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Oliver Service


csevel

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Hi All,

I've been thinking about a visit to Hohenwald for service/potential upgrades on ILOVHER and wanted to know (prior to starting a service ticket) what your experiences have been with planning a visit.   It's a long haul for me and I really don't know anything about how they handle service to used Ollies but have a number of questions:

1.  Where do you stay when your trailer is being worked on?  I saw in a thread that there may be room on their lot for service customers but if they have your unit for a few days, is there any place to stay close by to possibly tent camp?

2.  What things are included in the general service and is it worth the price?  Not sure if I should just contract someone local for brakes, etc.  I know they would answer my questions readily but I thought I'd ask anyway.

3.  Is there a long wait time for service appointments?  

4. Have you been happy with the service you received?

I really have a short list of items I'd like addressed (definitely the fresh water pickup)  but I feel a visit with the infamous tour might be enjoyable!

Regards..

 

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2020 Toyota Tundra TRD Sport 5.7L V8 

2017 Oliver Legacy Elite II  Hull #184 ~ "ILOVHER"

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Oliver's Service for "used Ollies" is no different than it is for "un-used Ollies" and it is just about the only place where you can get that fresh water pickup issue fix right the first time.

1.  If the camping area located just outside the Service area is open then that would certainly be the place to stay.  If it is not open yet then you could camp at the old Sales Office but tenting is probably not what I'd want to do there or at Meriwether Lewis on the Natchez Trace (they have water available and flush toilets and the sites a fairly well shaded but there is no electric).

2.  I don't know about the "general service" but I did just have my wheel bearings serviced and a chassis lube done for about $250.  I'm sure that this would also include a good look at the brakes if you ask.

3.  Wait time for appointments varies but I would think that something inside of two weeks is certainly possible.

4.  I've always had good service at Oliver.  The prices are in line with others that I've seen and they really do know Ollies.

With regards to #1 above - when you call or open a service ticket be sure to ask about the camping and how long they estimate repairs will take.  Even if they don't finish what you want done in a single day I'm sure that they can arrange it so that you will still get your camper back for the night or they will help you make other arrangements.

Bill

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2023 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5EB FX4 Max Towing, Max Payload, 2016 Oliver Elite II - Hull #117 "Twist"

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Alternatively,  if service says 2 days, it's a great excuse to go explore Nashville. We've done that a few times.

Or, if you like smaller towns, Franklin has some great restaurants, and more places to stay than Hohenwald. 

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We’ve had one two day service done.  We went to Nashville.  Went to the Grand Ol Opry, had a couple nice restaurant meals and enjoyed downtown Nashville with all the music clubs and museums.  Amber Falls Winery is a Harvest Hosts member and is only about 15 minutes from the factory.  They also have a small house/B&B you can stay at but I think it’s kind of pricey.  Mike

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34 minutes ago, BackofBeyond said:

Or - pitch a tent at the old ollie sales site. Better to explore the wilds of TN...

Tennessee has a fabulous state park system.  I don't think we've ever been disappointed with any if them. 

There is some grassy lawn on the side of the old sales center. I suppose that could work for a tent. It's pretty quiet there after dark, generally, even though it's on a main road, unless the neighbor is moving the lawn. Fairly secure ,as well, with the police officer across the road. (Assuming he still lives there. It's been awhile.)

Alternatively,  head to Davey Crockett for tent camping. It's a very, very nice park.

I personally wouldn't tent camp at Merriweather Lewis. No shower,  no hot water, and last time through, honestly,  it looked like a homeless shelter. Free campgrounds can sometimes be problematic. It's a beautiful park though, historic,  and worth the drive out to visit. We've camped there several times in the trailer. 

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2008 Ram 1500 4 × 4

2008 Oliver Elite, Hull #12

Florida and Western North Carolina, or wherever the truck goes....

400 watts solar. DC compressor fridge. No inverter. 2 x 105 ah agm batteries .  Life is good.


        
 

 

 

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12 hours ago, SeaDawg said:

Fairly secure ,as well, with the police officer across the road. (Assuming he still lives there. It's been awhile.)

Yep, the cop still lives there.

2023 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5EB FX4 Max Towing, Max Payload, 2016 Oliver Elite II - Hull #117 "Twist"

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This is really helpful.  We are scheduled for the full Oliver Service in early December.  Our appointment starts first thing on Monday morning and was told to plan on getting our trailer back around 2pm on Tuesday.  We are coming from Maine so we have arranged to park and have power at the service center on Sunday evening.  We are also planning to stay Tuesday evening as it will be getting dark shortly after we pick up our trailer.  We were planning to stay at the local dog friendly hotel in Honenwald on Monday evening as we will have our 1 year old puppy with us.  I like the idea of perhaps going to Nashville.  This service is on the front end of what we hope will be a 4+ month trip to Florida then west to the Grand Canyon, Utah, parts of route 66 then work our way home by mid April.

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On 8/27/2021 at 11:58 AM, csevel said:

 

I really have a short list of items I'd like addressed (definitely the fresh water pickup)  but I feel a visit with the infamous tour might be enjoyable!

 

 

Please let us know if they'll do this modification for you.  I was driving through Tennessee a few months ago and the service agent I spoke with said they no longer did this mod.  Needless to say, I was a bit disappointed.  

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15 hours ago, Stranded said:

Please let us know if they'll do this modification for you.  I was driving through Tennessee a few months ago and the service agent I spoke with said they no longer did this mod.  Needless to say, I was a bit disappointed.  

That would be most unfortunate as it's one of the main problems I have with my ILOVHER.  Not being able to utilize 10 or more gallons of water in a 32 gallon tank while boondocking is inconvenient and a pain to do multiple times during even the short trips!  Major design flaw. I started my service ticket and am patiently waiting a response.

