My wife is hesitant to buy, due to cost

[John and Debbie]

Hello all,  after seeing an Oliver at a campground in Oregon,  I am ready to order one.   Our financial planner even gave it the green light,  but my wife balks at the price tag.   Yes it costs more than an R-pod,  but being nearly 70 years old, I figure that it's better to buy high quality and maybe enjoy for 10-15 years and be able to sell it for maybe half what we paid for it.   That selling value is from my imagination.   Suppose we bought her R-pod for $40k,  at the 15 year mark I believe it would be worth next to nothing.   In short,  my argument is that both trailers would cost us 40k in the end.   My question is how did you convince your other half to just bite the bullet and go with an Oliver?   I did an order sheet with what I wanted and it was about $80k.   Thanks for any help. 

[Mainiac]

Take a factory tour.

Then go to a local rv dealer and look inside the compartments of new units. My desk stapler has heavier staples than used to hold trim on. I saw 3/4" X 1" pine as wall studs ( and a knot had already fallen out as it twisted). Look at what the tires really are. Look at the underside and see if there is a thin frame prone to rusting out. While under there look to see if floor is particle board.

Then go look at Oliver. Arrange a local visit..

[ChrisMI]

It’s a hard decision I’m dealing with as well. Spent the past couple of weeks looking at various models. Some are dirt cheap construction that will fall apart in a few years of heavy use. Others like the geo pro and mini lite visually look like a huge step up in quality while still being really cheap. The problem I’m having is a model like the mini lite 2509s is set up much better for my usage (family of 4 w/dog) vs the EII.  
 

So I ask myself why spend 2.5x the amount for something that doesn’t work as well for the family?  We’ll I’m hesitant because we’ve owned aircraft for decades and a cheap plane is anything but…

[Nick R.]

Hi John, I think we've all kicked that can down the road, at least a couple times.  You make perfect sense and with that said; I think you both would have no regrets enjoying great times you're both going to have in your new Ollie.  

When the storms blow and the elements are demanding, you'll both be safe, secure and comfortable in your little home on wheels.  I personally belive an Ollie is an investment, you'll definitely spend less time being concerned about the quality of your purchase.  

When I bought mine sight-unseen, I stumbled upon Oliver Travel Trailers on the Internet and never looked back...  I had never even been in one until the day I got mine.  The worst that could happen is, your investment will hold it's value better than most and you'll have some great times along the way.  

Thanks John, for stopping by and reaching out!

 

Nicky Ray  

[Jim_Oker]

Are there other distinguishing features for your intended use that  might lead you  one way or the other between those two campers you've identified? E.g. for me the four season (ish) ability  of the Oliver was important versus a few other brands I was considering, as was the great ground clearance and at least OK axle for doing things like potholed dirt roads at a slow clip (and the impossibility that the cabinets would fall from the walls on those potholed roads and other  related build quality/sturdiness benefits). Adding in a reputation for pretty good service followup it became a fairly clear choice for me/us.

[John and Debbie]

Thanks to all who have responded.   Maniac,  I was looking at new trailers and ones in the lot had issues.   The salesman says they all come with minor things to fix,  but he said they would fix them.   Not reassuring!   Our 2003 tent trailer has a particle board underside.   I never thought to check that.   I will never miss that inspection again. 

ChrisMI,  it will be just my wife and I and possibly a grandchild.   One lives in Australia and one is in Colorado, so unlikely that it will ever be mire than three,  so for us the Oliver is perfect.   I can see the limitations for your family though. 

Nicky Ray,  thanks for your comments.   

Jim Oker,  for me I don't want to have problems with leaking or quality issues,  so I am leaning strongly towards Oliver.   I had to reinforce a seat back metal piece for the tent trailer in the first year.   Particle board flooring and canvas in a tent trailer isn't practical in Oregon. 

[Nancy K.]

When we wanted to buy a used Ollie, they were selling for almost full price within a few days of being listed.  So we decided that we would buy a new one, enjoy getting to choose all our options, and if trailer camping didn't turn out to be for us we were confident that we would recoup almost all of our investment.  We have had our Ollie for 9 months and are truly enjoying it.  

[Jim_Oker]

1 hour ago, John Welte said:

im Oker,  for me I don't want to have problems with leaking or quality issues,  so I am leaning strongly towards Oliver. 

Yeah I also looked at Escape from British Columbia but the Oliver beat it out on a free important counts despite the Escape factory only being five hours drive from me. But they’re another interesting fiberglass option fwiw

[Mike and Carol]

Used Olivers sell for way more than 50% of their original cost.  90% would be a better estimate.  Mike

[carnivore]

John, I’ll throw my 2cents in. We have had our Oliver for about 2-1/2 years, pulled it over 25,000 miles and camped in it around 200 nights.  We are actually ending week 4 of a 5 week trip. 
The only problem that we have ever had was with a First Alert smoke detector that malfunctioned in month 4. Oliver sent me a replacement.

