DanielBoondock

Thanks for the info. FWIW I’m only interested because I went through a battery recall on my Bolt EV. Very similar situation actually, like the water heater the affected cars was small, a few percent at best (same here according to the report), and fault too was with a supplier - LG in this case. They didn’t do quality control on the cell tab alignment. A couple cars caught on fire and rather than have a PR disaster GM took it on themselves to replace all the batteries. And there too there was a parts supply issue, not surprising when suddenly there’s an order for thousands of new batteries (or water heaters). GM took a write off of a few billion for that one. The best measurement of quiet is your ears in a side by side test. The RMS noise meters (I have one) are useless for this as they just measure overall averaged dB, not things like spikes or variation (very annoying) or frequency content (high frequencies are much more annoying compared to low). The ear knows what bothers it. Listening to my Truma now, the fan is just fine, wouldn’t mind a little slower blower to drop a few dB but it sounds like white noise you’d use to go to sleep to. The main thing is the roof compressor has a mid band edge to it (sounds like “urhhhhhhhh”, its around a G below middle C so not high around 200 Hz maybe). Not loud or super annoying but that’s the worst part, if that could be reduced it would be hard to argue with.

Scanned the recall posts, not sure of exactly the part your referring to but searching I did find that Oliver had their own NHTSA recall due to this, which means they have to pay the costs (see below) I was curious so I did a little digging. Apparently (this could be faulty information), in the event of a RV recall, the RV OEM is required to pay all costs. Looking at NHTSA rules it looks like it applies to RV’s equally with automobiles If true it’s the cost of doing business. 🤷‍♂️

I care less about the looks than the aero. Granted this truck doesn’t care so much about aerodynamics, it’s not the old days of EV’s anymore, but it’s part of the culture now. Just like the “0-60” is part of the ICE culture. Outside gubbins really kill aerodynamics. I’ve got some aero ideas for the Ollie I’d like to try someday. I like the metal plates (they are metal right?) of the water/air heaters on the side. Not fond of the plastic Truma plate. Anyhow back OT - do the new trailers still have the switch plate near the door? It would be a mistake to drop that. Jason showed in the video how you can monitor and toggle individual circuits “without having to flip a breaker”. That’s of limited use I think, who turns off circuits via breakers? But for them will probably eliminate a bunch of production steps. Now it’s just run the wires to the control box probably and no breaker panels. But it’s also single point of failure. I had both my composting fan and CO/LP detector go out. It was an easy fix dealing with the issues as it’s all physical. The Ecoflow ‘Smart Touchscreen’ was released in Summer of 2022, probably wasn’t really available until the next year. So it’s only been a couple years on the market, not a lot of track record yet.

I’ll guess because it’s a high profile unit? They’re coming out with a lower rated low profile one but it’s not here yet. Seems like Oliver likes low profile

FWIW I’m a noise freak, super sensitive to noise. The Truma Aventa is supposed to be among or the quietest on the market according to AI. At first I was disappointed hearing how noisy it is but I forgot that ACs need to break in. Used it yesterday, it’s really good! I can sleep with this. Don’t know why they’re switching from Truma, it’s a good combination

If you like nerding out on details ... Here's the control boxes, yay more LED's to cover at night. But see below, this might be just the PP model, or an early idea Here's the Ecoflow. That spot is blank on mine, unfortunately I lose cabinet space for no useful purpose The battery looks like a standard ecoflow bolted in there, with all the electronics and casing. No space to do a side by side like with the Lithionics. 5 kWh base, I have about 9 kWh with the Lithionics upgrade (which cost $$). Jason says it can be supplemented, maybe he means the Ecoflow daisy chaining feature with an external battery They dropped the vents. Those Ecoflows have built in active cooling and fans, maybe they figure that's good enough? Still need to dump heat somehow Different picture on the websidte compared to the Austin demo model. Two control panels and not one on the side pantry wall. Bottom is the tanks, the top looks like the Truma with the control knob. Probably something similar.

