John E Davies

That is primarily an illustration of why a Jeep owner “airs down” when going onto loose terrain. Wider footprint, more grip, less spinning and trail damage, at the expense of slightly lower ground clearance... It also shows why the tires’ rolling resistance goes up when you deflate your Ollie from 80 to 40 psi. It’s interesting to see that the footprint doubles in area between 40 and 15, but the change is a whole lot less dramatic above 40 psi.,. My sweet spot is 42, because I do minimal Interstate cruising, but lots of back highways and less that ideal road surfaces, AKA POTHOLES. Hit a 3 or 4 inch deep pothole at 50 mph with rock hard tires and you will think your trailer exploded. This shows a main arterial route here in Spokane, where we get lots of freeze thaw cycles. It also shows why the center stripe paint gets worn off so fast, all those studded tires on cars avoiding the holes BTW one of the local weather reporters calls the arteries “artillery” routes. It’s a hoot. John Davies Spokane WA

I cut three inches off the bottom of my Andersen mount, I knew it would be an issue but I kept putting it off, until I nailed the pavement hard at a steep driveway, that shook the frame badly and jarred my fillings. That sort of extension is pretty common on HD trucks, but ideally there should be minimal steel hanging down so low. John Davies Spokane WA

LOL, those darn white 2” ones are really hard to find, I probably bought from that same Amazon vendor. I needed just one. So I have 24 left… they are grossly undersized for a 2” hole, I had to glue it in. In case anyone wants the link 2” hole plugs white, way too many but the only source John Davies Spokane WA

I looked over my first one today at a dealer, a TRD Pro. I did not see a sticker since it had been sold, but it was listed at $80k. I think it looks great from the back, OK from the sides and front. There are two butt ugly FAKE air vents on top of the hood, maybe they could be removed without requiring a repaint, hopefully they are just 3M taped on. A sales guy opened the hatch for me and said how very disappointed all his sales buddies are with the miniscule cargo capacity of an 8 passenger vehicle. If I had one, all center and rear seats would have to come OUT and a storage platform system installed. I am sure the aftermarket is all over this problem. I also think the turbos will be a long term maintenance headache, if they cannot be dropped straight down from the headers. Some pics: I wondered about the 33” spare tire underneath, it sticks way down, almost as far as the straight axle pumpkin, and will drag unless an owner adds some spring lift. The very pretty twin exhaust tips will be easily crushed too. No tow hooks up front or a place to install them. The breakover angle is horrible, but removing those boards would help some.. This isn ‘t a Land Cruiser 300, no way. Maybe we will see those in a couple of years. I can buy a lot of fuel for my LC 200 for $90k…. My daughter bought a RAV4 Hybrid XLE there today, the dealer is family owned, does NOT mark up prices or force unwanted dealer add ons. Woohoo, one very happy young lady… her first new car. We took up a better set of tires, Yoko Geolander A/Ts to replace the crap OEM “high mileage” ones. We still got 40 mpg on the 90 mile drive home. John Davies Spokane WA

Thanks. The net is from Raingler. I love them, there are two in my LC200. I am a firm believer in restraining flying cargo or animals in the event of a collision. I had a net and a welded steel Milford Cargo Barrier from Oz in my old LX450. Here is the Raingler Super Duty net: https://raingler.com/collections/ford-f250-f350-vwr-heavy-duty-cargo-nets Your do most definitely need door and front seat drool guards from Amazon. Older or injured dogs need assistance getting in, steps or a ramp work OK. John Davies Spokane WA

This is important. You really don’t want your fridge to be constantly drawing down your Ollie batteries when parked. 40 to 60 amp hours daily, on average for my ARB 50 quart Classic. John Davies Spokane WA

You have a Ford, there are solutions out there that don’t require carpentry skills. BTW Baltic Birch 15 mm plywood is now $6 per sq ft! https://www.truckoffice.com/products/cargocrew/ John Davies Spokane WA

