routlaw

Couple of thoughts. Just for the record your trip locations are not really the NW but rather should be considered the Northern Rockies. Have not been to CN in a long time so will leave those areas out of the comments. As for chains, I have lived in MT for almost half a century and never owned them nor used them. The likelihood of needing them this time of year is unlikely too but anything is possible. You might see some triple digits temps in SD and ND that time of year and certainly well into the 90's. I did photoshoot in TRNP once in the summer and it was brutal. At least 110º perhaps more, but at least the assignment was with horses. Cameras got so hot it was difficult to hold them at times. Two Medicine is awesome and will be quite a bit cooler, days will be getting much shorter too by then. Same for East Glacier of course. Autumn colors start quite a bit earlier up in this neck of the woods compared to the SW but you should be hitting it at a good time. Expect cool to downright cold nights and with some frost on the later part. I have seen bitter cold temps and near blizzard conditions in Sept but it is rare and certainly not every year. Normally, the roads would not freeze up this time of year, but again anything is possible. Early winter snows tend to melt fairly quick on the roads and Montana has a great road crew system for clearing. I would imagine CN to be no different. Have a great trip

I used to own the 04 version of your exact same Tundra, it struggled to tow our T@b back in those days. I'm not making this up. If memory serves me correct dry weight for the T@b was around 1600 lbs. With that in mind not in my wildest imagination would I think about towing the LE2 with this truck. The transmission alone would be woefully lacking from what I recall. Good luck with your decision on this.

Agree with @rich.dev and @CRM Never have cared for the existing windows and have always felt they were one of the weakest points with the Oliver's. I had the European style windows on my T@b many years ago and felt they were far superior in most cases. Oddly enough never experienced any scratches, although one of the round non opening ones got broken in a hail storm. The last time I checked the company did not make those style of window wide enough to fit the existing Oliver rough openings. Seems like I read somewhere Dometic had either bought the original company. Loved those windows. Oliver windows, not so much.

Sorry but you have some incorrect information I believe. I did order and install the newer converter charger for my PD 4045 unit and it charges at 14.4 volts however it was my understanding some of the earlier units charged at 14.6 volts but realized over time most if not all LiFE-PO batteries should only be charge at 14.4 volts max. I had a long conversation with the people at Epoch regarding charging and what settings they require. The tech support person, perhaps the owner, strongly recommended only using 14.2 volts especially in the initially stages as the BMS goes through it break-in. He insisted never go beyond 14.4 volts. Keeping in mind I rarely use shore power and depend on solar for 99% of my charging duties this was easy enough to setup with the IPN Pro Remote. I would seriously encourage you to talk with the folks at Epoch on charging as they can explain this better than I. The gentleman I spoke with had some serious warnings about 14.6 volts and beyond. In the meantime I have yet to connect shore power to my new Epoch battery but at least I have this option if needed.

John if I understand your description properly you should be able to snap off the shade first. Pull from the bottom then lift off from the top. Once the shade is off the frame you should see several nuts around the circumference of the window frame. Before tightening those you might need to apply some caulk between frame and Oliver body. This shouldn’t have happened regardless of road conditions but should also be a fairly easy fix, albeit an aggravation. My guess is a few screws/nuts were not completely tightened during the build and vibrated loose. Good luck

Lots of great ideas and inputs on the subject. Have to admit I am a bit surprised by how many people do rely on Apple Car Play or the Android equivalent. My older 2013 F-150 of course does not have this built in. I do agree with many other comments though regarding Apple Maps and prefer it over Google Maps the times I have used it sans Apple Car Play of course. Plus I like Siri's voice. @Steve Morris comments regarding how bad Toyotas built in GPS is from my experience and from what I hear from others all auto manufacturers are terrible as well, plus you have to pay for upgrades. Cruel joke. All of these auto GPS built ins are already out of date the day you drive off the lot too and most of them are a major PITA to go through an update, so bad that I haven't even tried it on our Subaru Outback knowing what others have claimed. Given that I don't have a high opinion of my Furrion Rear View Camera at this point I am leaning towards the Haloview 12 BT with Apple Car Play built into the system. Like others we always carry along paper maps too, perhaps it's a generational thing but a road trip/camping trip just doesn't seem complete without them. I really like the Benchmark and Delorme state by state maps too, great having that much close detail. Then there's the National Geographic Trails Illustrated Maps for specific areas, ie national parks and monuments and other such outdoor wilderness areas. Thanks Rob

Looking at the Alcan website it was my understanding they can custom build any spring set with softer or stiffer ride depending upon the needs or desires of the customer. So while even using 5 leafs for heavier loads, why not have Alcan produce a softer ride with different spring steel, or did I miss something?

