TT Weight limits: theory and reality
There are a ton of threads here regarding the proper matching of TV and TT. Based on what I learned here, I made a very expensive decision to upgrade my brand new 1/2 ton to a 1 ton TV so that I would be within the specs for my truck. I am not sorry I did that, but it did cost a lot.
After continued reading, while it is clear what the calculated limits are and that it is a good idea to stay within them, there are a lot of people who disregard them and apparently suffer no pain.
The Ford F150 is the best selling vehicle in the United States. I am sure we have all seen them towing large TT's that are almost certainly overloading the trucks. We towed all last summer, over 3,000 mountainous miles with an Eco Boost F150 pulling our 27 ft TT. We were at least 300 lbs over the MGVWR of the truck. I am a new RV'er and my wife has been doing it for years prior to our meeting. I had no real problems pulling the TT. She did not report any issues.
I am not claiming that we proved the MGVWR rating is not important. What I am saying is that a lot of people are pulling way more trailer than their trucks are rated to handle.
Now that I cost myself a lot of money trading a 6-month-old F150 for a new F350, I am considering that, while a good idea from a spec perspective, from a practical point of view there is a lot of evidence that F150's can tow safely when over MGVWR. This isn't entirely surprising. Truck manufacturers must give conservative ratings to their products in order to avoid liability claims if a customer has an accident and can attribute it to an issue with the TV.
I can't find any statistics that report the number of TT accidents, injuries, or fatalities. We have anecdotal evidence here that people find towing at or above rated limits for the TV can be difficult, but none that report accidents and injuries due to overload. We also know that people who move trailers for a living don't use WDH's, which means that a good part of the time they are towing over the hitch/receiver limit for their trucks, since even a very heavy duty truck has a low hitch weight limit without a WDH. These people keep and use their trucks for years and years.
Of course, we are not discussing massive overloading where springs bottom out under normal driving conditions. I'm referring to overload by 10 to 20 percent of the GMVWR. From a liability perspective, it would be nuts to suggest that people overload by any amount, but I wonder from a practical point of view if there is any real evidence that a 10 to 20 percent overload is going to either damage the truck or pose a threat to the people in it. What do you think?
After continued reading, while it is clear what the calculated limits are and that it is a good idea to stay within them, there are a lot of people who disregard them and apparently suffer no pain.
The Ford F150 is the best selling vehicle in the United States. I am sure we have all seen them towing large TT's that are almost certainly overloading the trucks. We towed all last summer, over 3,000 mountainous miles with an Eco Boost F150 pulling our 27 ft TT. We were at least 300 lbs over the MGVWR of the truck. I am a new RV'er and my wife has been doing it for years prior to our meeting. I had no real problems pulling the TT. She did not report any issues.
I am not claiming that we proved the MGVWR rating is not important. What I am saying is that a lot of people are pulling way more trailer than their trucks are rated to handle.
Now that I cost myself a lot of money trading a 6-month-old F150 for a new F350, I am considering that, while a good idea from a spec perspective, from a practical point of view there is a lot of evidence that F150's can tow safely when over MGVWR. This isn't entirely surprising. Truck manufacturers must give conservative ratings to their products in order to avoid liability claims if a customer has an accident and can attribute it to an issue with the TV.
I can't find any statistics that report the number of TT accidents, injuries, or fatalities. We have anecdotal evidence here that people find towing at or above rated limits for the TV can be difficult, but none that report accidents and injuries due to overload. We also know that people who move trailers for a living don't use WDH's, which means that a good part of the time they are towing over the hitch/receiver limit for their trucks, since even a very heavy duty truck has a low hitch weight limit without a WDH. These people keep and use their trucks for years and years.
Of course, we are not discussing massive overloading where springs bottom out under normal driving conditions. I'm referring to overload by 10 to 20 percent of the GMVWR. From a liability perspective, it would be nuts to suggest that people overload by any amount, but I wonder from a practical point of view if there is any real evidence that a 10 to 20 percent overload is going to either damage the truck or pose a threat to the people in it. What do you think?
