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Cool those are super strong and well built. It comes with a cabin pressurization system standard - WOW, I was wondering about dust ingress... Are you OK with the cargo capacity? With full water and both jerry cans full (love those!) it will take away almost 400 pounds. Though with your engine you probably don't need extra fuel. Maybe extra water.... Do you have any idea about tongue weight? Are you OK with all that canvas when the strong desert winds blow? What tires are you getting for the Touareg? You can get Cooper ST Maxx as options on the trailer, those would also be a great choice for the trucklet. They are uber strong and extremely puncture resistant, though rather heavy. They would sure look great together. Be sure to post lots of pics, before you say goodbye forever. John Davies Spokane WA

Lots of helpful comments! I’ve asked to join the FB owners’ group as well. I also like the outdoor kitchen. When I travel with my Ollie, I prefer to cook outside when the weather permits but I have to carry a Partner Steel propane stove, table, Cobb Grill, etc., and run in and out of the camper for utensils, etc. I’d use the outside kitchen frequently if I owned the MDC. Regarding the Black Series, the Iowa dealer I’m talking to sold the Black Series campers for awhile and can still order one, but he said the company is having growing pains and he isn’t satisfied with the quality of the product. Like any camper purchase, there are trade-offs. The tires, suspension, etc., on the MDC are designed to handle very rugged terrain. I wouldn’t expect the camper to be as well-suited to barreling down a U.S. interstate highway at 70 mph like the Oliver. On trips out west, I use I-70 and I-80 to get through Iowa, Nebraska, and Kansas, but switch to two-lane highways in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, etc., and when I’m exploring an area, I have towed the Ollie many hours on very rugged roads. I’m willing to trade 10 mph on the interstate for true off-road capability. The MDC should handle terrain that is more than my Touareg is designed for. I’ll start a new thread once I get the ball rolling with the dealer.

Hi Don, this is good to hear. Do you have the Andersen hitch with you Touareg/Elite II?

If having something more nimble is what you want - I'd take a look at folks that are towing with more 4x4 friendly TVs like John's LC200, the Touareg mafia (it is a very capable offroad platform), and even the Jeep Gladiator if you can make the payload work. We're still trying to figure out what to do if we go somewhere and I need to take off on a trip and don't want to leave the wife without a car. It looks like Uber/Lyft/Rental cars will be the best option.

I visited Mesa Verde and Grand Canyon National Parks in Colorado, Arches, Bryce, Canyonlands, Zion and Cedar Breaks in Utah. I camped two nights in a campground at Bryce with fellow Olliver owners Stan and Carol Moyer. I've attached a few photos of the Ollie and the VW Touareg TDI tow vehicle. Discovered that the Touareg is a pretty good off-road vehicle. Followed a Jeep Wrangler for about 40 miles on the jeep trails in Canyonlands. Don

Steve and Tali, A couple of guys at the campground were planning to explore below the rim. We met at the visitors' center and they encouraged me to take the Touareg down. We measured for adequate clearance and I got a permit. Hiked first and then ventured down. Met a couple from San Diego in at the bottom and they convinced me to follow them all the way back to Moab rather than returning to the rim and driving back on the highway. I drove about 40 miles below the rim. Touareg was great. I knew the weather would be warm but I was very lucky until the end of my time in Utah. Last stop was Zion and it was 97 degrees at noon when I finished my first hike and 110 degrees when I reached the campground. I left the next morning for Ouray, Colorado! Great hiking before that at Arches, Bryce, and Cedar Breaks National Monument before that. Next time, I'll visit this area in the fall. Don