These trailers and the folks you deal with when you buy them are as good as it gets.  As you can probably already tell, the owner community is great too 

They are pricy and I am a tightwad but If I lost it I would not hesitate to replace with another. 

[IL_Travelers]

Since my wife and I are just one year older than you, we certainly can relate to the importance of agreeing on large purchases at this time of our lives.  We also had to check with our financial planner before spending $80K on our Ollie.  We had the green light from him to buy an Airstream; however, I got cold feet worrying about hail storm damage in our home state of Illinois.  That's when I found out about Oliver Travel Trailers.  I started reading about them; then I found this forum.  The wealth of information on the forum cannot be duplicated anywhere else.  It is not surprising considering the number of professionals and I have to believe engineers who own Olivers.  Just ask a question, and you will have an answer within no time.  I'm talking hours if not minutes; it is nothing short of amazing.  

We picked up "R-Villa" on May 17.  So far we have logged 3,500 miles.  I have pulled trailers before, but never have I pulled one so smooth as an Oliver.  The aerodynamics are great, and even in wind she is so very stable.

In this world you usually get what you pay for.  That is true of Oliver.  Their service department is fabulous, too.  I just returned from Hohenwald for some minor needed "fixes" that often come with a new trailer.  They were all taken care of in short order.  We were completely satisfied.  

I encourage you, like others, to take a factory tour.

[John and Debbie]

I am a newbie so don't know how to respond to individual comments,  but thanks for the input.   NancyK,  besides being hard to find used Oliver's that are a couple years old,  I agree with you,  just buy new and get the trailer as you want it with your features.  Jim Oker,  I have looked at Escape trailers,  but the double hull construction has me sold.   It would be much cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.   Probably less condensation.   Mike and Carol,  the resale value looks amazing.   We buy used cars when possible as the savings are great with a car that's only a couple years old.   That doesn't appear to be the case with Oliver's as they hold value. Carnivore,  my wife is more of a tightwad than me,  but I see the longer term value.   Someone earlier said it's more of an investment and you won't lose money like on a purchase of a mass produced trailer.   IL_Travelers,  thanks for your comments too.   The owner of the one we saw in Oregon was a retired cardiologist, so I see your point.   Thanks all for your comments. 

[ScubaRx]

6 hours ago, John Welte said:

...buy high quality and maybe enjoy for 10-15 years and be able to sell it for maybe half what we paid for it.   That selling value is from my imagination.   Suppose we bought her R-pod for $40k,  at the 15 year mark I believe it would be worth next to nothing.   In short,  my argument is that both trailers would cost us 40k in the end.   My question is how did you convince your other half to just bite the bullet and go with an Oliver?   I did an order sheet with what I wanted and it was about $80k.   Thanks for any help. 

There is a 2008 model (Hull # 024) being advertised on facebook right now for $37,500, It originally sold for $27,924. How's that for holding its value?

 

[SeaDawg]

10 minutes ago, ScubaRx said:

There is a 2008 model (Hull # 024) being advertised on facebook right now for $37,500, It originally sold for $27,924. How's that for holding its value?

 

And, it doesn't even have solar.

I'll be interested to see if he gets his asking price. 

Is the Rpod your wife's choice? They're indeed cute, and you could easily buy two for the price of an Oliver. My sister had one for a couple years. It is a continuous roof sheet of laminated fiberglass bumper to bumper, but take a look at the factory slubs of caulking at seams and openings. It did have an aluminum cage, though, vs 2 x 2 stick and staple.

If that's your choice, make sure you have indoor storage for it. My sister's didn't have any leaks when she sold it, but it was always stored indoors . 

Hers came with c rated st tires, barely sufficient to carry the gvwr. Those had to be upgraded right away. Single small flooded battery.  Upgraded. Awning difficult to deploy. No 12v outlets. Cheap but cute plastic faucet in the kitchen that broke. Decals fading some, even when stored indoors. Etc.

My advice would be to go look at a five or six year old rpod, and a five or six (or 14) year old Oliver.

Time tells the difference. 

Then again, if you don't even know if you like camping, a less expensive entry point can make sense. Rpods have a kind of cult following,  and you won't get hurt "too bad" if you decide you don't like it.

[John and Debbie]

29 minutes ago, ScubaRx said:

There is a 2008 model (Hull # 024) being advertised on facebook right now for $37,500, It originally sold for $27,924. How's that for holding its value?

 

That's the argument I needed.   I doubt a stick built trailer would hold its value.   Thanks

[John and Debbie]

2 minutes ago, SeaDawg said:

And, it doesn't even have solar.

I'll be interested to see if he gets his asking price. 

Is the Rpod your wife's choice? They're indeed cute, and you could easily buy two for the price of an Oliver. My sister had one for a couple years. It is a continuous roof sheet of laminated fiberglass bumper to bumper, but take a look at the factory slubs of caulking at seams and openings. It did have an aluminum cage, though, vs 2 x 2 stick and staple.

