MobileJoy

I had been researching travel trailers since 2018 and eventually decided on a size class between 6-10K lbs and either an Airstream or an Elite II. Reducing the towed weight was important to me since our TT was to be used primarily as a roving hotel room while we toured the country. I decided that I did not want the concern of operating over spec and having to deal with liability in case of a bad accident. I also wanted a comfortable towing experience. My tow vehicle research (2019-2020) led me to conclude that anything under a 3/4 ton truck would eventually result in overloading some spec. We are not minimalists which is why I feared exceeding payload on a lighter vehicle. Not requiring the Andersen hitch was a nice benefit. Max tow/max payload packages on a 1/2 ton required accessory compromises we weren't willing to make. Having now taken some long towing trips in 2022 (about 7K miles total), I am glad that my vehicle choice exceeds all of the loading requirements. Having had a couple of panic stops, I'm very happy with how the TV/TT combo handled it. Passed and being passed by many semi trucks and not feeling the draft adds to my driving comfort. Given any particular TT, your use case matters. Had we decided to focus more on camping than traveling, we may have settled on something less capable than a 3/4 ton. An Expedition Max would have been a top consideration at 9K lbs towing capacity, or a 1/2 ton truck. With little (if any) gross trailer weight rating margin, a Promaster 3500 would not have been a candidate in either use case.

If you have propane powered appliances with built-in regulators you will have to remove or bypass them in order to connect it to the Elite's low pressure QD port. If the regulator is external you can replace its hose with something like what rich.dev mentioned above. If your appliance takes the 1 lbs bottle, you can use a straight hose with no regulator (something like this) to connect to a 20 or 30 lbs tank. I have a Weber Q1200 model designed for RVs, which does not come with its own regulator but does come with a 12' QD hose designed for connection to propane ports on the RV.

Sorry to hear this. She will be in our prayers.

Sadly we had already returned home in NC when I saw this. We have done the Marsh Walk but not the Riverwalk. We love Myrtle Beach, so odds are we'll get another chance. Thanks for the suggestions!

I did look at this, but it does not have a 2 1/2" shank option. I've never liked using adapter sleeves. I currently use a 2 1/2" Curt channel hitch that handles 10K for 2" and 20K for 2 5/16". Excellent hitch, no mechanical problems thus far, and it allows me to get very close to the required 23" ball height regardless of current payload. I lowered the tire pressure right after July 2021 purchase. We haven't had any problems with drawers coming out, things falling, etc., and some of those Tennessee back roads are pretty rough. My main goal is to reduce stress on the mechanisms.

Sea Captains was very good. FWIW, I add my endorsement.

When traveling with the F250 towing the OEII, I notice that I can feel the trailer experiencing significant road bumps like heaves, potholes (which I avoid), speed bumps, etc. The Gen Y Boss 10K hitch seems like it will eliminate or soften these impacts. In theory it will reduce the effects of sudden pressure on the hitch on both TV and trailer. Reviews are generally positive. On the downside, this hitch is quite expensive, and may require longer safety chains. For OEII, it seems useful only if you have the right tow vehicle. It does not seem to apply when weight distribution is required (from the photos, it looks like their WD version will not work with the Andersen). Does anyone have experience towing an OEII with this hitch? If so, was it worth the price in your opinion? https://genyhitch.com/product/boss-torsion-flex-10k-drop-hitch/

Thanks, I'll try that. We'll try that as well. Thanks for the suggestions!

I installed this several weeks ago while in storage and we are now testing it out on our first (short) trip with it. So far so good. We are at a Myrtle Beach site where there is some but not a lot of outdoor lighting hitting the white blind. Very little light is coming through. Will have a better report next month when we have had a number of sites behind us as we travel to the west coast. But so far we can say this is one of the better bang-for-the-buck improvements that can be made. Thanks to all of you above for your installation comments. While working with John Halter was a pleasure, it was nice to have a number of questions to ask, and it was helpful to have warnings about installation issues. The end result of the installation is beautiful, and the function is very good. The only negative I have to report is that one of the handle screws will come loose after a number of openings and closings using the grip button on the handle. Retightening works, but only for a short while. I found that using the grip button to close the blind applies sideways torque to that screw. The workaround is to open or close by pressing the handle where it curves at the top of the vertical handle shaft portion. I was careful not to over tighten the screws and not to elongate the drill holes during installation.

I have had many similar experiences with interest from all types of campers. Most had never heard of Oliver. Once I was pulling out of a gas pump and had someone pull up directly in front of us in a pickup truck, blocking our exit and forcing me to brake. He wanted to know about the OEII. I answered his questions, and did not admonish him over his inappropriate action and dangerous driving.

