donthompson

I’m camped at Shadow Mountain Designated Dispersed Campsite #15 near Grand Teton National Park. The road to this campsite may be a little too rugged for the Elite II that I used to own, but I saw an Oliver lower down the mountain when I arrived on Thursday.

Just saw a FB post about Oliver’s plan to be at Overland Expo East in Virginia. Oliver must have been encouraged by the positive experience at Overland Expo Mountain West.

Here are a few photos. The first two are photos of us setting up—you can see what the surface was like. The last shows the full Kimberley display. Oliver had the Elite II on display behind the Kimberley display. BTW, this was the first time Kimberley had all of its Kruisers, the Karavan and the Kamper on display in one place—they haven’t even done this in Australia!

John, I’ll get some photos from other Kimberley owners and post them. Yes, it was extremely dusty. We spent a lot of time keeping our campers clean. My windows screens are still needing attention. Scott spent some time in my T3 and he also looked closely at the suspension and hitch. I think Oliver could produce a model with true off-road suspension and an off-road hitch. Also disk brakes. Based on my conversations with Scott, I think Oliver attracted many potential new customers. I’d be curious about actual sales resulting from the trip to the Expo.

I was excited to see Oliver TT at Overland Expo Mountain West last weekend. My Kimberley T3 Kruiser was on display at Kimberley Kampers USA booth with every Kimberley product on display. Oliver was set up with a beautiful Elite II right behind us. Had many conversations with the Oliver crew including Scott Oliver. Kimberley and Oliver products are both excellent hand-crafted trailers with different uses and attributes. The Oliver and Kimberley people sent many potential customers to one and other during the course of the three-day event. It was the first time Oliver has been represented at an Overland Expo and I’m pretty sure Oliver will be back—Scott said it was very productive. It was great to see how Oliver has improved the Elite II since I purchased mine in 2015. I owned it for four years and have great memories of my travels in the Elite II.

I can report on a few aspects of traveling in the T3. First, the handoff in Bellefontaine, Ohio was very thorough. I spent two full days with Dave Bates learning about the T3. When I planned my first trip from there, I thought I’d be able to drive south for a day and find warm enough weather to escape freezing temperatures at night. This is my third night out and I’m near Dallas, Texas. It’s been cold and windy with lows in the low 20’s. Last night, the wind was blowing 20 mph with higher gusts. After consulting with Dave, I winterized my drinking water tank and filled the general water tank 3/4 full. The general tank is located near the Elwell Timberline diesel heater that provides both forced air heat and hot water. I’ve been running the Elwell system using the diesel burner (it also has an electric burner) on hot water, not heat mode to concentrate the heat near the general water tank. The T3 has a separate diesel heater under the bed which has kept the cabin very comfortable at night. I have used the Elwell in heating mode to warm the cabin up quickly when I arrive at camp at night. Compared to the Oliver, I don’t have the same level of confidence at 20 degrees as I did in the Oliver. But, the comfort in the cabin is better in the T3 because of the two diesel heat sources. One of the biggest differences towing the T3 is the effectiveness of the disc brakes on all four wheels. They are amazing. Not only do they add a great deal of stopping power, they are also much easier to modulate and control. They feel more like the brakes on a motor vehicle than a travel trailer. I also like the ease of leveling the T3. Rather than power jacks, I have airbags that I control from inside the camper with a key fob. When I arrive at camp, I lower both sides completely and then use the key fob to raise the side that needs to be raised to level the trailer. With the Rhino Hitch on my truck, I can raise the front of the T3 quite a ways without unhooking from the tow vehicle. I’ve done this on 2 of my 3 nights out so far. Nice to be able to level fore/aft without unhooking. I haven’t used the outdoor kitchen yet—way to cold. Hopefully in a few weeks it will be warm enough where I plan to travel to cook outdoors. Don

My plans have changed. I also have plans to attend Expo West in Flagstaff, AZ and recently learned that it will be held in May rather than September. The dates conflict with the Oliver Rally. Kimberley USA wants me to have my T3 there and we’re planning a 4-5 day caravan after the rally. I hate to miss the Oliver Rally—I was looking forward to seeing all of you again.

