Fronty Owner

At www.dodge.com, when you configure a truck, it tells you the tow rating properly equiped. Is this number a DOT thing or a DC thing? Why is a dually rated at 13000+ tow capacity? I know it can handle a 21000 pound trailer just fine and apparently legally.

NHDiesel

All I know is, here in N.H., if you get caught over the GCWR of the vehicle, you go home with a ticket. The biggest things you'll find pulled behind 1-ton trucks are camper trailers and the occasional 2-car trailer, and I have a friend who does auction buying and hauling for a dealership who has been stopped more than once for having 2 vehicles on the trailer and was ticketed for being over the weight rating of the truck. But its just one of those thing where its a law that isn't always used unless they want to make an example of you, or if its a young cop who wants to flex his new muscles.

Jim

Haulin_in_Dixie

Do me a favor, you have a 2500, I also have one. Please take a picture of the spec plate showing a 21,000 limit on the truck. There is no such thing on a Dodge.

Here is the regulation for New Hampshire:

259:38-a Gross Combination Weight Rating or GCWR. – "Gross combination weight rating" or "GCWR" shall mean the value specified by the manufacturer as the maximum loaded weight of a combination (articulated) vehicle. In the absence of a value specified by the manufacturer, GCWR shall be determined by adding the GVWR of the power unit and the total weight of the towed unit and any load thereon or registered weight rating, whichever is greater.
Source. 1989, 319:9, eff. July 1, 1989.

This absence of the GCWR on the door spec plate allows the vehicle to tow commercially by the formula which limits you to the axle capacity and tire capacity of a properly set up and registered vehicle. My 33,000 plated Dodge has a SSR for New Hampshire, authorizing me to haul in your state at the weights of the registration and insurance.

Jim in all due respect, you are giving incorrect information probably based on what you have been told but it will confuse those asking questions on how to legally tow commercially. And my license says "Alabama Commercial Drivers License," its not an endorsement, it is a completely different license.

NHDiesel

"In the absence of a value specified by the manufacturer"

What do you think that value on the Dodge web site says? True, not EVERY truck will have that figure directly attached, but that does not mean that I can hook my Dodge 2500 or my Dakota up to a 50,000 lb. loaded box trailer and head out on the road, just because I have the trailer registered for 50,000 GVW. The manufacturer still has the rating, even if the tag is not on the truck. How about hooking up a Honda Civic to a 20,000 lb. loaded 3-car trailer? Just because the trailer is registered doesn't make it legal. And just because individual states don't always keep close watch over all the overloaded vehicle, just get in an accident and see what happens. I will give you this though- I haven't dealt with many states on this subject, so I'm definately far from an expert. But if you come through N.H. with a truck thats towing over the GCWR, you better believe you will be stopped. The DOT here go after everything they can. And just because every vehicle doesn't have the GCWR on it, doesn't mean the manufacturer doesn't have a spec on it. I'm including the ratings for various vehicles to show that there is indeed such a thing. Feel free to look for yourself on the Dodge web site. Ford has it listed on the web also.

2005 Dakota
SLT, Club Cab, 4x2, 4.7L Magnum® V8 Engine, 6-Speed Manual Transmission
With 3.55 Axle Ratio You Can Tow 5500 lbs
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating(GVWR)[i]=6010
Payload[i]=1654
Curb Weight[i]=4356
Curb WeightFront/Rear=2549/1807
GAWR[i]Front/Rear=3100/3806
Gross Combination Weight Rating(GCWR)[i]=10000

With 3.21 Axle Ratio You Can Tow 5000 lbs
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating(GVWR)[i]=6010
Payload[i]=1654
Curb Weight[i]=4356
Curb WeightFront/Rear=2549/1807
GAWR[i]Front/Rear=3100/3806
Gross Combination Weight Rating(GCWR)[i]=9500


2005 Durango
SLT, 4x2, 5.7L HEMI Magnum® V8 Engine, 5-Speed Automatic Transmission
With 3.92 Axle Ratio You Can Tow 8850 lbs
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating(GVWR)[i]=6600
Payload[i]=1593
Curb Weight[i]=5007
Curb WeightFront/Rear=2656/2351
GAWR[i]Front/Rear=3100/3900
Gross Combination Weight Rating(GCWR)[i]=14000

Haulin_in_Dixie

kingofdodge7131

So i guess maybe the question of the day is , If yo do "upgrade" ur truck can your truck specifically be reregistered at a higher rating?

RickCJ

I went thru the whole weight gcwr bs. not too long ago! Haulin is correct!! I pull a 3 car wedge rated at 14,800 behind my dually and I'm perfectly legal( 11,000 gvwr truck and 14,800 gvwr trailer = 25,800 gcwr). If you go by the law, 30-35k would be the limit for a 1 ton.

Heck I don't even have a CDL!! Don't need it under 26k. Even if you haul commercially.

I haven't been thru N.H. but thru NY MASS CON VER etc........never had a problem or even need to stop at scales. They are for commercial haulers only!

I haul my cars to/from auction.

