Determining Legal GVWR..

[ysidive]

I have a question that I believe somone had previously answered, but I need to get clarification, and possibly a site that can give me the true determination from the Government authority that sets the regulations..

Here is what I would like to know... My trailer sticker says GVWR 7460 lbs.. The axles are 3500 pound axles and the tires are rated at 1480 pounds as per the GVWR label on the trailer....That is 2960 pounds per axle, on a 3000 pound axle....
I was always told and believed that the GVWR could not exceed the weakest link in the system... If this is the case than the max GVWR on my trailer should be 5920,,, Very short of the 7460 stated on the VIN Sticker.... How do manufacturers get away with this being legal?
Where can I send an inquiry to determine the legality of this and How is it consistently done?  My trailer is not the only one with this discrepany? Almost every one with the exception of a few are marketed with this GVWR difference....

Stumped..... I hope someone can give me a good explanation and way to document it without just Hearsay or someone told me..

 

[SpencerPJ]

Good question.  I would say the 10% tongue weight plays in.  Maybe they feel you should be closer to 21% tongue weight, then all would be legal.

at 10% tongue weight
7460 - 746 = 6714 lbs.  Your axles are good for 7000 lbs
Tires = 1480 x 4 = 5920 lbs

at 21% tongue weight
7460-1566 = 5894
Tires = 1480 x 4 = 5920 lbs

Next question, is this a new trailer?  Did someone else put lesser quality tires on it?

 

[ysidive]

This was a new trailer whan I purchased it, and that is the manufacturers sticker on the trailer  The GVWR with Vin and the Yellow sticker with Vin and trailer tire sizes on the trailer as it left the factory.... It must be some standard that they have to comply with to be legal, but I cannot find the place to look this up,,, I hope someone can give me the Site to find the actual requirements to find this information....

 

[triplethreat]

That sounds pretty lite for the tires.  Check on the tire sidewall and see what the actual tire says for a weight rating.  It's possible that they put the wrong sticker on the trailer.  And yes, the tongue weight is deducted from the GVW and whatever that is, the tires carry the rest of the rated load....that why I want you to look at the actual tires and what is stamped/moulded into the sidewall for the tire weight rating at XX psi.

 

[captsteve1]

The answers which elude you are herein contained-
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2010/04/29/2010-9981/federal-motor-vehicle-safety-standards-cargo-carrying-capacity

You can download the CFR as a pdf from Cornell University by googling by CFR number.

This may just be a start but will get you going in the right direction.

 

[FastEagle]

I have a question that I believe somone had previously answered, but I need to get clarification, and possibly a site that can give me the true determination from the Government authority that sets the regulations..

Here is what I would like to know... My trailer sticker says GVWR 7460 lbs.. The axles are 3500 pound axles and the tires are rated at 1480 pounds as per the GVWR label on the trailer....That is 2960 pounds per axle, on a 3000 pound axle....
I was always told and believed that the GVWR could not exceed the weakest link in the system... If this is the case than the max GVWR on my trailer should be 5920,,, Very short of the 7460 stated on the VIN Sticker.... How do manufacturers get away with this being legal?
Where can I send an inquiry to determine the legality of this and How is it consistently done?  My trailer is not the only one with this discrepany? Almost every one with the exception of a few are marketed with this GVWR difference....
Stumped..... I hope someone can give me a good explanation and way to document it without just Hearsay or someone told me..

This is what the government standard says about your weights. The vehicle manufacturer's recommended tongue/hitch weight, when added to the vehicle's certified GAWR weights, must not be less than GVWR.

The same standard directs the vehicle manufacturer to use tires that are appropriate for the vehicle. The bottom line is they cannot provide less load capacity than the maximum load of the vehicle GAWR axle they are fitted to.

For new vehicles touting the RVIA certification logo, the tires will have a load capacity at least 10% greater the axle capacity.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The values are set in the federal safety standards for tire and loading, a set of regs that are part of the FMVSS (what the others cited).  For standard trailers, the standard says the manufacturer can assume that 10% of the GVWR is carried on the hitch coupler (tongue weight) and 90% of the axles.  For 5W trailers, it is 20% on the hitch pin and 80% on the axles.  I didn't think the standard allowed the tire max load rating to be less than the axle GAWR the tire is installed on, but it is possible the axle was derated slightly to match.  What does your placard show as the axle GAWR?  The RV manufacturer can set any rating lower than it's actual capability, if they choose.
Note that the trailer manufacturer can pick a GVWR out of the air if we feels reckless. The federal safety standard merely demands that the tire and axle ratings must be consistent with that number.

In your case, the 4 tires @ 1480 each can carry 5920 lbs and that can be 90% of the GVWR.  90% of 7460 doesn't compute!  I think you may have the wrong values for the tire ratings (you said they came from some label?).  You need to look at the actual tires provided and use the max load rating from the sidewall. 

It's possible your placard is wrong too. There have been more than a few recalls to correct the tire and loading placards.

 

[captsteve1]

https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/571.120

The CFR gary is referring to..

 

[FastEagle]

https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/571.120

The CFR gary is referring to..

Yup, what I said is in paragraph 10.2.

 

[grashley]

3500# Axles on a 7400# GVWR  TT sounds very legit when considering the hitch wt will be 700+#.

The REAL question here is tires.  Sounds like a typo on the placard.  Many good explanations on why it can not be correct.

What SIZE tires are specified on that label?  What tires are on the TT?  Should be the same.  What is the Load Limit imprinted on the tires?

If these  numbers make sense, then typo.

 

[FastEagle]

3500# Axles on a 7400# GVWR  TT sounds very legit when considering the hitch wt will be 700+#.

The REAL question here is tires.  Sounds like a typo on the placard.  Many good explanations on why it can not be correct.

What SIZE tires are specified on that label?  What tires are on the TT?  Should be the same.  What is the Load Limit imprinted on the tires?

If these  numbers make sense, then typo.

Certification label errors are very common. All of the major RV trailer manufacturer's have made them. Once the trailer manufacturer verifies the error they will initiate a self recall for all suspected errors and replace the placards with ones having the correct information.


If, in fact, the OP has a certification label showing information about  tires with less load capacity than required for the axles (3500# X two 1750# or greater load capacity tires) a picture of the certification label should be enough info for the trailer manufacturer to act.


The OP should compare the information in the owner's manual to the information on the certification label. It would be much more costly for the trailer manufacturer if they made such an error in the owner's manual. (Information of that sort in the owner's manual is mandated to be there by NHTSA). 

 

[grashley]

YSI

I think FastEagle has your answer.  Take a picture of the label and send it to Coachman with your comments.