Grit dog wrote:
"If you really want to go into the weeds you would need to examine the rest of the vehicle. Is the braking system the same? Or are the 3500 series brakes heavier? I honestly don't know, and don't care, because I have always assumed that the engineers designing something and a manufacturing a piece of equipment that are willing to put a warranty on it, have a better idea of what it can do than the average guy with a toolbox and a JCWhitney catalog. "
Don't know and don't care is why the mfgs recommendations exist in the first place probably.
But for those that do know and understand (don't have to care), incorrect assumptions from folks that don't know are false information.
As I said, dont know and dont care, because I typically dont push way beyond the vehicle specs.
I acknowledged that I have overloaded my truck on occasion, short distances, low speeds, and decided to take the inherent risk on myself.
I would not for example have taken my truck, loaded 1000 pounds past the cargo cap, and hit the interstates at 70+ mph for a 1000 mile interstate trip.
Would I have made it? Probably. Was it prudent? NO. And if an emergency situation was presented, could I have avoided it? Cant say, but the overloaded condition definitely would not have helped me or been beneficial.
As someone who worked in structural engineering, I know you design and build to 25-50% beyond the spec.
Stresses caused by swerving to avoid an unforeseen object, or rapid braking becomes a major hazard, and when the piece of equipment is pushed beyond its designed capabilities, you run the risk of going beyond the designed in safety margin.
I worked for an auto dealer years ago, and owned an auto service shop recently, and as a prudent business owner and technician, while I may have strayed from accepted safety margins, I would never recommend that someone else do so.