I think it is a bad idea for several reasons. A cargo tray and your cooler will be over 100 pounds empty. Adding a bunch of food will bring it way higher, that is a huge cooler. The factory bike rack is rated at 150 pounds cargo weight, I think. The rear of an Ollie is dusty, wet and mucky, not a place for your expensive compressor to be operating while towing in inclement weather or on dirt roads. The up and down motion will be severe, your food will be damaged and rearranged, eggs broken. The theft risk is incredibly high! Sun will beat on it and make it work extra hard. You can put an insulating blanket over it, that helps with heat gain but they are pricy. An ARB one is $400. 1Up makes a very nice tray, but it is about 50 pounds. Their “add on” tray for their bike racks is too small for your cooler. https://www.1up-usa.com/product/48in-hitch-mounted-cargo-carrier/ Inside your truck cab is the very best place, is there a reason you can’t strap it down there? It would be secure, cool, dry and clean. Plug it into your round power socket. Here are pics of a birch dog platform I built for my 2006 Ram 3500. Two 40 pound doodles up top, lockable gear storage under the right side, cooler area on the left. A soft “pantry” cooler on top of that with soft stuff. In direct sun I would put a sun shield over that window . John Davies Spokane WA

Did you cover this hole with aluminum tape? The outside vent “system” should be completely air tight. That prevents propane gas and air leakage into the cabin and also keeps out bugs. Can you post a link to the seal you used? Thanks. John Davies Spokane WA

Two bungee cords, one at the whale tail shackles, and one at the midpoint of the chains. Simply drape them over the tongue. You can keep the rear one in place all the time, even when towing. Use the front one to secure your 7 wire cable to the top of the hitch when towing, to prevent dragging and damage….. John Davies Spokane WA

I would never use a router or die grinder inside an Ollie! A jig saw will go through that fiberglass without making very much mess, just tape down a vacuum hose near your cut. I did this one under the fridge with a jigsaw, it took some hand work near the duct with a hacksaw blade because I did not (yet) have an oscillating tool. It is hidden and neatness was not a priority. I just ordered this Dewalt at almost half off. DEWALT 20V MAX XR Multi-Tool Kit, Oscillating Tool, 6-Speed, Quick Blade Change for Multi-Tool Needs, Cordless (DCS356D1) Plus some generic carbide cutoff blades. EZARC Carbide Oscillating Saw Blades, Multitool Blades Quick Release for Hard Material, Hardened Metal, Nails, Bolts and Screws, 3-Pack I can’t justify the cost of German tools and their proprietary accessories (Fein) for casual home projects…. John Davies Spokane WA

“Besides the powertrain, the Highlander also needs the available AWD option installed with the Dynamic Torque Vectoring (TV-AWD) feature. This feature improves on both the responsiveness and stability of the Highlander. It does this by sending up to half of the power to the rear and then basing distribution of the rest solely on who needs it most. The third piece in the 5,000-pound puzzle is the drivetrain, specifically the available 8-speed automatic transmission. With these three things installed, your Highlander is ready to tow anything up that upper towing capacity of 5,000lbs.“ https://tractionlife.com/toyota-highlander-towing-capacity-specs-up-close/ John Davies Spokane WA

It is never a good idea to have a marginal vehicle, but you can lighten the Highlander. Remove the third row seat completely, move your heavier cargo forward. Payload is heavily impacted by optional features, what does your actual sticker say? Where do you live, where do you want to go camping? You will not like the Highlander’s performance out West in July….. If you don’t really love your trucklet, trade it in for a full sized body on frame truck designed for towing. Then you could pick an LE2, if you need the room. Or it would tow an LE1 without breaking a sweat. Most of these passenger vehicles are fine pulling a boat to the lake, not so much a travel trailer across the county.. John Davies Spokane WA

Interesting, but the video is four times too long, that man does like to hear himself talk. I think hydraulic disks plus ABS should be standard on every Ollie. They don’t need sway control but they sure do need a reliable, “transparent” brake system. Like your tow vehicle. ABS for Trailers? Montana Owners Forum The big questions are: how much $$$ and how hard is it to retrofit on an older trailer? John Davies Spokane WA

Dave, done, thank you. You are number 11 Ollie. That will be quite a mini rally. John Davies Spokane WA