NHDiesel

I guess its a state-by-state thing. I know of people who have been ticketed for towing a camper trailer that was over the GCWR of the truck...towing a 28 or 30 foot camper trailer with a 1/2 ton, for example. Last year my father got nabbed for towing a small skidder behind a 1-ton on an equipment trailer that was registered for the weight. He moves his small excavator behind a 1-ton on a regular basis also, but stays local and tries to move it very early in the morning or late at night, so traffic is light and the police are off duty around there.

Jim

RickG

I m registered under 26,000 and need a DOT physical and have to keep a log .( Log required over 10,000 lbs. GVW as is DOT physical ) I was pulled for a DOT check yesterday on I-81 in TN and had to show physical card , log book , registration , bill of lading for the travel trailer I was delivering and more . They had 5 inspectors and as soon as 1 let one truck go they'd pull another in . FHWWA inspectors were there and National Guard was there with a drug sniffing dog . In many states DOT will regularly patrol roads truckers use to bypass scales and nail them anyway .

kingofdodge7131

I totally believe this. As ive heard it many times and makes sence, Many 5th wheel campers fully loaded can put you over the GCVR of dodge,

But what about the "loop whole" You have your 1 ton ram, Tires rated at 3k a piece, so thats 12k for tonge weight, Depending on axle, I dont know what the rating is but anywho. well say 10k, Now you go get a 5th plate off a class 8 truck so its weight rating is up there and properly load a trailer so all the axles/tires are legal, and now you have 40k on the back of a 1 ton dodge ram? Doesnt seem right

NHDiesel

Saw a N.H. DOT officer today (he was looking for long trucks). This is what I got, not a perfect quote, but very close (including the sarcasm!):

-For the med. card, etc., each state is different.
-For GCWR, again, each state is different. N.H. only allows the GCWR as defined by the manufacturer. Not every truck has it shown on the vehicle, but the manufacturer has a GCWR rating for all trucks, and even all cars have max. allowable trailer weights. If/when they need the figures, the DOT can look them up.

He went on to say that many states "are just scary" and allow almost anything, because all they care about is getting paid for the weight, and not the safety of the load. The ratings take into account not only the physical limitations of mechanical parts on the tow vehicle, but also a margin of safety so inexperienced drivers will be better protected.

He also went on to explain that if a truck is "uprated" (usually done with larger trucks, not 1-tons) using a double frame, heavier axles, etc., then the truck has to undergo an inspection of the parts to make sure the GVW and/or GCWR can safely be upgraded. Thats a common thing for truckers here running dump trucks to do when they convert from twin screw to a tri-axle, and/or upgrade from, say, 40,000 lb. rear axles to 46,000 lb. The GVW is increased only if the parts are found to have been properly upgraded.

So...I'll keep my nose in N.H. and out of other state's business...there is just too much difference in laws between states.

Jim

sherman

Why do people insist on overloading these pickups by "just a little bit".Why do I see Small SUV's up side down in the ditches with what's left of a travel trailer?Why do innocent people get killed by idiots that overload pickups and then they think they can drive safely?If you go over to the Towing board you will read about a semi driver being killed by an over loaded pickup that got out of contol.AND WE WONDER WHY THE LAWS ARE OUT OF CONTROL.

NHDiesel

There are so many factors that figure in, the laws have to make things idiot proof. Driver skill & experience, weather, road conditions, terrain, etc. all have to be factored in. While thinking about why our state would be so tight on the weight regs, I really got to thinking about it, and this is what I came up with. While other states have many interstate highways, very straight, level, flat roads, and very short winters with little to no snow, we have to deal with harsh winters, icy roads, very hilly terrain, and very few interstate roads. There is absolutely NO way a 1-ton with a 25,000 lb.+ trailer could deal with our secondary roads, especially if there was snow on them. If I were to do a run from Pittsburg to Tulsa, I'd hook anything behind the truck that it could move. But try pulling that trailer up Rt. 16 from Portsmouth to Berlin, and someone would get killed...especially going over the Notch. That isn't saying anything about the driver...just that its a bad enough road with a lighter trailer or heavier truck pulling it, and the notch really tests a truck's control and braking ability.

Regardless of how well a truck's motor can pull the weight, you still need a heavy vehicle to handle the trailer through bad corners.

Jim

RickCJ

Were they ticketed because of gcwr or because they did not have the proper registration to tow the weight?

Maybe each state is differant but as long as I'm legal for PA, I'm legal wherever.

I have my truck registered for 26K I pay $405 per year. In PA when the trailer gcw is over 10k you need to register as truck/trailer. I know several car dealers that slap dealer tags on their trailer and dealer tags on their truck and try to haul 3-4 fullsize trucks on a 21,000 gcw trailer without CDL or physical card and then cry the blues when they get busted, sorry officer I've been doing this for 20 yrs, didn't know it was wrong!

My truck handles very well at 26k and could easily handle more. Stopping was iffy till I got the exhaust brake on, now alls better!

Haulin_in_Dixie

Now I know what you are talking about. I'll give you this, I think the law should be changed so that a tag along trailer can only weight as much as the pulling vehicle. Loaded right they are ok but most end up blowing all over the road.

All that being said, my truck is not overloaded. It is balanced well, handles great, stops well, it is not a tag along, it is registered as a tractor and trailer. I do not drive unsafe vehicles. In this thread I resent the implication which only shows your lack of knowledge of proper weight distribution and safe trucking.