liked. I added Roadmaster Active Suspension (RAS) and this reduced squat by about an inch without any noticible effect on ride quality. Have to mess with adding DEF fluid. When towing, it uses a lot of DEF and the guage is not very accurate. Best to top off before leaving and/or put an extra 2.5g of DEF in the bed to minimize anxiety about it. Maintenance may be a little more expensive. I only trust the dealer to do the work as independent shops may not be familiar with the 3.0L Duramax. Oil changes cost $120 every 6K to 7K miles. Overall, I'm very pleased with my decision to buy the truck as my TV and as my daily-driver. I would buy this truck again and defintely get the 3.0 diesel over the 5.3 or 6.2 gas engines. If I were more of a full-timer in towing, I would consider spending the extra for a 3/4-ton. This would be primarily so that I had more payload and to avoid the WD hitch. Hope this may be helpful for anyone considering the GM half-ton diesel truck.

Agree with @Rivernerd. Lots of folks tow an LEII with a half ton truck and it works just fine with tow package and WD hitch. Most would also agree that a 3/4 ton truck is ideal for towing and gives you more payload if you need it. Consider your use overall - in my case, I use my truck as my daily-driver and for frequent day trips into the mountains for skiing, fishing and mountain biking. I tow my Oliver on several trips each year but it's not the "primary" use for my truck. I have a 2021 Silverado 1500 with the 3.0L diesel and I've been very satisfied both towing and not towing. If I were a full-timer with my trailer or using it frequently year-around, I would go for a 3/4 ton diesel.

I have the GM accessory rear-view trailer camera. I'm assuming the Ford would be very similar but I don't know. I ordered it from a Chevy Dealer online to save a few bucks and installed it myself which turned out to be pretty easy. I've copied the link to that post below. Anyway - my favorite feature, by far, is that the "guidelines" that appear on the screen when backing up the trailer move when the steering wheel is turned to "forecast" where the trailer will go in reverse. It's been super helpful when backing into tight camping spots at angles. I doubt any aftermarket cameras can do this but I bet the Ford version can. Also - at first I was dissapointed that the rear camera was not wireless. However, the crystal clarity and zero latency of the view on the screen is due to the hardwire and I appreciate it. It seems GM and Ford make hardly any info available about these trailer cameras and that makes it hard know much before install. My local GM dealer knew almost nothing about them and was no help. I'm really glad I went with the manufacturer system on my Silverado.

Bill, thanks for sharing this. I made the original post and never followed up here. I purchased a new remote panel from Amazon and installed. It did not fix the problem. Like the original panel, it displayed correctly but the power button was inoperative. I also tried using the new cable (like a phone/cat5 connector) and that didn't change anything either. I called xantrex and they had me do another reset by removing battery power for a few hours and still nothing. Finally they want me to pull out the inverter and send it to them. Im second owner and it's over 2 yrs old so I don't think I have any warranty. I have been just getting on my knees and turning the inverter on/off at the main unit through the portal. Reading your post, I'm going to, yet again, poke around with the cables and see if I can get anything to happen - so thanks.

Agree with John - soaked, wet bugs come off a lot easier. I usually give our Ollie a hand wash in the driveway after a trip. I soak the bugs with water/carwash soap solution then wash the whole trailer leaving the bug-covered front for last. While washing and rinsing, I will hit the bugs with a stream of water and more soap from the soft car wash brush I use. Finally, use the soft brush or microfiber cloth and they come off pretty easy after soaking. Keeping the front polished with a good coat of wax twice a year helps too.

We use a cover in the off-season at a storage lot. I wrote about it here... I leave the Renogy solar suitcase panel to keep the batteries charged. Just covered it again for the winter.

Ok, I'll chime in here on my experience with a lower-end, less expensive electric cooler. After reading through the reviews, I bought a Massimo CX40 cooler from Costco in April. I paid only $270 for it with and $80 off promo. I knew it wasn't the build quality of a Dometic or Iceco but it's like one-third of the cost and the reviews were good. I've used it on 4 trips and it's been great. It plugs in to the 120v outlet in the bed of my truck during travel. It has bluetooth and I can monitor and control the temps with the app on my phone. It cools down very quickly. It's just the right size for fitting under my tonau cover in the truck bed and I can then move it to the dinette seat in my LEII and transfer food back and forth to the refrigerator. I've also plugged it into the 12V in the trailer and found that it's pretty efficient (especially if it's already been running in my truck and fully cold inside). I've kept it running set to 36 degrees on 12V in the trailer while having good sun exposure for the solar and it's been no sweat at all over a 3 day trip. It's kinda cheap looking compared to the $800-$1000 units and may not have the same quality of insulation - but honestly it's worked really well so far. I figure that if something goes wrong I can easily retrun it to Costco. It appears Costco is out of stock on the CX40 and only has the larger CX50 right now at their regular price. If you want to go electric but spend less, it's worth a look when it comes back in stock especially when Costco adds an $80 promo discount every few months. https://massimoelectric.com/e-koolers/cx40/ https://www.costco.com/massimo-cx50-12v-portable-e-kooler.product.100566509.html

@Katjo I see you have a 2021 Ram. With a quick Google search I see 2021 Rams can come equipped with the built in TMPS system for trailer tires. Do you know if you have this feature on your truck…? I have it with my 2021 Silverado tow package. I had Discount Tire install the sensors in my LEII and program them to the truck. It works great and I monitor them on the dash LCD screen without having another gadget to deal with.

I prefer to think we are still (always) in pursuit of our “favorite” boondocks camp spot 😊 So far I’d say it’s Devil’s Garden in Arches NP. Incredible views, rock formations and hiking trails right in the campground. Sunrise and sunsets were amazing

I own a 2021 Silverado 1500 4x4 with the 3.0L deisel. I tow our Elite II with it and it works well for our needs. Been very pleased with the 3.0L engine and 10 speed transmission. We make mostly boondocking trips of 3 or 4 nights and don't bring very much "stuff." It sound like you will be served better with a Chevy/GMC 2500. The payload on my truck is around 1500lbs and if there are two people + 500# hitch weight + 250# generator you are already running out safe load capacity. I really woudn't want a Colorado/Canyon. The smaller wheelbase and weight would make me nervous on the mountain roads I travel and the truck bed is smaller capacity (unless you are considering an Ellite I)