I have a 2004 HD 2500, quad, long bed, 4x4. the rear axle is rated at 11,500#
yet the rear axle is load rated at 6000#. Is there a reason for this extremely light load rating and is there a fix?

 

04 3500 HO 4x4 quad cab SWR long wheel base... the only difference between "our" rear axle is the 3500 has a couple of extra leafs for capacity. so i don't understand this 11.500 axle with a 6000 lbs load capacity??? hummm now i'm confused.. sorry maybe i can't help??

 

My truck also has overloads and Firestone air bags

Thanks for the reply.....hoping that someone from Dodge would "chime in" on this.

 

The rear axle weight rating on the doorjamb is linked with the tires the truck was built with. No LEGAL fix for this- DC has posted what's 'legal' on the doorjamb, and THAT's cast in concrete. Truck camper guys mount up 19.5 wheels/tires and can run up to the axle weight rating safely.

Be very careful running heavier than that 6000lb rating- your factory tires will be overloaded.

 

Actually the truck has 265R17 with a load rating of 121/118 which is 3195# per tire. I think this tire is an upgrade from OEMs

 

Dodge is just Cover Their you know what's the axels are the same on the 3500 and the 2500. If you have E rated tires and some air bags you can tow just as much as the One tons can. IMOA

 

It's not about towing - it's about load. The limiting factor on a SRW is the tire/wheel combination, and that's where the OP's 6K limitation is coming into play.

The highest-rated LT tire I could find (without looking all that hard, admittedly) is 3415# (and that's on a 16" wheel, which won't fit anyway - but this is just for illustration). That means a max weight of 6830# before the tires go "POP". Compared to a dually, running a tire rated at 2835# (which mine happen to be - Michelin LTX in 235/80R17E), that's a max load of 11,340#

 

Towing just as much as a 1 ton is not the question........the question is what will DOT say. I just ready to start a little commercial hauling and here is my concern........my rear axle weighs 2900# and is rated for 6000# which means I could add 3100 to my rear axle but my total truck weighs 7300# and the GVWR is 9000 which means I can only add 1700 total to the truck. If you figure that a gooseneck will transfer about 20% of the load to the truck and I have a gooseneck flatbed that weighs 6000# then with the trailer empty that is 1200# transfered to the truck.That only leaves 500# @ 20% or 2500# of load could be put on the trailer? I am very confused since the rear axle is a 11,500# axle and the tires are rated @ 118/121 or 3195 per tire. What the H---is the answer?

 

The answer is exactly what you surmised... you cannot PRACTICALLY exceed GAWR, or the load rating of your tires/wheels, and you cannot LEGALLY exceed GVWR. If you go through a DOT scale, and they find you in excess of your GVWR (and they calculate this by combining the weight measured on the front axle and the weight measured on the rear axle), you're in trouble.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news - but that's just the way it is.

 

the majority of DOT officers will never check the axle rating but what they will check is the cab card with the GCVWR on it that you'll get when you get apportioned tags (if your going out of state), now if you are very heavy on the drive axle they might check you but as long as your careful and put the majority of the weight on the trlr tires youll be fine, Ive never check my axle weights but the way I figure out how much I can haul is the gross towing amount of vehicle(+20% for gn) then go from there, my truck can legally haul 16,200 lbs but thats on a 3500, any way I wouldnt worry too much about it just use your head on what you haul