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Our first trip impressions


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We took delivery of our Elite II on March 4. Visited the Oliver facility and met with some great people who helped us with documentation and with the delivery tour. Tour and explanations of how things work were pretty straight forward with no major hiccups. Stayed at Olivers campsite for two nights so we were hands on.

Left the facility on Sunday for Nashville for 2 nights. After this we were pretty confident that we could be on our own. Called tech support once, confused for the orientation of the valves - normal, boondocking. The technician was great explaining the difference between the two. 

Our route took us to 6 HH locations (by the way best investment we ever made )met with some great hosts from wineries, distilleries, organic farms. Great people to meet and talk to. All HH sites ( with the exception of one ) offered no electricity or water which was no issue for us. Used the central heat for 9 days and consumed the first propane tank which is not bad at all. 

On March 11 and 12 while in NC, we experienced a snow blizzard with temperatures down to 7 degrees. Our truck and the Ollie were covered with snow and ice, however we were very comfortable inside and nothing froze. I was concerned about the outside shower but luckily I did not flush the antifreeze on delivery date. After this we headed south GA, AL, FL , MS , LA and returned back home late last week.

Had many curious visitors inquiring about the trailer, most unaware of the name, some pretty disgusted with their own complaining about the particle board roof and tarp, floors and overall the low quality craftsmanship of the rigs that they currently own. I saw some folks bring their own level to make sure their rig was level.

Towing the trailer was a dream and especially easy on road construction sites. Overall we averaged 13.3 MPG taking in consideration the NC steep grades - some 4 degrees up and down and driving against strong head winds for 4 days. 

Solar option works really great - did not choose the Lithium battery option - but sufficient for lights, microwave, instapot, radio, etc.Just 4-5 hours of sunlight was enough to fully charge the batteries and I think that we can stretch the battery reserve for 2-3 days with no sun. The convection oven was a no no with solar.

Only complaint we have is the roof AC, very noisy, uncomfortable.

Another great feature is the black tank flush port. Before we arrived home we stayed in a RV park, drained both tanks and flushed black with fresh water.

Overall it was a great first trip and already started planning the second and third.

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Super happy for you. Great write up.

Looking forward to your next adventures. 

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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Nice trip with a fair number of miles and stops.  Glad all went well.

If you were using that little bubble level that is in the front jack to level the camper, note that it requires readjustment from time to time.  This is done by getting the camper level (using another leveling device) and then turning the three screws on top of the front jack in order to get the bubble in the exact center.

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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