Trailer with no Manufacture certification lable

bluefishgary wrote:
The trailer was built by a race car fabricator. The trailer has 3 X7,000
axles (Dexter) and looks very well built. I have not seen the title or registration yet . The reason for asking is if I get stopped how do they know how much the unit can weight. The trailer I have now has 10,000 lbs
GVWR right on the sticker. I do not think there will be any problem as
the trailer is title and registration in the state I live in, so I would just use the same info.

Each state treats or handles things a bit different..

In PA..

The GVWR IS included on my yearly registration card, I pay the DMV a "fee" based off the GVWR of the trailer.

If a trooper pulls you over YOU MUST surrender any and ALL paperwork for the vehicle AND the trailer.

The Trooper determines your GCVWR by adding your truck GVWR and your trailer GVWR. If your truck is 7000lbs GVWR and you are pulling a trailer that is 10000lbs GVWR, then your GCVWR is 17,000lbs.

If you have commercial tags and have a GCWR of 17000 lbs or more, you fall into fed DOT regs.

A few years ago, PA made several changes which impact ANYONE towing an open flatbed or enclosed CARGO trailer..

If your NON RV trailer GVWR is more than 10,000lbs you must register your truck as a combination in PA (combination registration is $400 PLUS per year). Also if you in business you will need a D.O.T # and will need a D.O.T physical card if you drive on interstate roads .

Any Non RV combination tow exceeding 17000 lbs and non commercial it would be prudent to get your physical card, carry at least ONE fire extinguisher AND make sure you have THREE Triangles.

State Police in PA can and do pull over anyone towing a flatbed or cargo trailer and check your registration to see if your combination is exceeding 17000 lbs. If it does and they determine you are using it for business/commercial purposes and you do not have combination registration you will be facing some hefty fines..

If what what you have stated is true with the axle capacity that would place his trailer in the 21,000 GVWR (7K axles times three) just for the trailer. Add that to the vehicles GVWR and it will be a sure bet that their “combination” will be exceeding 26K which is going to easily put them into business/commercial type licensing (at least in PA it would)..

You would also need to make sure your Drivers License is a high enough weight class to tow this heavy of a combination since you most likely will exceed 26K if I figure it correctly from the small amount of info you have given.

That is where you MUST check with your OWN STATES DMV/DOT to find out exactly what your states laws require..

My suggestion is to read the MD Motor carrier Handbook found

HERE

Then check with your local DMV..

bluefishgary wrote:

...if I get stopped how do they know how much the unit can weight...

Who is "they"? No one cares unless you are licensing and using the trailer commercially.

The trailer was built by a race car fabricator. The trailer has 3 X7,000
axles (Dexter) and looks very well built. I have not seen the title or registration yet . The reason for asking is if I get stopped how do they know how much the unit can weight. The trailer I have now has 10,000 lbs
GVWR right on the sticker. I do not think there will be any problem as
the trailer is title and registration in the state I live in, so I would just use the same info.

What is on the title? Is it titled as home-built?

Assuming that it has plates, even if they're expired, what does the registration already have on it? I'd use the same info so the ownership trail stays in tact. I don't know of any future problems that you should have.

Bill

bluefishgary wrote:
Hi ok question I am looking to buy a new trailer to haul my SHOW CAR
and also has living quarters.So I found one local 34ft bumper pull.
Very nice trailer, great price from a privet party,3 Axle just what I am looking for. BUT the trailer has no Manufacture Certification label or Tire
info label. It has no manufacturer name on the trailer but it does have a state issue VIN number.(different state) So no lable,no GVWR or axle rateing
The trailer is not a salvage or a wreck unit but was custom built
in another state. It now resides in my state and is licence in my state
so all I need to do is get it inspected and insured.
So what problems down the road do I face????? Thanks Gary A.
Truck 08 Ford F-350 DRW CC diesel

Not sure how your states titling is done. But PA when they issue a title includes the GVWR, unladen weight on the title.

When I register for the plates I get a small registration card which also contains the GVWR and the unladen weight.

I would not think you are going to have any issues with weights with your current setup provided you don't exceed your combination of the truck and trailer weights.

You can make a pretty quick assessment of the trailer capacity by looking at the quantity of lug nuts holding the rims on.

5 lugs and you most likely have 3500 lb axles, which should give you around 7200-7500 GVWR.

6 lugs and you most likely have 5200 lb axles which would give you 9,900-11,000 GVWR.

For tires you would simply need to buy for the capacity, nothing real earth shattering there.

In most states, you can get a VIN for licensing and titling purposes just by asking and having the trailer inspected for a couple of items by a member of law enforcement. They will look to see if it has proper lights and to be sure you aren't lying about it not having a VIN (i.e trying to get a license for a stolen trailer). This is pretty common since many people build their own trailers. As for having problems, since you don't know the specifications of the components, you are kind of at the mercy of how they built the thing. If they used wheel barrow axles and a hitch designed for a bicycle trailer, the thing could fall apart on you. Then your only legal problems will be with your liability for injuries it would cause to others. If the thing is well built, legal issues should ever arise. Just be sure you get a clear title showing the VIN (if your state titles trailers).

The insurer's like to tag a name on anything they insure. The information from the vin number and title should have size, weight, and axle rating numbers. I would just make my own label and name it something.