Escape meets Ollie

[scubarx]

I assume that the person you spoke with was the person who purchased this trailer from the original owners. IF SO, then there are some clarifications that need to be made. I am familiar with this trailer as it was originally built for the Technomads and was named Orion. I am also familiar with this person as he approached us in Oklahoma City many years ago and tried to buy our 2008 Oliver Elite I. At that time, he claimed to have been a great admirer of Oliver having seen one other (that trailer) before seeing ours and also stated that he had toured the factory. He appeared to be very knowledgeable about the inner workings of the Oliver’s at that time.

To address his stated complaints:

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...Apparently he bought the unit just after Oliver stopped production for a while and based on what he read he got into a bidding war for a used Oliver. The new price was apparently $32,000 and he ended up paying $46,000...

He may have been involved in a “bidding war” with another prospective buyer, but he apparently failed to mention that the $46,000 he ultimately paid included the tow vehicle.

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...1. Sewer hose and connection in back bumper. The tolereances between the holes and the pins that secured the bumper were so tight that he struggled to get them open even as he showed us. The tolerances for the bumper end to close were also too tight and he found it very difficult to reclose it. Finally, the hose connection within the bumper was recessed and difficult to screw the hose fitting onto...

I agree the hose connection is tight, I just left ours connected and have never had a problem.

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...2. Propane tanks were mounted so close to the front of the trailer that the gel coat was worn through to the fiberglass from friction.
...

As has been stated, that propane compartment was not designed to accommodate 30lb tanks (the newer trailers will.)

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...3. The plastic sliding doors on the ring of cupboards at eye level weren’t big enough to allow larger objects to be easily removed. They were definitely on the small side.
...

I agree the upper cabinets were small, it was what it was and we lived with it.

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...4. Of the two drawers in the kitchen area, one was roughly 12 inches wide and about 20 inches tall, far too deep a drawer for using the space effectively.
...

He complained about the “two drawers”. He must have missed the others, ours had five.

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...5. The hitch pin was under designed and had sheared on him, where after he was informed of a recall for a stronger pin...

There was a problem with the “hitch pin” in one trailer. There was never a recall and even if there had been, he would not have been included as the company would have no knowledge of the trailer having been sold.

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...6. &nbspespite the double walled sides, the inside wall came away to form cupboards and so the single wall in the cupboards sweated when it was cold, making his clothing wet.
...

We never had much problem with our 2008 model sweating. I do know that it was more moist in the overhead cabinets than in the lower storage compartments where we stored our clothes.

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...7. Electrical issues that had yet to be resolved....

This trailer was only about the 34th one built. The wiring in each one was different as each one was custom made to the owners specs. Since this was a used trailer any electrical issues that he had were never going to be resolved by the factory. In all fairness, anyone who knows the Technomads will realize that they most likely made some mods of their own.

Originally Posted by Bobbito

...When he learned the weight of our Escape 21 fully loaded he was envious, as his much smaller trailer almost weighed the same....

I do recall him asking me about weight and I quoted him a traveling weight of around 3900 to 4000 pounds.

[gocamp]

As to price of a new Oliver, you can delete options to lower the price, here is their facebook response

" Can you try an economy model trailer? Same quality, but less luxury, more basic?May 16 at 11:09am

Oliver Travel Trailers Hello Babs, thank you for your interest! Our goal is to always maintain our highest quality and fine craftsmanship. We have no plans to build an economy trailer as that is not our market. There are many other manufacturers that already build economy trailers that are average-good. We strive to be very high quality and to always be improving to be the best we can be. Please keep in mind that you can build an Ollie to be "standard" model without all of the extras if that is what you'd prefer. I encourage you to reach out to our sales department to speak with a Sales Rep to see what this standard package has to offer

[Great Eggstrications]

Poking around on the web, found it interesting to note that the Oliver web site has a 4-way comparison: Oliver Legacy Elite II, Airstream Sport 22 FB, Airstream 23' Flying Cloud, and - taa-dah - Escape 21', with the prices respectively being $49,900, $52,900, $71,600, and $24,000 USD.

https://olivertraveltrailers.com/tra...avel-trailers/

Nice to see that Oliver apparently considers the Escape to be in the mix with them and Airstream.

[padlin]

They need to update their prices.

[escape artist]

Originally Posted by padlin

They need to update their prices.

Hi: padlin... If they're in a 4 way race for highest priced. They're clearly not in first place. If its best value... not in first place either!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[cpaharley2008]

Originally Posted by padlin

They need to update their prices.

and their specifications, they have the 21 Escape with 3" frame, vs the correct 4" boxed frame.

[Brian B-P]

The interior width is wrong for the Escape 21', too. My guess (given the 3" frame goof) is that they are mixing some specs for the original Escape 17' with recent specs for the 21'.

