Steve Morris

We are going to call Anita today and arrange a plant tour next Friday. Before the tour, we plan to see all of the trailers in the showroom and hopefully decide place an order when we're done! I'm sure the ordering process is documented somewhere, but for my clarification, a couple of questions: IF we decide to order, we put down a deposit. Is our order locked in then, or will there be a period of time where we can change the options? Are there the equivalent of accessories available, such as branded clothing (I'm bald, so never without a hat), bedding, camp furniture, etc? I know a fire pit and gas grill are available in a package option, so I'm guessing other items are also available. Tank size understanding: We currently use a Cleanwaste Portable Toilet beside our Hiker, inside a separate shower/changing room, as well as campground bathrooms. We do our business in a bag with anti-stink powder in them, and then take them to a dumpster. Anything will be an improvement on that! So we have no experience whatsoever with traditional trailer toilets and showers or composting toilets. For two people with well functioning digestive system, about how many days does the 15 gallon black tank last without using other bathrooms (campground, rest area while travelling, etc.) or without going to extremes like watering the flowers or not flushing TP? I think people with 5 gallon cassette toilets say about two days, so does six days for 15 gallons sound typical? Ignoring which toilet we would chose, how many days does the gray tank typically last, again assuming not using other washing/showering options? Figure a shower for each of us on two out of three days, with Deb washing her hair every third day. I'm just guessing at ballpark numbers here, as we use body wipes and public showers with the Hiker. The hotter and more humid, the more we shower. And I'm guessing that the shower is the major water user, with dishes, washing hands, and flushing the toilet being lesser use? Maybe I'm completely wrong... Those questions come back to the ordering question. If we order now, but have until November to finalize the build, we might rent a trailer locally to help answer some of these questions ourselves. Thanks for any input!

Thanks, @Rivernerd I'd never heard of those before. Learn something every day! I avoid wire nuts whenever possible, too. And I can't think of any time I've used them with stranded wire, which is what should have been used in the trailer. That's why I used crimped terminals with heat shrink insulation in all of the above connections, and anchored them to fixed terminals. I'll look into the Wago lever nuts for possible home use. Thank you.

😮 That’s the connectors they use in the factory?? That can’t be to any kind of code. Yikes! Even wiring the simple AC electrical system I adde to my tiny squaredrop I used terminal blocks! Same with the DC side.

It was wonderful talking to you, too! Thank you so much for the information and thoughts. We look forward to meeting you (and all the folks here) on the road somewhere.

Thanks! There seem to be a lot of us here in Ohio. Gonna need a mini-meet some time next summer. 😉

You might check with this guy on the Facebook group. I don't know what awning they have, but he recently posted this photo here: https://www.facebook.com/stephen.cobb.92/posts/pfbid02PsM2NAX9S2WtxuJ934KEpYWijTiKn7CkN73UbuS2wjEJWJnSnpEGLMLXiddunZ4fl?__cft__[0]=AZXPEQlFt-MMZITryQd62UgjhS2Q3UCqmZ4DDApsEg7QCDTtSrkFvM2A9H8SF5PJQUeYS2zxr8ZWfVrrN5RLUtva4YTI3XeVz7DQHLMdgr2cfLG4-choHpoGNqlpF-4micQwn30A_omv2uqPnBVLCWEXNGL18qrXiCgiE81Cdlm_W1p99ML41mhFgOmj-4YPypZvkBDo1XgW1lFmBsuIMEi8&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-y-R

Back on topic for an update. 😉 After several delays due to some health concerns (all okay) we finally saw our first Oliver trailer yesterday. Sue and Matt, hull #944, invited us for a visit to see their 2021 Elite II that they picked up last fall. We spent over three hours with them, both exploring the trailer, and sitting beside their lake talking about actual use and travel in general. it was everything we were hoping for, and then some! 😍 Much roomier than we expected in the twin configuration. No concern about the 30” bed width. So bright and airy feeling inside, and quality that’s on par with very expensive boats we’ve been in before. Absolutely nothing that we didn’t like, and so much we loved. So, we’re still heading to Hohenwald mid-August, and have a pretty good idea of what options we’d select. The only thing that will keep us from placing an order is indecision on actually making the commitment. No other trailer will do, so it’s either the Oliver or continue with the tiny squaredrop and motel travel. Thank you so much Sue and Matt, and to everyone else here sharing their knowledge and experiences!

Wow, that brought back memories! Youngest daughter had her own Flat Stanley, like your grand nephew. But our eldest daughter had a similar project where they sent around a stuffed animal with photos of it in different places. That one ended up on a float with our daughter and John Glenn for a facility naming ceremony, and then onto the International Space Station. That was the highlight of her year, and made the local news and then AP affiliates covered it. Thanks for the flashback!

Welcome! If you are on Facebook, there's an "Oliver Travel Trailer for Sale" Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/OliverforSale Good luck with your search.