2020 Toyota Tundra TRD Sport 5.7L V8 

2017 Oliver Legacy Elite II  Hull #184 ~ "ILOVHER"

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Presently I assume that the Service Department is a bit short handed since the Manager (Jason) recently had surgery on his right bicep.

Bill

2023 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5EB FX4 Max Towing, Max Payload, 2016 Oliver Elite II - Hull #117 "Twist"

Near Asheville, NC

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1 hour ago, csevel said:

That would be most unfortunate as it's one of the main problems I have with my ILOVHER.  Not being able to utilize 10 or more gallons of water in a 32 gallon tank while boondocking is inconvenient and a pain to do multiple times during even the short trips!  Major design flaw. I started my service ticket and am patiently waiting a response.

If you put a small "nose up" attitude to your Ollie, the old water pickup at the back becomes much more efficient.  Not sure exactly how low you can go, but I'm sure your water pump won't be sucking air with ten gallons remaining.  If you wish to maximize the old pickup's capabilities, try a nose up, right tilt.  Not enough to make anything roll off your table, just enough to encourage water in the tank to head towards the right rear of the tank.

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3 minutes ago, bugeyedriver said:

If you put a small "nose up" attitude to your Ollie, the old water pickup at the back becomes much more efficient.  Not sure exactly how low you can go, but I'm sure your water pump won't be sucking air with ten gallons remaining.  If you wish to maximize the old pickup's capabilities, try a nose up, right tilt.  Not enough to make anything roll off your table, just enough to encourage water in the tank to heat towards the right rearof the tank.

Yes, I've tried that.  Don't really like my fridge being much out of level.  I've read you can be up to 6 degrees off on an absorption fridge but I find it a design flaw of this trailer and would really just like it repaired.  Sensor is basically useless with it until you realize 38% means empty.  

2020 Toyota Tundra TRD Sport 5.7L V8 

2017 Oliver Legacy Elite II  Hull #184 ~ "ILOVHER"

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On 8/30/2021 at 5:01 PM, Stranded said:

Please let us know if they'll do this modification for you.  I was driving through Tennessee a few months ago and the service agent I spoke with said they no longer did this mod.  Needless to say, I was a bit disappointed.  

I just received my estimate for items to be worked on.  Apparently, they still do the water pickup mod..but it's pricey at $400.  Might necessitate a local plumber instead of a roadtrip. Not exactly the 'warm and fuzzies' since this is a serious design flaw of the fresh water tank.

2020 Toyota Tundra TRD Sport 5.7L V8 

2017 Oliver Legacy Elite II  Hull #184 ~ "ILOVHER"

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49 minutes ago, csevel said:

I just received my estimate for items to be worked on.  Apparently, they still do the water pickup mod..but it's pricey at $400.  Might necessitate a local plumber instead of a roadtrip. Not exactly the 'warm and fuzzies' since this is a serious design flaw of the fresh water tank.

That's better than what they told me, they didn't even offer a $400 charge for the mod, just that they no longer did it.

 

I probably would have still been tempted to have the mod done for $400; having the factory cut open the water tank means they're responsible for replacement of the water tank if they mess it up. 

 

However, I can't justify a trip back to Tennessee from California. 

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For the work, and risk, involved, $400 is pretty fair for a second owner. Spin welding is not really a diy kind of task, imo .

Yes, it was an unrecognized design flaw. 

 

 

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2008 Ram 1500 4 × 4

2008 Oliver Elite, Hull #12

Florida and Western North Carolina, or wherever the truck goes....

400 watts solar. DC compressor fridge. No inverter. 2 x 105 ah agm batteries .  Life is good.


        
 

 

 

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As usual, there are two sides to this story.

Is the fresh water tank usable in its present condition? - I'm guessing the answer to that is - yes.  Did/does that tank hold as much fresh water as was advertised when it was sold new? - almost certainly the answer to that question is - no.  What is the warranty from Oliver for this situation?  I'm guessing that it was one year when the camper was new.  Should Oliver warranty this type of thing for additional time?  Given the nature of the "design flaw" and the relative expense of the fix I would say yes they should - and they did.  How long should that warranty extend?  Now, finally, here is the rub.  It would be nice to think that "forever" would be the answer, but, that answer strikes me as a bit much.  Indeed, given this "flaw" is/was known in the community an argument could be made that as part of the negotiation between the buyer and seller of any used Oliver this "design flaw" and/or its mod should come up during the negotiation phase.  However, what does one do if the buyer had no idea that this was even an issue or of what the cost might be to fix the issue?  What happens if the seller is not totally open and honest about this type of thing - assuming that they were even aware of the issue?

Bottom line is that if it were me - I'd write a letter to Scott Oliver giving all of the details I could think of and reasons that the mod was not taken care of by the original owner (i.e. it was located in the far West and it was not practical to bring the Oliver back to Hohenwald for this mod) and ask for his help in getting the mod done under the same program that was used for other Olivers.  If that is not successful then I would have to decide as to how much the mod was worth to me and caulk up the extra expense (assuming I decided to get it fixed) as an additional cost of buying the camper.

Good luck!

Bill

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Yes to your first question and I'm not sure on the second but I suspect that the problem did apply to both models.

Bill

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2023 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5EB FX4 Max Towing, Max Payload, 2016 Oliver Elite II - Hull #117 "Twist"

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To me, it should be a “recall” issue that gets corrected during a service.  When the issue and solution was discussed a few years ago it didn’t seem to me to be a complicated fix, at least not $400 worth.  Mike

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