AH64ID

All 03+ HO's have the 11.5

BEARHUNTER

Most of the time I think you will be ok towing a little more than what your truck is rated for, no doubt these trucks can do it!, but the problem would be if your in an accident and the weight issue comes into play, I would rather just stay right at or under what its rated for.

Evil Genius

Well, I guess I'd have to disagree.

If we're talking about civil liability for causing a collision, "gross" negligence is not the standard. The standard is simply "negligence" meaning how would a reasonably prudent person have acted under the circumstances. Certainly a plaintiff's lawyer could argue that a decision to operate the vehicle over the manufacturer's rated limits falls below the reasonable person standard. Furthermore, if there exists within that jurisdiction a statute, ordinance, etc. which prohibits operating a vehicle over it's GVWR ,violation of that statute or ordinance could constitute negligence per se thereby relieving the plaintiff of the burden of proving that the action (operating overweight) was below the reasonable person standard. If the trier of fact (judge or jury) buys that argument then the overweight operator could certainly be held civilly liable for damages resulting from the collision.

Obviously this is a simplified analysis and doesn't take into consideration other potentially relevant factors such as alternative causation theories, comparative fault, etc.

12PACK

Fine. The on ramp from the pellet place I buy from is a nice uphill ride. I love romping on it with the load and there's no hesitation from the mighty Cummins.

You can add my 170 lbs. to that ton in the bed when I'm unloading it, too, and I could still add some lbs to it. If I could have found a 3500 srw, I might have tried 3K at a time, after first trying it with 2500.

Now to get ride of these C rated tires. Just kidding.

Mighty Goat

Well, you all got me, I'm wrong and I admit it. I used to think that all cummins dodges had a 11.5 untill i tried to buy new u-bolts, there's 3 listed diameters for a 03 and up 2500 and 3500. So, with that said, and the Dodge website not clarifying that, why is there 3 sizes and only two axles?

KWKING

Regarding 2500 and 3500 Deisel trucks .Does the Heavy Duty badge have any signifigance or not?

Rednecktastic

Not on the 07's... Over all I believe it's just a badge like 'DODGE'.

MikeRP

Good Point - I was thinking of being held criminally liable when I wrote this. I agree there could be arguments on both sides of the equation. Lawyers are good at that but proving an overweight caused an accident would be the first sticky issue. In any manner, isn't that why I carry insurance, trailer insurance and an umbrella liability policy?

However, I guess its magnitude. Say I'm 1000 lbs over a 2500 but under the 3500 limits. I have an argument that the trucks are essentially the same. Now, if I'm 4000 over and the vehicle is obviously unstable its another matter.

In any case are you a lawyer? - I'm not. I just deal with them everyday. I'll get some ideas from one tomorrow.

Mike

BEARHUNTER

One thing that needs to be understood is that there is criminal and civil issues to look at. Say if you are involved in an injury accident and you where towing over the suggested weight limit of your truck and it plays a factor in the accident, you can be taken to civil court for damages even if you were cleared in criminal court. With todays lawsuit happy world its something to be considered before towing more than what the manufacture suggests.

Evil Genius

As a matter of fact I am....

MikeRP

Evil Genius:

Well: If I get sued you'll be the first to get a call! However, I'm not sure I would have admitted on this forum that you is a lawyer.

These folks are just common people and they drives Dodge's. I thought lawyers all drove BMWs or Bentleys or something like that - You must be a SPECIAL lawyer drivin a Dodge.

Now, back to the facts, as they say, is it your opinion that the GVWR of a Truck is an absolute limit?

How much is this going to cost me?

I used to payin lawyers BTW. None of em are cheap.

Mike

Evil Genius

I'm used to being bashed, so no big deal. I've had lots of jobs including working construction, driving truck, sales, etc. plus more than 20 years in the military so I guess I am not the typical lawyer. My 3500 4X4 is my daily driver and my wife drives a Dodge, too.

Anyway, I don't see GVWR as an absolute limit. I certainly would not take a case where my only theory of liability was exceeding GVWR. As a practical matter I don't see it being a big deal as far as liability for a collision only because there will probably be some other, more significant factor (i.e. speeding, failure to yield, etc.) but if an expert testified that overloading was a factor it could be cause trouble.

It's always a good idea to check your insurance policy and make sure there is not an exclusion for coverage if you exceed GVWR ratings, etc.

Personally, I pay more attention to axle and tire ratings than GVWR. In fact, even though my truck has a 10,100 GVWR from Dodge the DMV lets me register it up to 14,000 GVWR.

Manufacturer's warranty is a whole different deal...

RickKimbrell

A slightly funny story about ordering a 3500 vs a 2500. This is the first Dodge truck I have owned since back in the 70s. I went the weekend after Thanksgiving to order it and told them I wanted a 3500 Megacab SRW. The gal at the dealership who was handling setting up the order came back to me and asked "What do you tow or haul in a 3500 that you can't with a 2500?" My response was "Why?" She said, "I can save you quite a bit of money on ordering the truck by ordering you a 2500 instead of a 3500. What do you tow or haul?". Almost floored her with my answer. "Well, actually nothing. But, in the 3500, I am not required to wear seat belts." She stood there for a minute and said "You have to be kidding." "No mam, I'm not. Just order the 3500 and I will be happy." The actual salesman almost fell on the floor laughing.

Rednecktastic

Since I took my badges off I'll have to remember that incase I get pulled over around town without a seatbelt on..

But dang, you really are a bad influence on me .

MikeRP

Evil:

Were you in the legal office? I worked there while I was in the Air National guard.

I had a great time with the lawyers.

Mike