Vector, I may be in the minority, but I don't believe it's necessary to have a heavy duty (3/4 ton) pickup to tow an Oliver Elite II. I tow with a 2015 VW Touareg TDI (turbo diesel). It has a 7700 lb. towing capacity and I tow without an equalizer hitch. The standard bulldog hitch works well. The diesel provides the grunt to pass with the Ollie on two-lane roads and gets me up to cruising speed very quickly. I checked my mileage yesterday after returning home from a campground in NE Iowa about 120 miles from home and I averaged 19.5 mpg towing the Ollie. I was on 2-lane roads most of the time driving between 55-58 mph and interstate for about 40 miles towing at 65 mph. The Touareg's only negative is that you don't have the cargo space available in a full-size pickup, but if you have or are buying an Ollie, you've already made the choice to go "small". When I'm not towing, I have a very comfortable, luxurious SUV as my primary vehicle that averages 26 mpg in my everyday driving and around 30-31 mpg when traveling long distances at sustained speeds of 75 to 80 mph. It really does double duty! Don

I use the Dill TPMS system. It uses the same type of “in tire” sensors that my Touareg has and the monitor is small and unobtrusive. Monitors tire pressure and temperature. I towed without a TPMS system for a couple of years without any problems, but I think its a good investment.

The Fronty with 4.0L has 261HP and torque @ 281 lb-ft. The Tundra 5.7L has 381HP and 401 lb-ft of torque. The Touareg has 406 lbs-ft of torque, very impressive! My guess is the Touareg diesel is running closer to max torque RPM (probably lower RPM) at tow cruise compared to the Tundra gas 5.7L at tow cruise. Just a guess.

Bill, The Toyota Tundra 5.7L V-8 should be able to tow the Oliver filled with gold bullion! My tow vehicle is a 2015 VW Touareg TDI (diesel). 7700 GVWR and a maximum of 660 lb. tongue weight. I weighed my Olliver Elite II on a Iowa Department of Transportation scale and it tipped the scales at 5,100 lbs. It's loaded with options and I had the galley fully supplied and gear and clothing for 1 person. The three tanks were all below 20%. My tow vehicle tipped the scales at 6,000 lbs--it was carrying 1,000 lbs. in gear and me. The Touareg diesel has 225 hp and 406 lbs-ft of torque. I towed the Olliver from the factory into Mississippi and then north to Iowa--about 1,000 miles. The Oliver tows really well--no sway or issues with the standard bulldog hitch. The high torque allowed me to get to 55-60 mph pretty quickly. I haven't been to the mountains yet, but I'm pretty confident that I won't have problems with mountain passes. Don

My monitor for the backup camera quit working. I've taken one long trip without the monitor and I'm leaving on another on Saturday. I miss it when backing into a tight camping spot. But, I just jump out of the Touareg and look to see where the trees and obstacles are. (I'm a solo traveler) Today I backed up into our narrow, ice-covered driveway with snow drifts on both sides of the entrance to the driveway in Iowa to get the Ollie packed and ready to leave on Saturday morning for Big Bend National Park. While I've backed trailers for over 50 years, I've learned to be more proficient owning and towing the Ollie. It's really simple if you follow a few basic rules: 1) Place your hands on the bottom of your steering wheel. If you want the rear of the camper to go to the left, move your hands to the left. If you want the camper to go right, move your hands to the right; 2) Drive very, very slowly; 3) Use small and gradual steering inputs to avoid having to overcorrect.

I tow with a VW Touareg TDI and would not be comfortable towing without towing mirrors. Without them, you really can't see behind the camper. The ones I've used successfully for a number of years are Dometic DM-2912 Milenco Grand Aero3 Towing Mirrors. You can purchase on Amazon and other places. They are easy to attach and give you a good field of vision.

LOL, one could argue that, but it was a 5.0 V10 tdi with 8 TONS of ballast and they towed in Low Range.... the V10 was an absolute brute but a nightmare to own. To do just about anything to the engine you had to drop the entire drivetrain. “Seriously, parts were scarce but the main thing that made me sell it is no one could work on it and even the knowledge base online was scarce. It was terrifying to own as a DD because you literally could have a part fail with no warning and struggle to source parts and a reliable mechanic to do the work within weeks.” https://jalopnik.com/the-volkswagen-touareg-v10-tdi-was-more-of-a-nightmare-1822934503 Really, that is not a vehicle you should be using as a poster child. John Davies Spokane WA

