Glory,
I'll give you my rundown on why I chose the Oliver over the Airstream. Please don't anyone take this as bashing the AS. They are lovely trailers with alot of desireable attributes.
On the Pros of the AS:
They are bigger - wider particularly at 8' and 8'6" depending on model.
They have alot of storage - mostly interior cabinets.
The aesthetic is beautiful if you like the retro look and the shiny bits.
The torsion
axle setup is a very low slung and smooth ride. They tow very well.
They have a very active community and a network of AS only campgrounds/resorts.
They have a long history, so there is a huge knowledge base of resolving issues and deep spare parts inventory.
They are backed by a huge company, so you can be assured they will be there for you many years down the road.
Now the CONS (but PROS for Oliver)
The aluminum is very susceptable to damage - scratches, dents (like from hail) and corrossion. In the way I use my trailer, I just don't think I could keep up with the AS to keep it beautiful and perfect. The fiberglass of the Oliver is much more forgiving.
Not true 4 season capable. Many would argue it's not even 2 season capable. The insulation is old style fiberglass batt. There are picks online of old trailers where the insulation came loose and drooped down inside the walls, leaving large sections basically uninsulated. Newer trailers have a bottom skin, but I don't believe it is also insulated. The Oliver, of course has insulation applied directly to the fiberglass, and all the plumbing is enclosed inside the hull. AS does not offer any dual pane
windows. It does have many more
windows, but that just adds more area of no insulation.
Weak on technology and equipment options. You only can get a modest
solar and inverter setup on the AS and only 2 batteries. They are just not keen on setting them up to be off-grid. With Oliver you can get 4 batteries and a big enough inverter to run everything except
air conditioning. The
solar panel setup is all heavy guage wire and large enough to service a large
battery bank.
The AS uses a wood floor and a steel chassis frame. Very old school and a shame considering the price point. So they all eventually rot and don't have the available payload of an Oliver. My new trailer will have a 7000 lb aluminum chassis!
The AS can leak. All those connected aluminum sheets have a joint that is put together with rivets and sealant. Eventually that will leak inside the walls and will rot out the floor. The Oliver is all jointed fiberglass. The only place it can leak is at the penetration points and
windows. If it does, so what. You clean up the water, seal the leak and keep going. There is no wood to rot. There is no fiberglass insulation to collect mold and have to be removed.
There are many more points, both pro and con, but these are the majors to me. Oh, and I forgot to mention price. A similar sized AS is going to be $70-$80k. That is significantly more money and a tough value proposition if you consider the above.