Thanks for catching me in time 😅 Yeah it's the two most forward that are the troublemakers. I'm off to mooch camp this weekend I'll do it there. I'll be over near Alcan this summer so just set up an appointment. Unfortunately they won't install my GM TPS - Oliver decided not to do it either. Having a hard time getting that taken care of.

OK from the image looks like the Freshjet 5 series. Headline features is low profile, it's a direct "Penguin II" replacement, but advertised as 'up to 9 dB quieter'. For ceiling register there's two options, from the interior image looks like maybe this one with the front vents, just a basic mechanical I'd get excited if somebody came out with something truly quiet, like what you get with a ducted mini-split. I don't understand why they keep making hard start AC's, put an inverter on there (PWM type control) with a truly variable fan speed.

(Regarding no Truma anymore) Yeah with Truma integration you either use it all or use nothing. What are they using for the PP model heat/water/AC? Yeah it’s not Truma, I don’t recognize it

I think it’s a myth. I had tankless on my first house - loved it. Instant hot water and as much as you want. Very popular in Japan, they don’t have the room for a big tank (neither did I). In my ‘26 it’s great. One time I got in the shower, all ready and realized I had forgotten to turn it on the night before. No problem, hit a switch and was in business. If that’s not convincing Truma has a Comfort mode that keeps the water sitting in the tank preheated. I like the Truma combo control system for AC, heat and water. German engineering (yes I know about the recall, it happens) … I worked in Germany once upon a time on an engineering project. They’re very proud of their engineering culture (country wise). A crazy level of attention to detail. Not so great for software but physical engineering? Yeah … this was down by the Dark Forest, Stuttgart area. Lots of automotive and cuckoo clocks. I heard a cuckoo in the forest once, the Germans were mad because they never heard it 😅 (I digress) Jackery is a relative newcomer I think. I bet they use cylindrical in those batteries, I’ll take the prismatic of Lithionics any day. Watch one of the factory tours. Anyhow solar awnings sound great (but not at 8k! That is seriously expensive solar). Problem is getting to use them, OK haven’t had this too long but have been camping pretty continuously. Rarely had a chance to use them for any length of time. JMHO

Please do!!! My suspension was silent when I got it. Now it’s creaky. I just did the 3k lube right on schedule but still creaky. There’s a couple that won’t take lube, wondering what to do Ok so loosen nut, rotate bolt, grease and then tighten to 58

Got a quote from Alcan, here's some answers to questions I had So Oliver is being cautious and going 4 leaf

Doing a search I only found this thread which sputtered out .. One of the few things I’m disappointed in with the Oliver is the outdoor shower (the other being the Bluetooth speaker). It’s annoying to use and is limited as just a basic shower head. On our last big trip, out in Arizona at a carwash giving the car and Ollie a bath I had an Airstream couple ahead of me with a neat and useful mod. They had replaced the outside shower with an plug in style unit they used to wash the trailer. So you could plug in (via water hose quick connects or the like) a garden hose, a shower head or whatever. Also our storage lot doesn’t have water. I can bring 10g of pressurized on my truck, but a full 30+ gallon tank onboard would be useful. If I could just get to the water … I’d like to modify the Oliver as little as possible. Ideally not drilling holes Wouldn’t mind getting rid of the old shower and putting a new one in the same spot, probably the best solution. Has to have quick disconnects and can add new attachments, so the fittings should be standard Would like some kind of high end or marine solution ideally One option is this Empire RV faucet from eTrailer Cons, would need a case to be set back far enough. Also kind of typical plastic solution. But works otherwise Another solution I like better is this - could have separate hot/cold or just cold. I don’t see needing a hot line. Cons, it’s just ABS plastic. No temp connection, but which might be OK Now for marine application are washdown connections Here’s one, nice stainless with easy twist. No temp control but I can attach my favorite garden hose quick connects Again needs a deeply recessed box to contain this. Any other ideas?

I believe the electrical code is that live feeds have to terminate in a grounded electrical box. I think just a simple twist connector cap is fine, as long as it’s in a box and not flapping in the breeze. RV/automotive code might be different, if there is one.

