MFG Ratings what are the limiting factors
I know this post will not change the MFG rating no matter what is stated that is not the point. The point is that there are many after market products out there and in the end they do not change what ...
Forum Discussion
There's no telling where the actual limit is. The process of setting the limits goes well beyond the strength of the components or the design of the system. The way I see if you have 4 levels of limitation. Engineering, Marketing, Lawyers, FMVSS.
Engineers know the actual limitations of each component in each unit onboard. They know what's the absolute failure point and know what would be good for long term longevity of the parts and components. These people are the best source to the absolute failure point of the system. But they're basically sworn the secrecy and I would imagine that the penalties for violating this would be pretty harsh.
Then there's Marketing. Sure that 2500 is built with the same components as that 3500, but why would they want you to purchase that 2500 when they can get an extra $1,000 out of you by moving you to the 3500. Since they can't be 1 upped by a competitor, they can magically raise the GVWR without changing any components the next model year. We don't really know if there's lots of reserve in the components or if they're actually pushing the limits.
Then there's the lawyers. They don't want to give anyone an excuse to bring a lawsuit up against the company. While they may have awesome legal teams that make it really tough to prevail against them, they may not favor so well in the court of public opinion. So we get softer limits and lots of warnings / small print. Having operators running near absolutes would be a nightmare for any legal team.
Then there's FMVSS. Whatever number the manufacturer selects, they have to make certain that it will adhere to the standards outlined in FMVSS. If I were a manufacturer I would select a number that I knew wouldn't have any problems with compliance. The last thing you want to do is sell a ton of vehicles that were actually out of compliance. That gets expensive really quickly.
We now have SAE J2807, but this is just a performance test. There's no one out there testing the breaking limit of these trucks. I was hopeful that J2807 would be this test, but it fell flat. It would be nice if these trucks were tested at their rated carrying capacities for extended periods. Set safety limits for things like stability and test those. All of the components would then be checked for wear which the SAE could easily set acceptable limits.
The manufacturer limits is what it is. It's limits that they are willing to except liability for. Once you decide to increase those limits, either by just carrying more weight or swapping components, then becomes your own problem. Sometimes being under the limits can be your "get out of jail free" card.
Engineers know the actual limitations of each component in each unit onboard. They know what's the absolute failure point and know what would be good for long term longevity of the parts and components. These people are the best source to the absolute failure point of the system. But they're basically sworn the secrecy and I would imagine that the penalties for violating this would be pretty harsh.
Then there's Marketing. Sure that 2500 is built with the same components as that 3500, but why would they want you to purchase that 2500 when they can get an extra $1,000 out of you by moving you to the 3500. Since they can't be 1 upped by a competitor, they can magically raise the GVWR without changing any components the next model year. We don't really know if there's lots of reserve in the components or if they're actually pushing the limits.
Then there's the lawyers. They don't want to give anyone an excuse to bring a lawsuit up against the company. While they may have awesome legal teams that make it really tough to prevail against them, they may not favor so well in the court of public opinion. So we get softer limits and lots of warnings / small print. Having operators running near absolutes would be a nightmare for any legal team.
Then there's FMVSS. Whatever number the manufacturer selects, they have to make certain that it will adhere to the standards outlined in FMVSS. If I were a manufacturer I would select a number that I knew wouldn't have any problems with compliance. The last thing you want to do is sell a ton of vehicles that were actually out of compliance. That gets expensive really quickly.
We now have SAE J2807, but this is just a performance test. There's no one out there testing the breaking limit of these trucks. I was hopeful that J2807 would be this test, but it fell flat. It would be nice if these trucks were tested at their rated carrying capacities for extended periods. Set safety limits for things like stability and test those. All of the components would then be checked for wear which the SAE could easily set acceptable limits.
The manufacturer limits is what it is. It's limits that they are willing to except liability for. Once you decide to increase those limits, either by just carrying more weight or swapping components, then becomes your own problem. Sometimes being under the limits can be your "get out of jail free" card.
