OBI Dweller Review and Discussion
- Thread starter gendlert
- Start date
Had a GREAT TIME!!!! Did 4 days, Thurs thru Sun. Mother nature thru a torrential downpour Saturday starting around noon and didn't let up til 9:30 at night. NO LEAKS, lots of Yatzee and warm and cozy inside. Sleet and snow that night, no problem for the Dweller. We were up on the side of the hill at the campground in case you're familiar with it. Towed it up in 4L and was able to turn it around while connected to Tacoma and drive it down Sun. The mauverability and off road capability of the Dweller is AMAZING.
nemesisnight
Member
So I have done the shock upgrade and am still annoyed at the rocking my Dweller has, I think OBI needs to really figure out a fix for this as it can't just be written off as well that's the nature of these rigs.....Plenty of other inependent suspension trailers pull great without the bandaids we are trying to use with mixed results. Maybe some dwellers are worse than others, definitely seems worse on the 15's!! Mine is pretty terrible and basically unusable when empty unless it's weighted down a ton up front and completely filled with water, I can't even drive it safely above 45 mph empty. I'm struggling to know what to do in the winter months to even transport it. When I fill the front water tank I'm getting water in the back tank and even my water heater so then I'm not even winterized anymore. Does anyone know to prevent this, if I change the lever under the bed to front tank only will this help? Even then it seems like water will travel in the lines up to that point where the handle is (plus i have to pop out the bed just to reach it), then I potentially will freeze a line still. Pretty annoyed and I do like my Dweller but not pleased with how dangerous it is to tow......I'm towing with a pretty stout 2014 200 series land cruiser rated at around 8500lbs rating, so not an under rated vehicle.
Obsessed2findARuggedHybid
Well-known member
Nemesis that is a bummer. Take it from someone that is in the process of driving a trailer home from NY to UT trailer sway is serious business. Going over Elk Mountain is white knuckle.
With all the units OBI has flooded US market with my guess is they will not be addressing or admiting there is an issue.
At least you didn't spend 150 k on a trailer that does not tow so great on the pavement.
With all the units OBI has flooded US market with my guess is they will not be addressing or admiting there is an issue.
At least you didn't spend 150 k on a trailer that does not tow so great on the pavement.
With water in the front tank only, if you turn the lever so that pump is drawing from the rear (empty) tank, there "should be" no way that water can migrate from the front tank into the rest of the water system.
I am sorry to hear that you are still having issues with towing and rocking. I have no idea how much heavier a D15 is than D13. There is no doubt that it is a lot of weight for a single "axle" trailer. I also do not know the difference in tongue weight between the two.
I would suggest that you go a CAT scale and gather some data. When I measured my D13 in May of last year, I had a pretty full load - most of my camping gear, full front and back water tank, bikes on tongue-mounted rack. My total trailer weight was 5600 lbs with 680 lbs (12%) of that on the tongue. That total weight was probably pushing the limits for my tow rig which was a Grand Cherokee that tipped the scales at 5780 lbs.
I need to gather some additional data. On my last trip across country, I had a new tow rig, RAM 1500, and a light load - camping gear but no water (winterized) and no bikes. Because of the weather I drove mostly interstates and I got pushed around my a tractor-trailers all day, every day. I had no issues with rocking or sway at 70-ish MPH.
Photog Doug
New member
Some of you may have been seeing Dweller 13's being advertised in FB for sale by Parris RV in Murray, UT for $37k. Great price! I called them and the salesman was telling me that Dweller is no longer warranting these trailers thus the marked down price. Anyone heard anything about that? I love the trailer with it's layout and other amenities like the Truma heater and under bunk A/C. I compared the Dweller to the MDC XT13 and AusRV X13 which fell short in my view for various reasons. Even if true about the warranty situation, I think I would be inclined to get the Dweller 13 at that $37k price.
Why on earth would OBI not warranty these trailers?
FordGuy1
Adventurer
If that is true, its a hell of a deal. Most major components would be covered by the manufacture, like Truma, but if you needed something unique to the trailer, one could be in trouble.
Photog Doug
New member
Good point on warranties for the major components. I too can't imagine Dweller not warranting the trailers. Parris RV was telling me this in explaining the low price. Something seems amiss. Going over there next week if weather allows to check this out and potentially buy one.
Obsessed2findARuggedHybid
Well-known member
This sounds a bit fishy to me but curious what benefit a main street RV dealer salesmen would gain from lying about a MFGer not warranting thier trailers to explain a mark down. What company would drop warranty other then a company going out of business? Not to alarm any OBI owners as someone speculated that the company who built my trailer might be in trouble due to website issues. It kind of freaked me out but everything turned out okay. Time will tell maybe they just want to sell at or even below dealer cost because they have inventory and are not selling. Most off road trailer potential customers don't usually shop at Pairs RV
Treefarmer
Active member
Paris RV is an interesting place. They always seemed to have the best prices on Black Series and now are offering low prices on the Dweller. Maybe it's a previous year Dweller for sale with only a limited warranty? The lower price leaves some money in your pocket to fix things on your own if necessary. That's the better route to go at times.
gendlert
Active member
No idea about warranty. BUT...
