csramsey640

Ok I thought I always knew, but recently a co-worker swore is was a different way.

The way I understand it, When pulling a trailer. The weight class sticker on your truck must account for the entire truck weight when on the scales. Truck, you, passenger, fuel, etc and tongue weight if pulling a trailer.

Then the trailer axles are weighed and your trailer registration must cover that weight 0-3,000lb; 3,001-10,000; and 10,000+

Is this correct?

I recently had a co-worker tell me that the truck weight sticker has to cover the entire weight of your truck, trailer and load at one time. Which way is it? Our local notary pulls a heavy camper, and only has a class 3 sticker on, he said otherwise everyone who pulls a trailer of any kind would need very high class reg. stickers.

slim51015

You need a combination weight for your truck. If not, they will put the trailer weight on your truck.
PaDOT has been watching the little guys more and more if your towing an RV dont worry about it.

csramsey640

So your saying my sticker in the lower corner has to be large enough to handle everything?

slim51015

Ya it should be.

RickCJ

I have class 8 up to 26,000lbs. $405 year! Truck is 11k and trailer is 14k.
I haul 2 cars and the trailer weight is usually under 10k I was thinking of lowering the trailer weight to 10k and not have to pay for truck/trailer regs.
If your trailer is under 10k gvw you just pay $27/yr. and whatever for you truck gvw. A trailer under 10k doesn't count towards gcwr. and with a truck under 10k you can get past all the DOT bs. A 3/4 ton truck and 10k trailer will keep you under the radar!

csramsey640

Yep I just got confirmation on that. Spoke with a car hauler today. 10,001+ trailer gets you a como sticker, 10,000> you pay the low rate.

I dont think I can get by with only 10,000 lbs. though

fyrguy316

i am dealing with this problem even as we speak. i bought a gooseneck with a 14,000 GVW which has to be registered at the 10,000 or higher plates. when you have a trailer that exceeds 10,000 GVW like mine, that is when you are looking at combination plates. you need a line ticket from the manufacturer, not the dealer that has your VIN number on it. this ticket tells you what the GCWR actually is. you'll need this at the notary to put heavier plates on the truck. i am class 3 now and after i get the line ticket if it gives me a high enough GCWR i will be going to class 7. if the trailer is regietered as less than 10,000 lb you don't need to get into the combination stuff as long as the weight of the trailer and load do not total 10,000 lb or more. its really confusing, i spent a half hour on the phone with a DOT certified state trooper going over this, then i spent a half hour at a notary asking more questions. right now i won't know exactly what i can do untill i get the line ticket from daimler-chrysler. hope this helps a little.

D.Wiggs

Now I am confused. I have a 3500 Dually that I will be towing a 12K trailer tag along stacker with. What kind of plates/registration do I need in PA? Also, does it matter that I use the vehicle and trailer for personal use and not for hire?

RickCJ

In PA you have to register as a truck/trailer! Combo weight is 24k? you need a class 7 or 8. Around $400/yr. for it.

csramsey640

Correct, I just got my title back from Penndot 2 weeks ago, it now lists my combo weight, and increased GVWR of the truck. I went 10,000 on the truck and 16,000 on the trailer. A class 8 which was 405, as mentioned. To increase the GVWR and GCWR you will need an inspection mechanic certify that the truck is ok for what weight your going to.

The Penndot agent who did mine confirmed, trailer 10,001 and above-you need a combo sticker on the truck to account for truck, trailer and load. You still also need your trailer regs for whatever weight you register that at, here $27 bucks for 10,001 and over.

for the weekend warrior, i have never heard of any trouble, and im guessing more people dont know, than do.

If its for a business use, whether for-hire or private, bite the bullet and be legal

Whitefoxtrotter

I currently pay $288 for a weight class of 6 , up to 17000 pounds for my GN Horse trailer with Living quarters . I was wondering if these trailers fall into the RV class that you said not to worry about . My combination weight was 19400 when I weighed it so I will need to increase the class up to a 7 . So now I am wondering if I even need to be paying this much for my registration if my horse trailer is considered an RV .

RickCJ

You need to license the correct gvwr or your truck + the gvwr of the trailer. Your pick up is not an RV.
If you are hauling horses to show and win prize you are then commercial and need to follow all CDL DOT regulations.

Whitefoxtrotter

Thank you for the clarification , I do not show my horses , only trail ride and camp , I belong to the PA Equine Council and need some literature about this , because there are many arguements within our group on the law . Could you give me a website , or send me a thread ? When reading information on the PA dept of Transportation ,they never mention horse trailers on the weight class summary .

RickCJ

A horse trailer is just a trailer nothing special about it.
just add 17000 to the gvmr of your truck and look for the registration.
you can buy a lifetime reg for the trailer at $135.
Your can see the weight and rates on DMV rate schedule.
http://www.dmv.state.pa.us/pdotforms...rms/mv-70s.pdf
you got to be careful over 26,000 gvwr you also need CDL
any truck big enough to handle your trailer will be a dually or bigger and you are into CDL territory.

Whitefoxtrotter

I have a superduty ford F250 3/4 ton truck . I hooked up my horse trailer / gooseneck with living quarters and was fully loaded with horses and water and camping supplies . I went to a weigh station and this was the result . my steer Axle was 11,260 lbs , and trailer axle was 8200 lbs . Gross weight 19,460 lbs . What Weight sticker should I have in my window .
I've been researching this on many websites and still unsure if the weight class sticker includes the GCWR or just the GVW . Currently I have a class 6 on the truck . Can I go down to a class 5 for GVW of 11,001-14,000 lbs , or do I need to increase to a class 7 of 17,001-21,000 lbs to accomodate for the total weight of both . I am so confused ..