Note about phantom voltage drops. As mentioned it can be due to active/passive devices in the signal path, but it can also be resistance/impedance in the circuit. Case in point, the composting fan my two month old Oliver stopped working. The odd thing was my DVM measured around 3VDC at the terminal - not enough to run the computer case style fan - indicating a circuit issue. Jerry at support gave me a great troubleshooting list, the first of course was to check the fuse, which is fine. I didn’t suspect that as it was getting a low voltage, it’s an inline glass fuse and was unbroken. But I put the fuse back and voila - it works. There must have been a poor connection in the fuse housing which gave enough resistance for a voltage droop, so reseating it fixed the problem. So general advice is to check every leg of the power rail, a little corrosion or a loose connection can/will introduce resistance.

I’m sure you know about that but make sure to only use freshly boiled/disinfected water. It’s not uncommon that somebody picks up a nasty pathogen doing this, because the sinuses are right on the border between inside and outside. I’m talking nice things like that brain eating worm and other such friendlies. Also of course do a serious disinfection of the container after/before every use. Anyhow One of the justifications for doing this is for when we have to bugout. We got hit some years ago with back to back wildfires, made the national news. Lightning strike up a valley complex, the fire traveled down the valley gathering steam and then blew out near us and completely wiped out everything in its path. There’s so much heat capacity by that point you can’t fight it, all the first responders can do it get people evacuated. Literally turns the place into a moonscape. Anyhow our house avoided getting hit being right at the edge but the National Guard doesn’t let anybody in or out, so we car camped for a couple weeks. My wife’s got PTSD about it so every fire season (late summer) she’s on edge watching the weather - the Santa Ana wind complex is prone to cause these (it goes up to N Ca too). This year if its looking bad we’ll just take a trip and take the stress off. Also yes while we’re still setting up the goal is to always have it fully ready to go literally at a moments notice. The main consideration is access to the storage lot. It’s 10 minutes from the house - good - but if you wait too long you might not be able to get to it, or leave. The people running the lot said during the fires they came out after hours and it was a madhouse of people hitching up and leaving. But that only works if they haven’t closed the roads yet. So we plan that if the wind forcast look bad we’ll just pre-emptively go camping. I don’t mind 😅

Here's the direct link Bulldog HD Shock Absorber Replaces 555001 For Trailer Leaf Spring Retro Kit Oh my goodness $39.38, something cheap for a change (yeah need four - or eight? Four I think)

From another thread about the X23 2027 model, the offroad version includes (drumroll) 😊 Four or five leaf? Five I'll guess. Good for Alcan this is a regular business for them. Well that's good enough for me, I'll order my set before too long. I went through most of the thread but don't recall a link or specs for the bulldogs, can anybody provide a link?

Ah just noticed the spec sheet link above Why in the heck is this CHEAPER than the Platinum Pro I got? Probably because the base battery is 400Ah and it doesn't include extra goodies. Fully specced it'll be up there Power is now the EcoFlow. I like the control box. Not super fond of fancy displays They listened to the peanut gallery "Bulldog HD Shocks & Alcan Leaf Springs" 😊 Four or five leaf springs? 48V Houghton AC Flex solar is cool. Problem is getting to use it, I'm usually either in shade or there's too much wind How in the heck does the Pro have a 1,360W solar? It must come standard with the solar Girard On the 2027 they made a bunch of changes I like the stainless sink - kind of wish mine had that instead of molded in. I might do that mod Why is the bluetooth speaker back by the stove? On my recommendation they moved to the TV - you don't want a speaker in the heat. This was probably in proto before that mod, or maybe they did that just for me? This goes back to the framed in window shades. I love my roller shades fwiw, the trim color valances add a lot of nice design. Looks like a 2026 model only, too bad I think its an improvement I think @jd1923 made this mod? Unfortunately the dinette isn't really that comfortable any way you cut it Well anyhow glad to see them adding models. Fortunately I don't have buyers remorse, I'm upgrading to Alcan/Bulldog myself, and in theory I could upgrade to Girard solar too. But with 220 kWh on the truck with 10kW available to the trailer I don't need any extra solar. Before somebody asks - no a 1.3 kW panel won't charge the truck worth beans.