You are exactly right Bill, cell coverage can be sketchy at best out here in the hinterlands and also an excellent reason not to forgo the use a real GPS device. Granted one can save sections of a map to use off line but that also adds up to a mountain of stored data while not being as fluid as a GPS device. Intuitively have felt for me there is not a sensible way of getting by without a dedicated GPS but am certainly willing to hear from others. Likewise I too travel alone when my wife can't come along which changes the ballgame quickly. It's interesting the only company now making GPS devices in the US is Garmin, all others have left the market due to massively diminished sales years ago.

Good grief @Steve Morris indeed there are some sleaze bags out on the road. Never ran into this yet, hope I don't but something serious to consider now. In the meantime I also found another very interesting device on Haloview that I initially overlooked. It's the Rear View Camera integrated with Apple Car Play or Android Play. Link here For those who already have a TPMS system but not the newer tech found in new trucks and autos this could be beneficial. Thanks

From what I have learned recently while researching a new Garmin GPS, it appears the vast majority of folks have abandoned their traditional GPS devices (road trips) in favor of systems like Apple Car Play via their iPhones or Androids. Suffice it to say there are a litany, almost bewildering array of options on the market that simply were not there half a dozen or more years ago. I am intrigued with the possibilities of Apple Car Play via either the Haloview devices, or ones like this: The Get Car Tablet However I am also skeptical an iPhone or an Android has the capability and features of a dedicated GPS device like the Garmin Smart Drive units. Of course this doesn't even address the amount of data one might use while traveling with smart phone as your navigation device. My goal is also to reduce clutter on the dashboard and in that vain would love to have a device that does it all, GPS, Rear View Camera, TPMS, and Apple Car Play but alas as far as I know no such device is in existence. Thanks, looking forward to learning how others have navigated this conundrum.

Yes I agree @Steve Morris great setup. I also use the TST system which is a major pain to setup and not all that easy to read going down the road with sunglasses on. I also have a Furrion rear view camera too, the initial one that came installed on #70 was stolen via a break-in to my truck. The Furrion is a total piece of crap IMHO but gets the job done. Seems dash cams are all the rage these days but not something that has ever interested me, perhaps I should rethink this.

Just came across this company today while investigating GPS devices, Infotainment system upgrades, and all things monitoring via 12 volt DC in the tow vehicle. Had not heard of this company until now but the inclusion of a TPMS system integrated into a Rear View Camara with high quality monitor and imaging seems like a double win to me. https://www.haloview.com/products.html And here this fellow provides and excellent review and YouTube video demonstration of the Haloview setup. Hope y'all find it usuful

So far at least for us we have not encountered issues with the Dometic fridge and while we don't camp normally in uber hot weather like you folks do in the Deep South and Southwest in the summer still we have been in temps well into the 80's, 90's and flirting with triple digits yet the 3 way absorption seems to cool well enough and keeps items in the freezer section frozen with a setting at 4. The big complaint is the lack of fridge storage and now the possible concern of CO2 emissions in the cab not something I had been aware of until now. Good to know. Would have preferred if Oliver had designed the interior for a larger fridge and eliminated the microwave which we opted out of. Don't use one at home, saw no need for it while camping. While we have made good use of that space for other storage, still it would have been a great option for larger fridge, Oh well nothing is ever perfect.

Just curious how much noise do these things make while running? My experience with DC fridges is they are so loud one can’t sleep at night, or at least I couldn’t. Thanks

Good advice. Actually ordered them from Auto Zone here in town, probably the same type service and warranty. Arrived in only a couple days. Now if it would just quit raining and I could get them them replaced.