We have a 2020 F250 Lariat SRW with the 7.3L gas and 10-speed transmission. AFAIK, the trans is the same one used with the PowerStroke 6.7L diesel. The 7.3L was designed as a work truck engine with longevity in the mind of the designers. Ford is using it in just about all of their heavy duty vehicles. We have about 45K miles and no hiccups at all. Towing OEII we get about 10-11mpg, mostly highway, 70MPH maximum with cruise control in use. The truck gets about 17-18mpg highway with luggage not towing, and about 13mpg around town. These numbers are calculated on every tank as miles/gallons. The lie-o-meter reads about 0.8mpg high on average. The crew cab is quite large and comfortable, and we often use it for cargo in lieu of the bed. When camping on trips lasting 5 weeks or more, the 6'9" bed has been more than adequate. Regarding 3/4 vs 1 ton, I was enamored of the F350 for quite some time, but eventually decided that the F250 was more appropriate as its GVWR of 10K lbs (5T) passes lots of weight-limited roads. Cargo rating for my truck is just over 3,000lbs. We knew we would only be towing an OEII before we purchased so we were able to optimize. I eliminated the 1/2 ton class because of limited cargo weight capacity and the need to use the Andersen hitch. The combined length is just over 44'. We have had no problem fitting in all of the campgrounds we've been to. Little boon docking so far, and no problems there either. I use the truck as a daily driver and have accustomed myself to parking in less crowded spots. Fitting in lined parking spots width-wise is not an issue, but the truck is a bit long for most spots. This is our experience also. Turning radius is large. We also use a Diamondback cover and it makes front bed access possible. It was the 7.3L engine and the backup assist feature that ultimately caused me to decide for Ford vs RAM and GM. This is our first truck and trailer. After nearly 2 years and about 6500 miles towing on flats and over eastern mountains I have no regrets. TFLT tested a nearly identical 2020 F250 on the Ike Gauntlet and it did very well (ours and theirs had the 7.3L and 3.55 axle). I was also very interested in going diesel because of the power and added range. I decided against it because of more limited fueling places, more difficult to get serviced (requiring a shop that can handle diesels), added expense (both purchase and maintenance) and complexity, regeneration requirements and "limp" mode when late servicing emissions, DEF, potentially very expensive repair should the fuel system fail in certain ways, and higher fuel cost removing the MPG advantage. Had I gone diesel, I would probably own a Ram 2500. Good luck with your decision. I know it is a tough one, and even more so if you have more needs for your TV than just towing an OEII.

Sorry, didn't see this before my last post.

This math doesn't seem right. I am not a Canyon owner, but I looked up the rated payload of the 2022 diesel version and it was stated (Car and Driver) as 1605 lbs. There should be a sticker (probably on the driver's door jamb) that states the actual payload rating for your vehicle. Remember to subtract the weight of any permanent accessories (such as tonneau cover) that you may have added. Using your figures of 580 lbs tongue weight and 330 lbs for people, this leaves 695 lbs of payload at the 1605 rating. The towing capacity and payload numbers are not directly related.

If the trailer has a propane tank lock (it locks the big wing nut that secures the tanks) it looks similar to this lock.

I recently set up an appointment to have an annual service which takes two days to do. I have done an annual service once before and that is what it took. During the same call I asked them if they could install the Aventa. This call happened the day before I received the email advertising the retrofit availability. I was told they would need an extra day for this. I asked service to add it into the estimate and schedule it (all planned for June). So I was surprised to see the above 2-3 day estimate.

GJ, I do not remember posting this. I have checked my past posts and cannot find one in which I mentioned searching for an amber LED replacement light. I used the Lamin-X film having read the thread linked above by Mossey (and other threads). I have not used this film on the courtesy lights. It is holding up well on the porch lights (although it has only been one camping season and about 5K miles; as you said, time will tell). I would also prefer to replace the lights.

I had a brake light failure, curbside upper. Oliver sent me a new one, and that was an adventure to install, considering that the procedure was conceptually simple. To get the light off, I had to figure out how to pop off the chromed-plastic ring (Jason didn't know exactly where the clip points were). Then I had to remove the screws and peel the fixture off of the caulk/sealant. Wires were very short, and I had to cut them as close to the old light as possible just to have 2" of working length. If I had lost the wire inside the hull, I would have had to either crawl into the trunk or try to access it from the heater opening under the mattress, and either would have involved removing and replacing the insulation. Then I had to scrape off the old sealant without losing the wires, butt-splice the new light, stuff the butt splices and most of the wire into the hull, apply new sealant, and finally screw the light back into place, snapping on the new chromed ring. Jason was very helpful during all of this. I was fortunate that it went this "easy", and I do not envy your need to run a new wire. Please post your experience in doing so. It's great that we have such an experienced set of owners to help, and a company that will also go the extra mile for its customers.

You can try using an amber Lamin-X film: https://lamin-x.com/universal-products-automotive/ I have done this for my porch lights, and it seems to reduce the level of bugs. I have not attempted to install this film on the courtesy "puddle" lights.

I opened a case with Oliver parts asking if they carry the Lithionics KF12V20DL charger. Ryder told me they do not list this as a part that they carry. I also have sent an email to Lithionics asking about it, no response yet. Their website does list a number of "where to buy" websites. The only price I saw is $299.