Wow, that's crazy that they've squeezed that much power into such a small package. And fuel injected to boot! We have the EU3000is, which has a slightly larger engine (160cc vs 130), but the whole package is huge by comparison. Here's a random photo I found with a person for scale. It looks like my old one is a tiny bit quieter at 49-58 dB vs 54-58, but I'd trade that for size. We ended up putting the wheel kit on ours, as it takes both of us to move it around when we need to use it. Ours does have the same engine as our snowblower, so that's good for service parts commonality. I added propane as an alternate fuel a couple of years ago using the Hatch Mountain kit. Much easier to maintain, as Honda's carburetors are notorious for clogging with old gas.

I wondered if anyone did with trailers this weight. For decades, over a succession of under 2000 pound sailboats and now my squaredrop trailer, I've used a stainless steel ball and a four layer thick square of waxed paper. Never a squeak, no wear, no mess. A boat dealer told me about this method back in the '70s or '80s.

Following up in this post. I ended up in hospital after posting, and back home yesterday. I'm fine; just a scare, but feeling under the weather a bit. I cross-posted this query on the Facebook group, too, and had responses from several folks. A lady in Akron has theirs at their house this weekend, and then Geneva State Park for the first of next weekend. We were going to try to see it one of those places, but with the medical stuff and a followup midweek next week, I think we'll wait until later next week or the weekend to visit.

We'd planned to visit Hohenwald this week, but that ended up not happening, nor will another opportunity come up for at least a month. @Dave and Kimberly live about three hours SW of us, but I wanted to ask if there is anyone with an Elite II closer, or planning to pass though northern Ohio in the next few weeks? We're 20+ miles west of downtown Cleveland in Avon, and US 2/90 are about a mile north of us. The Ohio Turnpike is maybe 10 miles south. If anyone would like to pull off the highway so that we could take a look at your Elite II, we'd be happy to buy you lunch in exchange. If so, send me a private message and we can make arrangements. Thank you!

Slight delay in our plans. We originally intended to leave for Kentucky yesterday, and then down to Hohenwald later this week. But recovery from some minor surgery on Wednesday isn't going quite as quickly as I'd hoped. Not a big deal, I just thought I'd bounce back immediately. I guess bouncing back takes longer as you get older... Anyway, this week was a nice open gap in our schedule, and it doesn't look like another will occur until at least mid-August. Grrr!!! I know that @Dave and Kimberly are only about three hours SW of us and have offered to let us look at their Elite II. Is there anyone else closer to northern Ohio west of Cleveland with an Elite II? Or someone passing though that we could arrange to meet? That might be enough to convince us to start an order process (or possibly eliminate an Oliver all together) and then take the tour later. Thanks for any input! [EDIT] I'll create a thread looking for someone local in case someone passing though doesn't read this post

Thanks to someone on here, we just ordered a set of AB Lifestyles custom sheets for our Hiker squaredrop trailer. When we bough the 5X8 Hiker, we added a 6" folding Milliard queen mattress and queen sheets. The problem with the queen mattress is that it is the exact same width as the inside of the trailer, and long enough to push into the open lower galley area. So no ventilation around the mattress, even if I put the venting stuff underneath, Last week I closed off that galley area, and cut the mattress down to full-size mattress length, but wider than full size. Any sheets we found are for 12-16" thick mattresses, so tons of wrinkles. On you guys' advice, we ordered a set of custom sheets and mattress pad from AB Lifestyle, and they should be here after next week. They were going to ship them sooner, but that's when we will be down in Hohenwald. 😉 We got the cheapest set they offered, but the quality and service will be a good indicator if we need to order a set of Oliver Twin sheets from them next spring. 🙂

Yep, that’s the one Philip Andrews said came on the 2023 Truma option; the Truma VarioHeat and the Truma AquaGo. Not the Truma Combi. Before I bought the Land Cruiser, I was looking at flatbed truck campers. I found a few mentions that the separate units was a better more reliable and efficient option then the Combi. The Combi’s obviously advantage is size.

I can't find it now, but I asked this question on the Oliver Facebook group. Oliver sales employee Philip Andrews said that the water heater and furnace were Truma separates, not the Combi unit.

Wow! I can’t remember my first camping experience! That surprises me. I remember going to Kiser Lake State Park (Ohio) in my grandparent’s Shasta in the late ‘50s. It had the canvas bunks suspended on rods above the bed. All I remember about that trip is how hot those bunks were, that there was an artesian spring to cool off in, and that all the parents were worried about a bobcat howling in the woods behind our camp. My first tent camping was probably with the Boy Scouts, but we did have a canvas tent at home. I just don’t remember using it. We built a tree house (on 4x4 posts) and slept in that many times. I’ve been backpacking and car camping ever since, only having the squaredrop the past five years. Everything before was in a tent. Thanks for making me (try to) remember!

I haven't checked specifically, but I know that with folks on iH8MUD with larger tires, regearing is fairly common. I think that 2018 (or 2016) and on models need not only ring and pinion front and back, but also a pre-2018 (or 2016) front diff housing. If I end up brining a trailer home and not satisfied with the power, regearing is an option I can look at. As for the Elite I, I know it is a better fit, but unless the redesign includes twin beds, Deb would nix it immediately.

