rfeiller

the GVWR is the amount the truck by itself can max out; vehicle and what ever is loaded on the vehicle.

the GCVWR as you know is what the vehicle and whatever it is towing rated max out.

the calculation is based on whatever the ratings of the tow vehicle and the trailer vehicle are, not what their actual loaded weights are. if the trailer is rated at 14k and you only are carrying 4k they still base your weight as 14k.
the truck that was ticketed was tagged 16,500. that limits him to 16.5k total trailer and truck. he was not plated enough to cover the 14k of the trailer, because his truck certainly weighed more that 2.5k

also they look at the amount of axles combined of the tow vehicle and the trailer. you probably have 4 axles. they look at the total length of the combined vehicles, if it is over 40'.
the mistake a lot of truck owners do to save money or out of ignorance is under register their trucks. if you have a company make sure your accounts payable does not just plate for the empy weight. plate the vehicle for the max that you plan on being loaded.

what makes all of this worse is it is left up to the officer that pulls you over or stops you at the weigh station. if you ask 3 different dot guys you will get 3 different interpretations. the law is intentionally written to open up for interpretation, that's how the gov and attorneys make all of their money. they have no intentions of cleaning it up either. i have never received the same answers for the same questions from any two officers. and i have talked to many of these guys from the feds in Washington D.C., to state DMV and Highway partrols in CA, AZ, TX, and NM. hauling through those state's weigh stations i have received everything from "have a nice day" to paying the max fees for my load.
you can tell by the different responses on the forums how inconsistent it is.

jhut03

would a 2500 diesel be able to handle pulling say a max of 20k(trailer and load) The towing capacity of 2500s are the same as the 3500 so I am more concerned with how the truck will ride with that much weight off of it, maybe get some helper bags and mount the tank in the trunk to bring the rear of the truck back up to ride height after loading the trailer?

rfeiller

jhut03 you live in IN you are lucky in dealing with the DOT, DMV etc. you have a one stop shop. you can get all of your information from one office. here in CA we have to deal with several different agencies.
go in and talk to them they will give you all of the right information.l

89f150

any trailer 10001 and up has to have class a

NDanecker

The GCVWR numbers Dodge, Chevy and Ford puts out is just a recommended total. No DOT agency or officer will enforce this. They take the plated GVWR of the truck, add that to the GVWR of the trailer and that is your true GCVWR. You cannot go over this total. You cannot go over any axle or tire ratings. Be careful, as some trailer mfg rate their trailer higher then what the axles can hold putting more load on the hitch which is fine. ya just have to watch your truck axle ratings now.

Aside from what the mfg recommends your GCVWR is you can tow whatever you want and how heavy you want AS LONG AS you are not over the plated weights of each (truck and trailer), individual axle ratings, hitch ratings, tire ratings....etc.

Now - is it safe to tow 40k lbs with your Dodge 3500? Most likely not, but according to DOT you can as long you don't exceed anyone of the plated numbers, or any piece of equipment (tires, axles, hitch). This is how many 1 tons run freight/cars pulling very heavy wedges and low boys without getting busted. They are well beyond what Dodge recommends the GCVWR to be, but they are below their plated numbers.

CDL seems to be weird for every state. Generally though:

- For any tractor trailer you need a CDL A (this means any C&C without a load carrying bed).
- Over 26k and towing trailer over 10k, CDL A.
- Over 26k and towing trailer under 10k, CDL B.
- Under 26K towing any weight trailer no CDL.

Vehicle registration seems to be different for each state also. Here in NJ, for non-commercial use the vehicle gets a GVW and the trailer gets a GVW. For commercial use, the vehicle gets the TOTAL GVW and the trailer is plated to 0 lbs.

If you are a truck and trailer (load carrying bed) you cannot exceed 65' in overall length (truck and trailer).

If you have a C&C (non load carrying bed) your trailer cannot exceed 53' and there is no limit on overall except for vehicle & boat transporting then its 75' overall with stinger setup or 65' without.

SkyHarborCowboy

I know you need your medical card at a certain weight but I dont think it is that low.