I just registered for the Rally at Lake Guntersville State Park. I plan to camp at site G21 in my Kimberley T3. Arriving on 5/18 and departing on 5/22.

Paul, I don't consider this to be a true 4-season camper. Kimberley winterizes all plumbing and water tanks for Kruisers shipped to the U.S. and includes tank heaters. They also have a new composite wall material and roof material that adds to the insulation rating. Based on my discussions with David Bates, I don't think I'd tow the T3 that isn't winterized at temperatures below 28 degrees. He suggested that the diesel heater will keep the cabin comfortable for sleeping in the mid-teens, but again, I wouldn't want to try to camp with water on board at these temps. Because I typically leave Iowa in January or February to go south, I'll do what I did in the Oliver. I'll leave with a winterized trailer and wait to add water until I get to a warmer climate.

John, do you have the Stone Stomper? Looks great! SeaDawg, it took me months to come to grips with the amount of money I had to spend on the T3, but like the Oliver, I think it will hold it’s value very well. I don’t consider it a depreciating asset like the tow vehicle. And, I’m 72 years old—no sense in compromising at this stage of my life!

Chassis

In response to your questions, John, I chose the McHitch on the Kimberley and a Rhino hitch on the tow vehicle. I’ll tow it with a Ram 2500 diesel. Because of the passage of time, I’m sure the price for mine is not the price you’d pay today if you ordered a T3. I paid Kimberley $9500 for shipping from Australia and I think their cost to ship was around $17,000. All in, mine was around $155,000 plus the $9500 shipping charge. A lot of money, but it’s worth that amount of money to me. I think I have some chassis photos—I’ll see if I can dig them up and post them. Thanks for the tip on the Stone Stomper. Warranty claims will be handled by Kimberley USA—David Bates’ company in Ohio. He’s building a dealer network too. The company in Utah that was a big Black Series dealer dropped the Black Series and is all in with Kimberley. I’ve dealt with David Bates before—he sold my Conqueror to me. He is absolutely committed to supporting those of us who purchase Kimberleys. He’s an automotive engineer and a very skilled technician.

Those of you who have owned an Oliver for many years may remember me. I owned an Elite II for 4 years. Replaced it with a Conqueror which was a big mistake. Sold the Conqueror after owning it for less than a year and ordered a Kimberley from Australia. Covid-19, supply chain issues and shipping delays caused me to be without a camper for almost a year and a half. Finally, the T3 arrived and is being checked out and made ready for me by the distributor in Ohio. Here are some photos. It’s a rugged off-road camper with lots of luxury. Technology is amazing: over 900 watts of solar, 600 amp hours of lithium batteries, four wheel disk brakes, indoor and outdoor kitchen, tons of storage inside and out, etc. I plan to pick it up in a couple of weeks and will do a short trip to North Carolina as a shakedown cruise. Leaving mid-January for a lengthy trip West.

I owned an Oliver Elite II for four years and loved it. Like Raspy, I wanted better off-road performance. I stubbed my toe by purchasing a Ram Rebel and a Conqueror 490. The combo was incredibly capable off-road, but the Rebel's range was too limited and the 490 was way to much work and lacked the creature comforts I was accustomed to. So, I now have a Ram 2500 diesel and a Kimberley S3 should be in a container headed my way in early January. I'm pretty confident I've found the right combination for the type of travel and camping I love.

I'm a former Oliver owner. Replaced it with a Conqueror and now have a Kimberley Kruiser almost ready to ship to the U.S. from Australia. I learned about using the Andersen Plug and wiring to charge my lithium batteries in my Conqueror. I responded to a question today from an Oliver owner about charging with a 7-pin connector. The Andersen plug/wiring will charge your lithium batteries at a much, much higher rate. I've attached a document that provides info on how to install. Vehicle Prep for Conqueror Trailer.pdf