Woohoo! These are all things that I was going to ask about. Especially eliminating the fridge vent so that I could switch to a Danfoss compressor unit after the fact. This will save me money right out the door! The Danfoss compressor powered fridge/freezer in my truck has run 24/7 nine months of the year since 2015, so I know that they are reliable. Great news! The fridge vent to table is just a bonus! Victron vs Zamp will be great, with better interoperability with other brands, and a lot of options. More efficient solar will also be a bonus, as we plan to go with the lithium package and better Trim AC. @Steph and Dud BDid you happen to ask about the Elite I redesign? Specifically a twin version? Thanks for the update

My case is likely one of those posts you refer to. January 2021, I picked up a new Toyota Land Cruiser Heritage Edition that I'd ordered in September; the one and only aspirational vehicle I've ever had. Yes it is crazy expensive for a model with the last major upgrade in 2008, and has practically no bells and whistle that are standard on vehicles 1/3 this price. It doesn't stand out, doesn't say "Look at me!!", and pretty much flies under the radar. It is often mistaken for an older Sequoia or Highlander. But I absolutely love it! It is my only car (other than a non-running 1958 MG in the garage), and the last vehicle I will ever buy. All of the oft quoted detractors are exactly what I want in a vehicle. It'll last 30,000 miles easily on routine maintenance. And I spent way more than I ever should have to get one when it was announced that Toyota would discontinue the Land Cruiser line in North America. And the new Land Cruiser available in the rest of the world now is a technology loaded turbo V6 with questionable reliability. Due to the timing, I bought mine at $9000 under sticker price. I could now easily sell it for $30-40,000 more than that. But I won't, because there's nothing else out there like it. So, yes, I'm looking for a trailer *after* already having a tow vehicle. That's not going to change. And being in our late '60s, I'm not going to get a cheap starter trailer before eventually getting one of the best available. Both of my brothers have gone through umpteen larger trucks and larger trailers; now both with dually diesels and 37' and 41' unwieldy monsters. That's not me. I've been warned. Both @John E Daviesand @mossemi have similar Land Cruisers (albeit both with the 6-speed transmission with a better gear ratio than my 8-speed) and have mentioned the limitations of pulling an Elite II with one. I'm willing to live within those limitations. Will it be a choice that I regret down the road? Maybe. But I'd rather regret it later than not having had the experience of finding out. We will be visiting the Oliver factory and show room sometime during the week of July 10-15. Unless something completely unexpected rears its head (and if I get an all clear on a medical concern), we'll be ordering one.

Don’t do it!! 😂 Signed, your friendly end-of -an-era LC200 owner. 😜

Anita at Oliver called yesterday to make sure we got the printed brochure in the mail, and to answer any questions we had. We had a nice chat, but the old saying of "you don't know what you don't know" definitely applies here. Since we are currently in a 5X8 squaredrop (a boxy teardrop) without plumbing, gas, or any appliances built in, and basic electrical, everything about a potential purchase is unknown. We've done a *lot* of reading and YouTubing over the last couple of years, but I know there will be tons of questions down the road if we go this route. That said, Deb received her "golden ticket" from Maker's Mark as an ambassador, and her bottle is ready for pickup in Loretta, Kentucky. (Side note; she doesn't even like whiskey, but signed up for the free stuff they send at Christmas every year. 🤣 ) Meanwhile, Choice Privileges emailed me and let me know that I need to use my points on a stay before August 1, else lose them. So after Maker's Mark, we're headed to Hohenwald for a factory visit and to tour the Elite II. Who knows whether we'll leave with one less check in the checkbook...

The NL fridge is remarkable efficient. The 90 uses less energy than most discount 35-50L units, averaging .32Ah in fridge/fridge mode and 1.7Ah in freezer/freezer mode harsh conditions. And that's unloaded. We lucked into ours! We were visiting the aforementioned David Bates in Bellefontaine in 2015 when he was still carrying Conqurer trailers, and they were swapping all of the National Luna 90s to the new darling, the Snowmaster. It was a $2800 fridge at the time, and he was disposing of them for $1000. This is when an ARB 50 was $850 plus shipping. I couldn't pass it up. It has been running, loaded with water jugs, 24 hours a day from March to after Christmas, either plugged in here at home or running on the Bluetti solar generator in the Cruiser ever since. I love it and would buy another if this one ever croaks!

We grew up in Bellefontaine, Ohio, which is now the home of the sole importer of Kimberley Kampers. We stoped in to see David Bates in early 2021 to see an KK E2, which is about the same size as the EII. That was before prices and container costs went through the roof. At $120k, it was a possibility. At $175, nope! That, and it can't use an equalizing hitch, which would be way too much for my Cruiser. We'll stop in again on our way to Kentucky (and possibly Oliver HQ) to see a Kimberley Kruiser E3, which is about the size of the Elite. Sadly, it is nearly $140k now, where it was under $100k when we last visited. He didn't have one to see since, though. I have expensive tastes!