OBI Dweller Review and Discussion

[kevin8119]

1st. I’ve read the whole thread. It’s a fantastic source of information. My wife and I just got home with our brand new 2022 Dweller 15. We are so excited. It has the red shocks but drove great the nearly 200 miles home, even at 75mph for a few stretches.

Everything seems great except the little latch to separate the door and screen door was broken. We didn’t even notice at the PDI because there was so much to look at. Does anyone know if that latch is readily available anywhere? I will call the dealer tomorrow but wanted to see if I cold maybe fix it myself faster. We are heading out the the 27th for a week long trip.

To do:
Shock upgrade - if it makes it pull better than it did today, it will pull like a dream after that change.

Lithium upgrade - because I like more power and less weight. And, I like the idea of converting to run AC on battery if needed. Trying to decide if self heating are worth it vs cold shut off for me. Problem a spring upgrade.

Swapped fridge to Anderson plug. I will make a bungee to lift the cord out of the way to prevent catching/cutting.

Will be buying some of the edging tape for the toilet for when the caulk gives way. I suspect that won’t take long after sitting in Texas heat for a year +.

Heavy weight ARC stabilizer- nothing wrong with blue ones but I love the idea of always being able to lift the trailer if needed.

Air bags on the truck. It’s a lifted F250 so it pulls fine but porpoises a little on rough highways. Will also be useful when trailering my tractor.




Broken latch

 

[Dweller Feller]

Fun Town are the clowns that made a vid saying the Dweller was manufactured in Arizona and NOT brought over from over seas in a shipping container. You know like the total opposite from the truth!

Obi and Roa are very careful with their wording of where obi's are made.

 

[Dweller Feller]

1st. I’ve read the whole thread. It’s a fantastic source of information. My wife and I just got home with our brand new 2022 Dweller 15. We are so excited. It has the red shocks but drove great the nearly 200 miles home, even at 75mph for a few stretches.

Everything seems great except the little latch to separate the door and screen door was broken. We didn’t even notice at the PDI because there was so much to look at. Does anyone know if that latch is readily available anywhere? I will call the dealer tomorrow but wanted to see if I cold maybe fix it myself faster. We are heading out the the 27th for a week long trip.

To do:
Shock upgrade - if it makes it pull better than it did today, it will pull like a dream after that change.

Lithium upgrade - because I like more power and less weight. And, I like the idea of converting to run AC on battery if needed. Trying to decide if self heating are worth it vs cold shut off for me. Problem a spring upgrade.

Swapped fridge to Anderson plug. I will make a bungee to lift the cord out of the way to prevent catching/cutting.

Will be buying some of the edging tape for the toilet for when the caulk gives way. I suspect that won’t take long after sitting in Texas heat for a year +.

Heavy weight ARC stabilizer- nothing wrong with blue ones but I love the idea of always being able to lift the trailer if needed.

Air bags on the truck. It’s a lifted F250 so it pulls fine but porpoises a little on rough highways. Will also be useful when trailering my tractor.


View attachment 810955

Broken latch
View attachment 810956

I had to replace my door latches. I thought it was just the Stryker plate. Nope it was the entire locking mechanism. And the instructions were terrible. They will have to order the door parts from Australia. This forum needs to try and hopefully figure out a way to pipeline parts directly from Australia, so we can avoid having to rely on obi. Maybe it's a pipe dream, just a thought.

Obi and Roa are very careful with their wording of where obi's are made.

 

[Dweller Feller]

I had to replace my door latches. I thought it was just the Stryker plate. Nope it was the entire locking mechanism. And the instructions were terrible. They will have to order the door parts from Australia. This forum needs to try and hopefully figure out a way to pipeline parts directly from Australia, so we can avoid having to rely on obi. Maybe it's a pipe dream, just a thought.

Check out li-time lifepo4. Will prowse has good things to say about them.

 

[kevin8119]

I had to replace my door latches. I thought it was just the Stryker plate. Nope it was the entire locking mechanism. And the instructions were terrible. They will have to order the door parts from Australia. This forum needs to try and hopefully figure out a way to pipeline parts directly from Australia, so we can avoid having to rely on obi. Maybe it's a pipe dream, just a thought.

I think this is what I need

https://suncoastcaravanservice.com.au/product/atrv-aussie-traveller-door-handle-rhh-barrel-keys/

 

[LaBlaze]

They had issues like most of the other dealers . They paid more than they should have. While obi, was selling to other dealers for less than they paid. Pissing off the other dealers. Roa, has been by far more helpful than obi, with their videos. Obi, did a terrible job teaching the dealers about their trailers. So most dealers had no idea what they were selling.

Obi, is ran by 20 year olds. It shows by their juvenile behavior on how they run their business. I spoke to a lot of dealerships b4 purchasing one. Most not all did not have a lot of good things to say about them.

Obi, is just the middle man. They came up with a company name, changed some things around to an already common trailer and called it their own. They need to hire someone with technical support and pr skills. If I would have known how difficult it was to order parts etc... I might have had second thoughts, Hindsight. I really do like my trailer, it just should not be this difficult to communicate with obi for answers. Thank goodness for this forum !

Yea I can totally see that. The sucky part is getting parts from manufacturers. We found a good rb mobile guy who knows about Australian campers to fix ours instead of taking it to the dealer. He was actually able to show us how to use everything. I wish we had the money for a Kimberly karavan or a bruder!