If that's your choice, make sure you have indoor storage for it. My sister's didn't have any leaks when she sold it, but it was always stored indoors . 

Hers came with c rated st tires, barely sufficient to carry the gvwr. Those had to be upgraded right away. Single small flooded battery.  Upgraded. Awning difficult to deploy. No 12v outlets. Cheap but cute plastic faucet in the kitchen that broke. Decals fading some, even when stored indoors. Etc.

My advice would be to go look at a five or six year old rpod, and a five or six (or 14) year old Oliver.

Time tells the difference. 

Then again, if you don't even know if you like camping, a less expensive entry point can make sense. Rpods have a kind of cult following,  and you won't get hurt "too bad" if you decide you don't like it.

The R-pod is her choice,  but I am not excited about it.   We don't have inside storage so I imagine it might be a challenge to keep it from leaking.   I am thinking of investing in a carport type cover that would protect the Oliver or any trailer we get.   I didn't cover our Coleman tent trailer as it had a metal roof.   Unbeknownst to me some little holes developed in the roof and damaged the ceiling.   Do those metal roof carport roof structures do the job?   Ideally it's stored in a garage. 

[ScubaRx]

My sister in law and her husband had an r-pod. They thought it was cute. Until all the problems started with it. They got rid of it. I wouldn't recommend one.

[SeaDawg]

The other odd things about the rpod... the wheel wells outside the trailer makes it pretty wide on mountain roads. Our Oliver tracks right within the path of the tow vehicle. We always know where the trailer is.

Hers had a slide out, so shallow as to be barely useful, vs the air and possible moisture leakage. And one used one she looked at, we rejected,  because the slide-out was already jerking and problematic, at 3 years, among other things.

I particularly dislike slideouts. They always leak air, and bring in mosquitos,  in my experience.

[SeaDawg]

56 minutes ago, John Welte said:

Do those metal roof carport roof structures do the job?   Ideally it's stored in a garage

I think so.

But, our 2008 has never been stored inside. Florida sun. We wax it twice a year. Plastic non-oliver components have yellowed. The jackhead. The door window frame. The rest is fine.

Save the price of a carport.?

 

[John and Debbie]

1 hour ago, ScubaRx said:

My sister in law and her husband had an r-pod. They thought it was cute. Until all the problems started with it. They got rid of it. I wouldn't recommend one.

That was my thinking too.   A corporation built it,  whereas Oliver is a family business with their name on it. 

[John and Debbie]

51 minutes ago, SeaDawg said:

The other odd things about the rpod... the wheel wells outside the trailer makes it pretty wide on mountain roads. Our Oliver tracks right within the path of the tow vehicle. We always know where the trailer is.

Hers had a slide out, so shallow as to be barely useful, vs the air and possible moisture leakage. And one used one she looked at, we rejected,  because the slide-out was already jerking and problematic, at 3 years, among other things.

I particularly dislike slideouts. They always leak air, and bring in mosquitos,  in my experience.

I don't want a slide out either.   Thanks for your comments. 

[Mountainman198]

would you buy a home located somewhere you didn't want to live, just because it was less expensive?  This question was helpful to me in overcoming the cost of a Oliver.  

 

Good luck in your journey!

[John and Debbie]

1 hour ago, Mountainman198 said:

would you buy a home located somewhere you didn't want to live, just because it was less expensive?  This question was helpful to me in overcoming the cost of a Oliver.  

 

Good luck in your journey!

Good point.   Years ago we remodeled our kitchen.   I had gotten a new job and my future was looking good.   I gave my wife a coupon that I made that said this coupon is good for one dream kitchen.   We put in the best drawer slides,  a Sub-Zero refrigerator/freezer, the best kitchen faucet,  etc.   You have a good point.   We have enjoyed that kitchen and when we go visit friends and family that went cheap on everything,  I am reminded what a wise decision that was.   Drawers still slide great 23 years later. 

[John and Debbie]

19 hours ago, Mainiac said:

Take a factory tour.

Then go to a local rv dealer and look inside the compartments of new units. My desk stapler has heavier staples than used to hold trim on. I saw 3/4" X 1" pine as wall studs ( and a knot had already fallen out as it twisted). Look at what the tires really are. Look at the underside and see if there is a thin frame prone to rusting out. While under there look to see if floor is particle board.

Then go look at Oliver. Arrange a local visit..

I have looked under the trailers and inside cabinets now.   We spent about an hour inside an Oliver.   Quality was obvious.   Thanks. 

[John and Debbie]

20 hours ago, Mainiac said:

Take a factory tour.

Then go to a local rv dealer and look inside the compartments of new units. My desk stapler has heavier staples than used to hold trim on. I saw 3/4" X 1" pine as wall studs ( and a knot had already fallen out as it twisted). Look at what the tires really are. Look at the underside and see if there is a thin frame prone to rusting out. While under there look to see if floor is particle board.

Then go look at Oliver. Arrange a local visit..