routlaw

@I M in KS actually the Powerboost does come in a 6.5 bed, have been driving one today, Lariat model. It's impressive and a cut above my older 2013 EB in every way. Truthfully I am not sure how much use I would get out of the 7.2 KW generator, maybe some but given our solar and LI-ON battery and how little electricity we use while camping but its still a very nice forward thinking attribute and feature. I am surprised you are not getting better gas mileage though. Even my older eco boost gets on average much better MPG unless its severe windy conditions. Thanks for the info.

Bill your results are very similar to mine in terms of MPG for towing but much depends on the wind out here in the west. I have gotten lower but also higher too under very ideal conditions. Good point regarding my older unit getting close to 100K and this more than anything has prompted me to make a move rather than getting in trouble back in the boonies and all that entails potentially. Otherwise the yes the 3.5 EB are surely a tech marvel, well the entire truck line is for that matter. Very close to closing the deal on new one as we speak. While the longer beds are a PITA in urban areas I still prefer them, but local dealer had very few on the lot but otherwise just about ideal. Thanks

@STEVEnBETTY thanks for this info. Just about to close a deal on one. I do have one more question for you though. What is you normal assuming there is one, cruising range on a tank of gas. I understand the EV portion does nothing on behalf of towing and the tank is smaller by 6 gallons so your range between fill ups should be shorter and more frequent, right?

I will take a stab at this. By filling the fresh water tank until it overflows via the weep holes you now have a tank that is so full the water will tend to flow out of the lowest point. Understand too the bubble level at the front is NOT a perfect indication of true level until its calibrated to a known source. What I am getting at is unless you know there is water leaking between the hulls I wouldn't worry about it too much so long as it's coming out of the weep holes. However one way to check this is take your kitchen drawers completely out of the cabinets and with light in hand peer over to the outside of the trailer, backside of the cabinets at the floor area to make sure nothing is leaking into this area caused by a bad fitting. You could also prevent this by shutting of your water supply during fill up when tank indicator states 100%. On my Ollie even after 100% indication the water will keep filling for another few gallons until it overflows via the weep holes Hope this helps Rob

Considering a new TV and the Powerboost caught my attention yesterday. A 3/4 ton would be nice but just don't have the space to park it or the budget to own and keep one so still going with a half ton. I have had great service from my existing F150 3.5 EB but it is getting long in the tooth (2013) and I now have one major repair to do to the HVAC system (over $2K) with potential concerns for more major repairs in the future now that I am coming up on 100K miles. Other than this one repair the truck has been near faultless for well over 12 years other than basic maintenance. Given my tendencies to be far off the beaten path with #70 in tow reliability is becoming a concern. I know there are a few of you who have been towing with the Powerboost F150 and wanted to check in with you to see how thats still going? MPG, towing range, or anything else you would like to share regarding its towing capability as well as day to day driving? Curiously what I see on dealer lots recently is the 5.5 beds vs the 6.5 foot beds. Not sure why, but not happy about it. I really like the longer bed length for a variety of reasons but maybe I could get used to the 5.5 foot bed length. Thanks Rob

Haven't driven this road in quite a few years but when we last did it was a very slow go so if you decide to do this pack your patience with you. We were not towing at the time, just car camping with tents. In most areas it tends to be a near bumper to bumper experience with many small towns communities along the way. Think stop and go traffic and driving. It is a very pretty drive if you have the time and patience. At the time we were there the campgrounds were very packed and very crowded along the way, almost claustrophobic at times, and no doubt much more so now by any measure. Since 101 is on the Pacific coast even in the summer months it can be considerably cooler than you might imagine, pack accordingly. There are a lot of nifty little towns along the way and depending upon what you are looking to do it could be a pleasant trip. Just don't be in a hurry. Good luck.

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.

Interesting write-up and execution, well done. However I am stumped as to why you or anyone would go to so much trouble and expense to charge your RV batteries from the tow vehicle? Not meant to be derogatory just don't understand why. From videos I have seen from Will Prowse he is thumbs down for using your tow vehicle to charge RV batteries. Now that I have installed LiFE-PO batteries I was considering removing my relay switch and fuse that controls battery charging from the tow vehicle actually. What am I missing? Thanks

Still pouring here but, but I think it’s just the camera angle. Springs looked ok the last time I crawled under there. Thanks

Ok got it, that makes sense. Thanks! All good info.

Ordered a new set of the Bulldog shocks anyway, came in today. As luck would have it been raining all day and for the next few days to boot. Just curious what it recommended for the torque values for installing these shocks. Nothing in the box indicating torque values. I would assume something in the neighborhood of 35-40 perhaps.