We have one. There are a number of threads on this and they are very detailed: ...and many more. The bottom line is it adds work, but it is worth the work if you plan to boondock frequently, and not so much if you plan to stay at full hookup sites most of the time.

I had the same problem, but at a later point in the life of my OEII. Initially the dogbone adapter worked fine. The 30A feeder circuit that you will eventually install will not have a GFCI. There is much information on this on the web regarding the controversy of having the National Electrical Code require it. Ultimately they decided it was not required. The way I handled your problem was to first make sure that nothing else was using the GFCI protected circuit. Then I temporarily replaced the CFGI outlet with a standard 20A outlet. OEII was not drawing over 20A so this worked fine. Shortly afterwards, I completed my installation of a dedicated 30A circuit and reinstalled the 20A GFCI. FYI, this link came from Jason: https://wizard-of-watts.com/2020/03/15/the-revised-nec-551-71f-for-rv-parks/

I felt (nervously) ready at delivery time. The only towing experience I had was of an OEII that Phil allowed me to tow on our factory tour day (I came prepared for that). Make sure you take that tour if you can. I notice that you did not mention the Facebook owner page (I have not used this hardly at all because I generally do not use Facebook, perhaps others can comment on this?). I hope you will plan on at least a few days near Hohenwald at delivery time so you can test all of the systems before you leave the area. Our first RV was the OEII delivered in 7/21. Before that I spent about 2 years looking at it. Much of that time was spent doing the things you are already doing. Having lived in the OEII for about 13 weeks total, I have experienced several problems (nothing major), some of which required cases, some of which I was able to figure out on my own, and a few of which were user error. I also spent a great deal of time evaluating my tow vehicle needs, studying the technical aspects of towing such as cargo weight needs, hitching mechanisms, etc. This is important and can save you legal trouble should you get in an accident (you want to be sure you are within all weight specs and are otherwise towing safely). You will need the Andersen weight distribution hitch with your Expedition. Your background will at least partially determine the ease with which you handle problems. I am a (retired) software engineer and homeowner, and have acquired experience with carpentry, electrical, and plumbing along the way. Your ability for problem solving and your determination will contribute greatly. The most likely problems are going to be electrical first. Your option list will determine what you have to learn. You will very likely have an Energy Management System (EMS) from Progressive Industries. I strongly recommend a thorough reading of that manual. In our case, we have the Lithium Pro package, so a thorough read of the Lithionics, Xantrex, and Zamp materials was critical. These readings (plus the owners manual) helped me understand how the base electrical system was connected and how the various components behave together. BTW, get a meter so you can diagnose problems as they come up. At campgrounds, you will want to test power on the pole. A 30A to 15A adapter plus a 15A circuit tester (a cheap device that plugs in and lights up with a combination that tells you whether or not the outlet is properly wired) is a great way to sanity check the outlet. If you notice strange behavior like the Xantrex flipping back and forth between shore power and inverter mode, you may want to monitor the voltage at the pole. For plumbing leaks, learn about the PEX fittings. Many can be hand-tightened to stop leaks. Also learn about Sharkbite fittings which can be purchased at a big box hardware store and can be used to make tool-less repairs. Ultimately, you should read all of your appliance manuals as well. We had an issue with the Norcold not cooling. It was cause by bagged food blocking a sensor on the fins in the upper right rear of the refrigerator compartment, causing ice to form there. A Facebook thread found by Sue pointed to that. For trailer leveling, I use the LevelMate Pro by LogicBlue. I purchased it and had Oliver install it for me on delivery day in the closet because I was not confident that the attaching screws would be too long and pierce the visible side of the fiberglass. This system works like a charm, and I have verified its accuracy using a 4' level. I also use the Andersen leveling wedges, the Andersen trailer jack blocks, and heavy rubber wheel chocks I purchased at Northern Tool. We felt the increased excitement as our delivery time drew nearer, which I'm sure you are feeling as well. OEII is a quality product, and you will probably have at most minor issues. Happy camping! Mike

We have the KTT and have had no problems thus far. Just over 1 year old. We also have the hypervent. Very comfortable, can sit on it without feeling the fiberglass edge.

Just a quick report... I have had no issues with my Diamondback SE leaking. Even after severe downpours both while parked and while driving the bed remained dry. Functionally, the DB suits our camping style very well. I can now access everything in our bed while camping without having to climb into it. Because I have an F250 and am about 5'9", I sometimes have to use a portable foldable 8" step to reach things. Our 9'x12' ground mat, Clam screen house, and other things are stored all the way forward to the bulkhead and in the center (side-to-side) of the bed, and I can still get them out and repack them from the ground. On our latest 5-week long trip, I have not had to climb into the bed, and in our previous 5-week trip I only had to climb in one time. The latter was probably because the DB was new to me and I was just getting used to it.

That's good news! When you have done the work can you please share your experience, perhaps with photos?