The other thing is that even if you are rated to carry more (My Horse Trailer has 2-7K axles) I am never near 14,000 Pounds on the trailer. I have been harassed in California many times over that and all I ever do as ask the police to bring out the scales if he thinks I am over limit and the argument stops right there.

rfeiller

89f150 in CA 10,001 requires a class A, most states follow the fed usdot as Ndanecker stated using the 26k as the break point. each state has the option to modify the usdot as they deem necessary. always go to your states highway patrol or dot to learn what is expected of you.

i travel from CA to TX each state has it's own interpretation of the law. i am usdot registered with a cdl.

SkyHarborCowboy

RFeiller,

I was broke down for 3 days at the rest stop just west of Deming with P1688 code! I had my darn horse trailer with me what a nightmare to break down and not know anyone in the area! I wish I would have run into you last week, lol!

Joe

PS. One thing I can tell you is to get a straight answer out of anyone of these laws is insane! I bought a Peterbilt to tow my horse trailer with and havent gotten the same answer out of anyone in any government on what I need to do!

This much I do know! In AZ if you follow this you can register an OTR truck as an RV! http://www.azsos.gov/Public_Services...ion/CH_123.pdf Item 20

rfeiller

SkyharborCowboy,
Sorry i missed you. i do spend most of my time in SJ, CA. don't wish you any ilwill, but maybe next time, i need to make another run out there.
just wanted to tell you that every time i go through AZ they nail me on fees, twice when i was under 16k combined weight. they nail me for four axles, over 40', and pulling a trailer over 10k. gotta love these guys.
how about those photo op suv's. you know that it is an austrailian corp that owns the equip and gets a cut out of the fines?

89f150

ok thats something i didnt no. but for bout 6-700 you could get you cdl and its worth it. i got mine and im 20.

SkyHarborCowboy

Thanks,

Can you be more specific on what they nailed you for and how much it cost? I am curious. It goes both ways I guess! I have been pulled over in Blythe twice pulling my horse trailer. One time the cop let me go because he saw that the guy I tried to pass up the hill sped up and force me to get up to 62 MPH to pass him but he still pulled me over. The next time, I was going 58 MPH and he pulled me over. Gave me a bunch of crap and instead of giving me a speeding ticket for being 3 mph over the limit he said he could give me a ticket for no chains on the trailer or no proof of insurance which I had both!

Friggin Tax Collecting Criminals! Now in Cal I set the cruise at 55 MPH and just **** everyone off! I also flash the high beams at uncoming traffic when I see a cop is set up behind me with a radar!

rfeiller

i have to go through the weigh stations as a med duty, AZ charges me fees for going through AZ it wasn't a fine. AZ is the only state that charges me for going through; nv, nm and tx don't. with the trailer empty or full, i don't exceed 26k, AZ still charges me by weight, the others state line weigh stations just say have a nice day. my USDOT # shows that it is a "not for hire" #.

JAX

I also have a class A CDL, and I work for the Railroad. I drive a big 3 axle boom truck (50K GVW/80K GCVW) and frequently have to tow a CAT 420 Backhoe behind me. I can say that you should try to be as legal as possible at all times, but everyone knows that is almost impossible to do. You had better look into logbook requirements as well. There are a ton of loopholes open to officer interpretation on the requirement of logbooks even if you're not towing.

ponyboy123

2009 5500 SLT C/C.
24 foot 25,000 lb tandem dually GN trailer.

Truck has 110,000 kms on it in just about a year. I have been haulling about 24,000 lbs of feed every two days to keep the mink fed. I will be purchasing a new truck this spring and wondering if I should be looking at something heavier. So far I have had a uni-joint seize, shortly after that the transfer case broke off of the transmision, now it is back in the shop to have the transmision replaced. Tranny was working fine but they found a crack in the case. My question is did all of this stem from the bad universal, by the way, the dealership told me to continue driving it while they waited a week and a half to get the part, or is this truck just not cut out for what I am needing to haul? Rumor has it they are discontinuing the auto trans in the 2011 5500. Thanks for the input folks.........

Colo_River_Ram

pony-boy,

Sounds to me like you need to get a semi with a float.. I'll bet your cost / mile would drop as you could carry more..

I went with the 5500 as it fit the "nitch" I needed. Most locations I work off of is small and there is no room for a bigger truck / trailer. the Bullet handles my smaller loads with ease..