DOT police going to Charlotte

[Doug Blackley]

In some states you cannot register a truck/suv heavier than it's gvw listed by the manufacturers stated number. Just because the o.e. states it can tow x weight doesn't mean the state you live in will allow you to exempt it from emissions by registering it heavier. If that is the case in this persons incident I would think they would have a good point in fighting it.

[THE LEGEND]

I have always been told the truck plate must carry enough weight to cover the whole rig.
Chip

[Myron Piatek]

In Florida I was told the truck had to be tagged above the combined truck/trailer weight.
I tagged for 19,999 and guessed right. Mine ended up just under 19,500 with everything topped off and loaded with spares at a truck stop. Nothing special that I recall on the enclosed trailer tag.

[cal]

I talked to the MD DMV, and was told it is the combo of the Truck & Trailer that give you the total weight. The truck is pulling 20,000 # not carrying it, is what I was told. However they did say you can put any weight you want on the truck. If you put 10,000# or more on the truck you would have to carry a DOT medical card and have a DOT # on your truck.

I plan to go to the DOT in VA next week to see what the Interstate Law is, and which one would over rule the other one. MD Law where its registered or Interstate law.

Personly I belive this is just a way to gouge racers outta their hard earned money.
Look at that pretty truck and BIG trailer, he must have money!!!

Cal
HR 177X

[THE LEGEND]

Cal,
I don't think you need the DOT card or number until you cross over 26,001. Unless you have air brakes.
Chip Johnson

[63corvette]

Originally Posted by THE LEGEND

Cal,
I don't think you need the DOT card or number until you cross over 26,001. Unless you have air brakes.
Chip Johnson

You only need a DOT card if you are a Commercial Operator.
My motor home has air brakes and is over the 26,001 limit. I have a class B license which covers me pulling my trailer with less than a 10,000 lb GVW. If the trailer goes over the 10,000 GVW it takes a Class A license.
Another sticking point is the axle limit and tire GVW on the trailer.
I had a friend who was ticketed for the axle limit over the GVW of the trailer which was under the 10,000. The axles were 6,500 each for a total of 13,000 and the officer wrote him up for being 3,000 over the limit even though the trailer actually weighed less that the 10,000 it was setup for and tagged for. The officer also told him the gross weight listed on the tires added up for a total is the GVW for the trailer no matter what the trailer was tagged or what the manufacturers sticker said. Now that made no sense to me but that is what he was told along with the axle GVW as the reason for the overweight ticket even though the trailer did not weigh that much it was tagged for less than its GVW.
The moral is the officer will write a ticket for whatever they want if they need revenue and all the states need revenue now.
My 2 Cents
Rick Cates

[Michael Pliska]

Originally Posted by 63corvette

The officer also told him the gross weight listed on the tires added up for a total is the GVW for the trailer no matter what the trailer was tagged or what the manufacturers sticker said. Now that made no sense to me but that is what he was told along with the axle GVW as the reason for the overweight ticket even though the trailer did not weigh that much it was tagged for less than its GVW.

Oh, that's brilliant, encourage people to run tires with a minimal load rating. By running tires such that you are near the rated limit, you will have many more failures and potential accidents.

When I lived in NC I called NCDMV to ask about licensing several times, I got a different answer just about every call. Since I wasn't racing at the time, I just licensed my dually with car plates for a while.

Here in Oregon there are two different licensing schemes. A trailer can be licensed as a "light trailer" up to 8000 lbs. The law is unclear even on that one, as it states that as a load on its axles. What about tongue weight? One person at DMV said to add tongue weight, the other said not to. If you go over the 8k limit then it must be licensed as a "heavy trailer", where the licensing on the trailer is free but you must license the truck as a commercial vehicle and spend a LOT more.

[Chris Williams]

This is all just a complete mess, and it varies by state, jurisdiction, and even the attitude of the given cop on the given day. There is absolutely no way to get it right in every case. Some go by registration state, some go by their state. Some go by commercial vs. non-commercial, some go by plates, or by the placards on the trailer and truck. Some go by the license in the hands of the person at the wheel.

As far as I can tell there are only a couple of ways to be relatively safe. Don't have any kind of marking that can vaguely be considered commercial on the rig. Don't speed (by much), and obey all the rules such as signaling and such. Avoid all the weigh stations as if you were supposed to, they just attract attention. And when you do get pulled over, be the nicest guy the trooper ever met. They are always right, you are just trying to get where you are going, whatever you say sir. Smile, offer them a look at your cool race car.

We were pulled over in Iowa on our way from Illinois to Seattle with our new trailer, and this worked for us. The trooper said "well, you're over our commercial limit, but since you're clearly not commercial, I'll let you go." And off we went.

[dussault.racing]

Originally Posted by THE LEGEND

Cal,
I don't think you need the DOT card or number until you cross over 26,001. Unless you have air brakes.
Chip Johnson

As a owner operator with my own authority i can tell you for sure... any gvw over 10,000 NEEDS a US DOT #, this is federal law! I believe you only need a medical card if you have a class A or B CDL.
I spend every day playing cat and mouse with DOT. If they pull you over they will find something!!!!!! They are bread in the academy to hate truckers and anything that resembles one.. Some helpfull info could be found on the fmcsa web site.

[koncenracing]

mr france in baltimore must been having a bad day because he was short with me and i felt like he was arguing with me. i was just asking questions,he didnt even let me describe my trailor. he said in md the take truck and trailor together not like nc or va.but he said i was in nc and probly will have to pay ticket. i still not sure why but felt i couldnt ask more questions. their has to be polite person who would explain it all. iguess i will up the weight tag on truck. still like to fight ticket if i can get any facts. 44' gooseneck no writing anywhere on trailer. 1st time out with it.