Here’s the brake controller. http://www.tekonsha.com/mobile/products/brake-controllers/proportional-controllers/trailer-brake-control-proportional/TzaIxkVx1cI5XOy!osRB508pViEKmVBf I think a Q5 is too small. Good luck searching for a Q7 or Touareg! Don

I may have been the first Oliver owner to use the RF brake controller that David mentioned. I recommended it to him. I’ve towed with this controller with two VW Touareg TDI vehicles. The only thing the RF controller that you plug into the 12v recepticle does is allow you to adjust the amount of braking force on your trailer brakes. Once you set up the brake controller and set the braking level, you can tow without the hand-held unit that plugs into the 12v recepticle. The actual brake controller is mounted on the tongue of the Oliver and is hard-wired. When you plug in the 7-pin connector, the brake controller is active and functioning. I’ve towed many miles with this brake controller and it has performed flawlessly. I do like to have the hand-held unit resting in my lap while towing in case I want to apply the trailer brakes independently to correct any sway, but I’ve never had to use it for this purpose.

I bought my Audi new, and I purchased the Towing Package option, which includes increased engine cooling capacity, a trailer hitch receiver, the 7 pin connector, and pre-wiring for a brake controller. However from what I read on Audi forums, this pre-wiring is hidden under a dash panel, at least for pre-2017 models. Since you have to wire the brake controller in (no quick connect harness is available like in many cars), I decided to go with the Tekonsha Prodigy RF Wireless Brake Controller. It has worked really well, and if you are getting one you should read my post HERE. The Airstream AirForums have a very long thread on towing with Porsche Cayenne, VW Touareg, and Audi Q7, and you may find it useful.

I would like to get an update on an old thread.........SUV's pulling Elite II's? I don't think anyone is looking at it now but after reading through it I got interested in looking at SUV's. One reason is the height of my garage door when open is right on the line....these trucks are high! There were four SUV's that got my attention in the old thread 1) the VW Touareg TDI......sounded like a great tow vehicle but unfortunately for us in the USA the wonderful little turbo diesel is no longer available from VW 2) the Audi Q7........rated up to 7700 pounds towing capacity. The original poster had the same problem as I.....trucks would not fit in his garage. OP really liked it but I did not get any idea of the gas mileage towing......updated experience would be nice to know.) 3) Dodge Durango with 5.7L hemi......OP liked it but for me the limited range makes it less interesting....although other wise I could like it a lot 4) Jeep Grand Cherokee Outlander with the turbo diesel.......All the specs now say that vehicle is rated at 6200 pounds towing although the Trailer Life Towing Guide says they can haul either 7200 or 7400 depending on 2w or 4w drive....link here below....... http://www.trailerlife.com/trailer-towing-guides/ The most interesting for me is the Jeep if it was rated at least 7000 pounds.....OP did not say what the official rating was on their vehicle. Some posters mentioned considering a Mercedes Benz GLE 350 4matic SUV but no one had one Any updated information on SUV's for towing would be interesting Thanks, Jim

Hello, My tow vehicle is a 2016 VW Touareg TDI (diesel). 7700 GVWR and a maximum of 660 lb. tongue weight. The owner's manual says not to use a weight equalization hitch. I had originally planned to buy a new Airstream that would have been under the 7700 lb. limit, but I would have exceeded the maximum tongue weight by over 200 lbs. I spent a lot of time talking to Can Am, an Airstream dealer in Canada, and the head of the service department at my local VW dealer, and decided I would go ahead and tow the Airstream and use a weight equalization hitch. Then I found the Oliver. No Airstream for me! So, a couple of questions. First, who's towing the Elite II with the standard Bulldog hitch? I'm nervous about the lack of sway control. What have your experiences been? Second, I've read about some issues with Oliver's adjustment/setup of the optional Anderson No Sway hitch. Are you using this hitch? Any problems getting it set up properly? How has it performed? Would you recommend an alternative hitch for sway control and weight equalization? Thanks in advance--it's really great to have access to this knowledge base.