2:00am today, from my bedroom, I heard the dreaded CO/Propane alarm through my bedroom wall where my Dweller is in the driveway (about 20ft from my head in bed; it's a loud alarm). I have replaced the sensor and wired in the 1A inline fuse and hadn't had a problem since I'd done that. It didn't go off again. I took an hour to get back to sleep, thinking about how I was going to handle that in the morning, calling the sensor company, not OBI (which is relevant to the warranty discussion).
4:00am today, it goes off AGAIN! I'm wide awake now, and pissed, so I throw on some sweatpants, grab the key, and go take out the inline fuse. I know it's not CO or propane because nothing is hooked up. No lights flashing on the sensor. I'll just disconnect it and deal with it once it's light out. I get back to sleep after another hour.
5:45am today, my alarm goes off and I get out of bed, very grumpy.
6:00am today, it goes off AGAIN!!!
Turns out the battery on my work pager in the living room was low. (Yes, I have a pager; no, I'm not a drug dealer.)
CO sensor is fine.
2:00am today, from my bedroom, I heard the dreaded CO/Propane alarm through my bedroom wall where my Dweller is in the driveway (about 20ft from my head in bed; it's a loud alarm). I have replaced the sensor and wired in the 1A inline fuse and hadn't had a problem since I'd done that. It didn't go off again. I took an hour to get back to sleep, thinking about how I was going to handle that in the morning, calling the sensor company, not OBI (which is relevant to the warranty discussion).
4:00am today, it goes off AGAIN! I'm wide awake now, and pissed, so I throw on some sweatpants, grab the key, and go take out the inline fuse. I know it's not CO or propane because nothing is hooked up. No lights flashing on the sensor. I'll just disconnect it and deal with it once it's light out. I get back to sleep after another hour.
5:45am today, my alarm goes off and I get out of bed, very grumpy.
6:00am today, it goes off AGAIN!!!
Turns out the battery on my work pager in the living room was low. (Yes, I have a pager; no, I'm not a drug dealer.)
CO sensor is fine.calicamper
Expedition Leader
Dealers are definitely all over the map right now identical units with $10,000-$15,000 advertised price gaps. Keep in mind advertised prices still have sizable negotiation padding.
Think of these different labeled imports as Versions both in design, marketing and tweaking to the packaging. Black Series is Version 1, Opus version 2, MDC Version 3, Dweller version 4. As they roll into the next labeled version they phase out the support and imports for the prior version.
The end game is to find a version that sells well enough to make the investors whole and hopefully make profit.
The Black Series and the Opus started out lower priced because they thought they had a slam dunk and would sell them fast. Nope. Both container costs spiked and units sold were poor so they had to raise prices.
If anything I like that these designs are pushing change in our own US builders.
calicamper
Expedition Leader
The final end game will likely be a trailer thats based on the same frame and box templates, but uses a Chinese copy of the Truma systems, more standardized parts and fittings that may already exist or are being ramped up by Chinese manufacturers to be mass produced etc. The prices will be 1/2 of the stuff that’s been pitched to us since the introduction of the Black Series. A big part of it will be US makers shifting from baby boomers wanting a rolling ranch house with 1950’s house like features, to modern active people pods that accommodate expensive gear, be it Ebikes, climbing gear, ski gear, etc more compact due to storage costs, site availability, towing costs, unit cost, etc. Will Airstream be around in 20yrs? Not likely unless they start selling $100,000 tin cans with high tech toilets, efficient HVAC and power systems, far better insulation and windows for foul weather use etc.
Photog Doug
New member
Okay, I need to share latest info on the $37k trailer from Parris RV (located at one of the Murray locations). The quote sheet I received from them was for a used one and it was priced at $35k. All of you are probably aware that the OBi warranty does not transfer to a second owner. I now think that is what the salesman was trying to tell me.
But I was trying to ask about the new one. What I didn't realize at that time was that the new Dweller Parris was also advertising was at their Payson location and it is priced at $37k. The salesman there tells me it will have a warranty and that they will be servicing Dwellers. Looking at their website, they have over 1200 units but it appears they only have two Dwellers, a used and new one. I must admit I am still spooked by them selling the new one so cheap - it sounds like they could be trying to get out from under handling Dwellers.
In any case, I apologize to all for spooking you about the warranty servicing.
But I was trying to ask about the new one. What I didn't realize at that time was that the new Dweller Parris was also advertising was at their Payson location and it is priced at $37k. The salesman there tells me it will have a warranty and that they will be servicing Dwellers. Looking at their website, they have over 1200 units but it appears they only have two Dwellers, a used and new one. I must admit I am still spooked by them selling the new one so cheap - it sounds like they could be trying to get out from under handling Dwellers.
In any case, I apologize to all for spooking you about the warranty servicing.