 

[Dweller Feller]

I think this is what I need

https://suncoastcaravanservice.com.au/product/atrv-aussie-traveller-door-handle-rhh-barrel-keys/

looks just like mine. When I noticed my cracked strykers plates all three. I was figuring it was a simple replacement. figured, the door was being slammed numerous times while sitting on the lot and people are not used to this style of trailer door. After some research, I realized I had to order the entire mechanism. It was fairly difficult connecting up the upper and lower stryker plates. There are 2 interior door rods that are on the inside of the door that when you pull the main handle up to engage and dis-engage the lower locks, the rods need to be reconnected as well. For me it was kind of a hassle. The middle door handle was not as bad if I recall. The link below will show you the instructions. Good luck.

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0542/4939/0251/files/REPLACE_DOOR_LOCK.pdf?v=1624410791

 

[Singler3360]

Is the trailer company called OBI (Outback Innovations, IIRC), the distributor in AZ, or both? When I bought our Conqueror UEV-14 from ROA, they said it came from the same AZ warehouse, but I'm not sure if it was called OBI.

I also had to source the main door lock mechanism which appears to be the same as posted earlier. ROA tried for me but said it would be cheaper to order direct from AUS. It only took a week for the part to arrive in Oregon!

 

[Obsessed2findARuggedHybid]

Is the trailer company called OBI (Outback Innovations, IIRC), the distributor in AZ, or both? When I bought our Conqueror UEV-14 from ROA, they said it came from the same AZ warehouse, but I'm not sure if it was called OBI.

I also had to source the main door lock mechanism which appears to be the same as posted earlier. ROA tried for me but said it would be cheaper to order direct from AUS. It only took a week for the part to arrive in Oregon!

I believe the name is OBI Conqueror out of Mesa AZ that has them built by the same manufacturer in China. It is possible the Conqueror and the Dwellers are built at different facilities but both are in China. They try to give the impression they do all sorts of mods and assembly in AZ but I am suspect of any true technician or engineers that are in staff. Others in this forum likely do.

 

[Obsessed2findARuggedHybid]

I am confused. Conqueror are not listed on OBI s website. I believe they use to be. They do have a Conqueror US website. Under "dealers" they list ROA as a Las Vegas dealer. Probably just a typo. My guess is ROA will drop them as soon as they sell thier last units. For the price the older units are a total bargain even with the needed mods. Paying the closer to retail cost of the 2024 units...scary

 

[Dweller Feller]

I am confused. Conqueror are not listed on OBI s website. I believe they use to be. They do have a Conqueror US website. Under "dealers" they list ROA as a Las Vegas dealer. Probably just a typo. My guess is ROA will drop them as soon as they sell thier last units. For the price the older units are a total bargain even with the needed mods. Paying the closer to retail cost of the 2024 units...scary

They sell /market them from the exact same facility in Tempe az. Once they r shipped in by truck, they add or make repairs to units before selling off. The units that are to damaged, they sell off to a dealer down the street with NO WARRANTY !

 

[Dweller Feller]

I am confused. Conqueror are not listed on OBI s website. I believe they use to be. They do have a Conqueror US website. Under "dealers" they list ROA as a Las Vegas dealer. Probably just a typo. My guess is ROA will drop them as soon as they sell thier last units. For the price the older units are a total bargain even with the needed mods. Paying the closer to retail cost of the 2024 units...scary

I believe the name is OBI Conqueror out of Mesa AZ that has them built by the same manufacturer in China. It is possible the Conqueror and the Dwellers are built at different facilities but both are in China. They try to give the impression they do all sorts of mods and assembly in AZ but I am suspect of any true technician or engineers that are in staff. Others in this forum likely do.

they do minor modifications in az. Battery upgrade, adding sink, adding fridge, spare tire relocation . The upgrades they do, most of us can do ourselves, if so inclined. And very minor warranty work. They do not have any true technicians or engineers on staff. They r definitely lacking both. Too bad they are not ran more like Roa. Obi, is a small outfit with maybe 10 ish employees. I think most, if not all are in their 20's. Vincent is the main character, Dustin is their operations manager, Vincent's girlfriend is in the office. Then a handful of warehouse people that assemble the trailers as they arrive, to prepare for selling. I have the impression they r mostly friends and family. I think there is Vincent's father and 1 other business partner that helped get Obi off the ground.

 

[Dweller Feller]

I am confused. Conqueror are not listed on OBI s website. I believe they use to be. They do have a Conqueror US website. Under "dealers" they list ROA as a Las Vegas dealer. Probably just a typo. My guess is ROA will drop them as soon as they sell thier last units. For the price the older units are a total bargain even with the needed mods. Paying the closer to retail cost of the 2024 units...scary

I believe the name is OBI Conqueror out of Mesa AZ that has them built by the same manufacturer in China. It is possible the Conqueror and the Dwellers are built at different facilities but both are in China. They try to give the impression they do all sorts of mods and assembly in AZ but I am suspect of any true technician or engineers that are in staff. Others in this forum likely do.

they do minor modifications in az. Battery upgrade, adding sink, adding fridge, spare tire relocation . The upgrades they do, most of us can do them. They do not have any true technicians or engineers on staff. They r definitely lacking both. Too bad they are not ran more like Roa. Obi, is a small outfit with maybe 10 ish employees. I think most, if not all are in their 20's. Vincent is the main guy, Dustin is their operations manager, Vincent's girlfriend is in the office. Then a handful of warehouse people that

 

[kevin8119]

We are still having a leak from the roof window, so we will be uninstalling it and recaulking it. Since I need to do that, has anyone tried to install a max air fan? The standard fan opening is 14x14 inches and the window size is bigger. I could not find an adapter for it so I am about to give up on that idea.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

Did you end up getting the maxair fan to work?

 

[Dweller Feller]

Did you end up getting the maxair fan to work?

I was thinking about a max air fan as well.

They were easy to install on my fifth wheel.
The dwellers are a little different. I have seen them installed on the obi conqueror's