Jason, I tried to update my map and of course I've failed again. I always waste 1-2 hours messing with this and give up. Here's what my signature looks like now. What am I doing wrong? <p>Don</p> <p>2016 Elite II Twin Bed Hull #126</p> <p>2016 VW Touareg TDI</p> <p>States I've visited with my Ollie />

We tow our Oliver Elite with a Touareg TDI. With have a regular hitch. Have never had a problem with sway. The Ollie follows effortlessly.

We owned one of the original Elites (2008 model). We started out towing with a 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (4 door) that we bought for that purpose. It only had a 3500 pound towing capacity and was vastly under powered. We traded that for a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe 4x4 with the 5.3L engine. We got much better results with that vehicle. The older Elites weighed about 3900 pounds ready to camp with full water and everything you would need for an extended trip. I don't know the camping weight on the new models but I would not expect them to be significantly different one way or the other. I would want a vehicle rated NO LESS than a 5000 pound towing capacity. We bought a 2015 GMC Sierra with a 6.2L engine to pull our Elite II. We get about 2 mpg better than with the Tahoe. Since all 2015 models are tow rated with the SAE J2807 Standard you are now comparing Apples to Apples... 4 Runner: The Towing capacity is rated at 4700 pounds (not a good contender) Touareg: The Towing capacity is rated at 7,700 pounds with the available towing package - you will want to spring for this package, as the Touareg is rated for just 1,650 lbs. without it. Nissan Pathfinder: The towing capacity is rated at 5000 pounds.

I still can’t follow these directions. Here’s what my signature looks like. What am I doing wrong? Don Thompson Elite II Twin Bed Hull #126 VW Touareg TDI States I've visited with my Ollie [img{]{img-url-here}[}/img]-Remove the "{"&"}"http://visitedstatesmap.com/image/ALCOGAILIAKSMNMSMOMTNENMNCOKSCSDTNTXUTWIWYmed.jpg

I programmed the Dill TPMS system before I left Iowa a couple of days ago. Simple process. Discovered that you can rotate the tires without creating problems with the info provided on the monitor. When you rotate, you can make adjustments in the monitor hardware to identify the new locations of the sensors. I’ve traveled about 800 miles with the Dill system and I’m very happy with the setup. I feel very fortunate that I towed my Ollie over 20k miles without a TPMS system without having any issues with my tires. What convinced me to buy a TPMS system for the Ollie was the fact that I’ve had issues with slow leaks in tires on my tow vehicle while traveling with the Ollie. Without the TPNS system in my Touareg, would I have noticed the low tires in time-probably not despite the fact that I know I should check tire pressures each day before starting out.

Hi John, I've spent a lot of time exploring the high country around Lake City, Ouray and Silverton. I've never tried to explore the jeep trails in my Touareg. Instead, I've rented Jeep Wranglers. Rarely do I see anything but Jeep Wranglers on the trails and when I have, the driver was either paralyzed with fear or during my last trip, high-centered and stranded. I've included some photos below I took on June 23 in 2016. Note the amount of snow! If you visit Ouray, drive to Orvis Hot Springs in Ridgeway. Beautiful hot springs. You can camp there too--just in a parking lot, but when you pay to camp you have access to the hot springs. Be prepared--it's a clothing optional place. Don

I've used this RF (wireless) brake controller since picking up my Elite II in March 2016. My experience was a little different from David's. Oliver actually purchased the controller and installed it before I arrived to pick up my Ollie. I tow with VW Touareg TDI and the pairing process wasn't difficult. I've towed many miles using this brake controller and I'm completely satisfied. While I've had some issues with the hand-control unit that you plug into the 12 volt receptacle (I think that's what we used to call the cigarette lighter receptacle), Tekonsha's customer service has been outstanding. They've replaced that hand-held unit quickly and without fuss at no charge twice. Note that the brake control works even if the hand-held unit isn't plugged in or isn't working. The hand-held unit is necessary, however, to adjust the braking level and you can also use it to apply the trailer brakes independently of the TV brakes to tame sway. I've never had to use mine for that purpose. Don