They dropped a video this morning, mainly just advertising splash FWIW my opinion so far Color scheme: Not my taste. The black trim will take more sun damage and takes away from the elegance of the design language. It's a hard black and white which is way to constrasty, if they could have gone with a softer black it would work but I think the windows set it to a hard black. Also black shows up scratches and dirt like nobody's business. That black AC will absorb heat and age faster Fully opening window: From a 2026 owner; a step backwards. I can't tell you how easy and convenient it is to crack the bedside window at night. The sliders would be more challenging I think, and this one, you'd have to get your hand around the window shade and push it somehow, assuming the levers are open. I really don't understand why people want a fully opening window, it doesn't offer anything new 48V system Been in a lot of discussions of this because the Cybertruck went 48V. My engineering opinion; it doesn't offer you anything. The only technical improvements are thinner battery cables and better power/torque delivery for motors. But they will still have to supply 12V as not every device will support 24V, and for the 12V cig ports. So it'll be a stacked/split system, mostly likely they'll just also have a series 24v connection to the battery, and split 12V rails for those. I could see the power jacks benefiting, assuming a 48V system. Oh maybe the inverter too - that would be more efficient. Who knows, maybe 48V lets them get to a 4k inverter which honestly would be nice (Xantrex doesn't have one AFAIK though) Offgrid tires Look cool, but probably lower efficiency, harder to replace (?), and since they don't provide motor traction of limited use. Cost: Probably $$$, I kind of doubt they'll have all those parts in black from the supplier

I mean make it a little longer. The glass body is what, only 18’ on a 24’ 6” body? I don’t understand the exceptionally long tongue except stability, but then why not move the wheels back a bit instead? I don’t know the details but would love to, but just another 6” or foot of interior length would go a long way. Weights a consideration but going to 8k isn’t that bad I think Anyhow the only history I know is they hired some guys from a nearby house boat catamaran company initially. That’s where they probably got the marine hidden gasket idea, and the fitting out with electrical and such. I wonder how the chassis was designed?

Actually these blocks are perfect, not sure about brackets but the first problem is keeping the sitting room. It’s too tight as is, either I tuck the piano away on edge between use (a bother) or extend the seat a bit. Here’s an idea (notice the aisle Hue lights) This is the twin bed extension, I could see if Oliver will sell me a pair and adapt them to likewise extend the dinette seats into the aisle. That would be perfect, except that the bulkhead seat can’t extend as that interferes with the bathroom door. WIP …

Actually the owners didn’t sell it for me, Escape and Bigfoot owners are equally passionate. In the end what did it was a tallying of positives and negatives. For me, I figured that whatever undiscovered problems the Oliver will have will be less than the known negatives of the others. I was worried about the bed length in particular. Fortunately nothing came to pass, and I found more positives IRL. Having said that, couldn’t they have made the bathroom just a little bit bigger? 🙂 Anyhow OT the greasing went just fine with a right angle fitting (not right angle zircs). Question: a couple of the outrigger ones - the ones on spring ends, would not take grease at all. Clogged? I’m going to try again after I move it, figuring that the position it’s in is preventing ingress

Been a member for four or five years 🙂 took me that long to make my choice. Oliver was the first choice but then Bigfoot seduced me with that cool BIG FOOT front storage. Got a tour, meh, and noticed the seams and conventional RV hardware everywhere, so came back into the fold. Pretty brave, or stupid too as it was sight unseen, they’re rare out on the West Coast

There are electronic drum kits as I’m sure you know, takes set up but would work, and won’t bother the wildlife My son got a Donner travel guitar for our inaugural trip which is pretty much ideal, nice and small. It’s basically electric with no spruce soundboard and uses pickups, but you can get a nylon string version and the internal DSP sounds great. He loves it and thinks the action is good Z brackets is a good idea I’ll check out, looking for easy DIY