The stabilizer jack type is also incorrect (it says scissor), but that's wrong on the ETI site. Interior wall construction is described as "Vinyl headliner/wall covering over wood frame", which is not accurate (because the cabinets are wood but the covering is on the fiberglass shell and not wood framing). There's no linoleum in an Escape, but that's another error on the ETI site.

Oliver also misses details where they would inconveniently make an Escape look better than an Oliver, such as the availability of a three-burner stove and of a range with oven.

I'm actually impressed how much information Oliver reports on the Escape, even including details such as battery placement and housing which are not in Escape's published specs.

[rotateclockwise]

I'm surprised they chose Escape over Bigfoot. From a marketing perspective, the Bigfoot is more inline with Oliver pricing.

[yardsale]

Oliver only offers a one year warranty (Escape offers two) despite all their language about how superior they are. Always bugged me.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

Oliver also misses details where they would inconveniently make an Escape look better than an Oliver, such as the availability of a three-burner stove and of a range with oven.

Looks like the GVWR is outdated, now 5,000#. Also no mention of the front storage box that could be compared to their open storage basket. Plus no indication that counters, floor and upholstery can be customized. Very thorough comparison though.

Oliver has a new rear bike rack mount that looks really nicely built.

[rbryan4]

I think this comparison by Oliver will sell more Escapes. When all is said and done, it's less than HALF the price of an Oliver for US buyers. That'll cover alot of camping fees and gas.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Oliver has a new rear bike rack mount that looks really nicely built.

That's a lot of metal to make two roof-mount Thule racks work behind a trailer. The aluminum frame is by Oliver; it looks like the black base rails are Thule SquareBar crossbars (probably one bar cut into two, maybe with added End Caps), mounted to feet (may be custom), and carrying two Thule Sidearm bike carriers.

If anyone wants this sort of setup on their Escape, they can buy the Thule (or other brand) components, build a simple frame of steel or aluminum tubing, and just clamp the frame ends to the trailer frame (just ahead of the bumper) with U-bolts. The toughest part would be the mounting feet, if that's not an off-the-shelf Thule item. One could use sockets like Oliver (so it is more readily removable), but it would be nice to make a better socket system.

For such a fancy and expensive product, it seems strange to me that they just stuck a buck worth of conspicuity tape on it, rather than running an extra set of tail and stop/turn lamps.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

For such a fancy and expensive product, it seems strange to me that they just stuck a buck worth of conspicuity tape on it, rather than running an extra set of tail and stop/turn lamps.

Good point, especially since it doesn't appear that Oliver has an extra set of high mount lamps as an option.

[yardsale]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Good point, especially since it doesn't appear that Oliver has an extra set of high mount lamps as an option.

I talked to Oliver about this. They can wire the "Oliver" Sign into the braking system.

[freespirit]

Originally Posted by yardsale

I talked to Oliver about this. They can wire the "Oliver" Sign into the braking system.

IMHO that Oliver sign on the rear is a waste ...now if it was a Led dot matrix sign with the ability to display custom text at the push of a button that would be great..something like
"Stop Tailgating"

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by yardsale

I talked to Oliver about this. They can wire the "Oliver" Sign into the braking system.

That would get you a third brake light, but no extra turn signals. Correct?

[freespirit]

Originally Posted by rbryan4

I think this comparison by Oliver will sell more Escapes. When all is said and done, it's less than HALF the price of an Oliver for US buyers. That'll cover alot of camping fees and gas.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

that may be true, but then again the person willing to spend $60K + for a trailer may not be too concerned about camping fees and gas!

did find it interesting that Bigfoot was not in the comparison as it seemed they all have a similar price except the Escape which with a different build and cost was puzzling why it was even included.
Having been in several new Bigfoots recently, prefer it for comfort.... but it would best be served with a diesel 2500 type pickup tug and taking trailer off road would be very questionable IMHO.

[yardsale]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

That would get you a third brake light, but no extra turn signals. Correct?

Correct, good point.

[Brian B-P]

Escape no longer uses beam axles with leaf springs, and they never did on the trailers to which Oliver is comparing. When Escape did use them on the original 5.0TA, they included the Dexter E-Z Flex system; Oliver offers it as an upgrade:

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

Escape no longer uses beam axles with leaf springs, and they never did on the trailers to which Oliver is comparing. When Escape did use them on the original 5.0TA, they included the Dexter E-Z Flex system; Oliver offers it as an upgrade:

Interesting read but really no comparisons . Brian was looking at "Born free "Class C 's this morning ,and they are using" Smart Plug "for their detachable cords on all their models . . First time I saw a RV manufacturer use on their RV's . Finally got to use home before trip and generator with no hookups . Never knew I would love a detachable system . Pat