Bump, please let me know if you reserved and are not on the Ollie list. John Davies Spokane WA

Something this simple is easily handled without doing a warranty claim, which will involve a dealer visit or a mobile RV tech. Plus wasted time and aggravation. https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/2036-suburban-hot-water-heater-failed-a-dealer-repair-story-and-lesson/ IMHO you should just fix it yourself and move on. John Davies Spokane WA

Be very aware that almost all Native American reservations prohibit having any firearm in your vehicle or trailer, even if empty and locked up. This also applies to Indian buildings on a through State or Federal highway, for example a gas station convenience store. Be careful, don’t walk in to pay while carrying a concealed pistol. I avoid reservations for this reason, if I did find myself on one, I would be sure to secure them really well inside the Ollie and not drive recklessly! John Davies Spokane WA

An example of the GAIA Topo map layer, zoomed out and then way in at Moab. John Davies Spokane WA

Dave, are you OK with gravel and rough back roads? Do you have rock protection? Do you mind dust? That early in the season, camping is all about elevation. The lower desert attractions are perfect that time of year, but the USFS sites up high and anything up on the Colorado Plateau will most likely still be snowed in. Make sure you have maps that include topgraphic features (elevation contours). You cannot rely on cell phones, you need a stand alone navigator that is better than your lame factory nav system. I use an iPad Mini 6 loaded with several mapping programs. If that sounds agreeable, search the forum, we have discussed this many times. I really love the Moab area, my wife and I have specified in our wills that our ashes be distributed near the White Rim Road (Arches). If you want to drive that road, it requires a back country permit and you may not be able to acquire one, unless your dates are very flexible. You would need a short wheelbase 4wd rental, ATVs are not allowed. Mountain bikes are OK. https://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/whiterimroad.htm White Crack CG milepost 39 is the one to pick!!! White Rim pics from 2013. John Davies Spokane WA

Do you have the special 1 1/2” thinwalled socket? breaker bar or impact gun? There are cheap stamped tools, but IMHO you should buy a quality one that will make the job easy. Turn off the shore power and trip the water heater circuit breaker! Open the relief valve lever so that the water pressure will vent. If you don’t have the other tools you need, go ahead and buy a socket for the anode rod so you can remove it. Use a water heater flush wand hooked to a garden hose to flush out any gunk before reassembly. Use teflon tape on the anode when reassemble it. The heating element should come with a new gasket, it doesn’t need tape but the surfaces must be spotless. John Davies Spokane WA

We should all think hard about all aspects of each our mods. We really don’t want to annoy, burn, damage, explode or kill anybody. Adding extra access points or ID labels to boxes and wires for future owners is always in my mind, these trailers will be around looooing after all of us are gone to the Happy Trails Above. For example: But you also need to have a *** LOT *** of spare time. No hourly RV tech is going to do this stuff for you. John Davies Spokane WA

See the thread above, I rewired that whole circuit, I used 10 AWG charge and ground wires back to the Oliver bus. I moved those buried splices to above the sewer pipe and secured them up high for easy future access. FYI it is “possible” to make a secure splice of a too small wire into a larger butt splice, you strip it extra long and fold the wire back on itself. But that is the redneck way, I would not endorse it. John Davies Spokane WA

https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/5271-how-to-junction-box-for-the-7-wire-trailer-harness-under-the-front-dinette-seat/ From that thread, here are the outside running light connections for the left front (LF) ones (I THINK both top and bottom lights connect here.). The LR and RR will be reasonably easy to access. The RF one is buried under the closet floor I believe. If you do open up that wire loom cover for a look inside, please make sure Oliver did not mess up like this: FYI, Oliver’s color coding for the 7 pin wires inside the trailer is wacky and nowhere close to the industry standard. John Davies Spokane WA

It is really hard to ID a vehicle from a partial roof/ side image. I think it is a Volvo XC90. The swept forward rear hatch makes it look shorter from this angle. You can see just a hint of the Volvo tall tail light in the first pic. If so, the Ollie is too much trailer. John Davies Spokane WA