HELP!!!! Advice needed on new truck purchase!!
From : tom
Q: time is of the essence! yesterday we went out to do laundry and ended up buying a new 07 dodge ram 3500 four door dually. it has the cummings 6.9 diesel engine. the truck is rated to haul 13800 and we told the salesman that our 5th wheel weighs 16000. he said that the official numbers are very conservative and that we need not worry. after speaking with a salesman friend from my high school days and i wont admit to how many years ago he said it was borderline. this truck has the towing package and a six speed automatic. we drive perhaps 15000 miles a year and being in the west some of this will be mountain driving. any ideas about this we might be able to renege on the deal if we can prove that this is an unwise or dangerous. we bought this from a washington state dealer. thanks for your advice. .
Replies:
From : bill
gvwr 32000 is next to his dot number. which has a useful thread on the topic. however that 30k figure is suspect imho. ill have to look at my truck but i doubt it is anywhere near that number. g .
From : peterd
on thu 14 aug 2008 181224 -0400 bill bargerw@bellsouth.net wrote i dont remember stating he didnt have a cdl. which he does. anyway i was responding to the op about the trucks hauling capacity. my neighbor is not an idiot if he painted gvw 30000 on the door of a 1 ton truck what your neighbor is is obvious. but someone who makes blank statements is. i think your numbers are wrong. my neighbor has one of and he tows at least twice that. well actually around 30k or 32k is what is stamped on his door along side his dot number. snip your neighbor is an idiot if he grosses 32k in a one ton truck. he will also end up in big trouble. anything over 26000 requires a class b cdl commercial license. michael .
From : bill
good point. all i know is he gets checked by the weigh station people at least once a day. i would assume he has altered his truck somehow. what i dont know is if your neighbors truck may have been optioned by a third party vendor and rated for what he has written on the door. that is actually possible. but if that is the case you cannot use his custom truck as a basis to tell someone that they can haul that much weight with their factory optioned and rated truck. if that is the case then guess who gets to wear the dunce hat... michael .
From : nunya
i dont remember stating he didnt have a cdl. which he does. anyway i was responding to the op about the trucks hauling capacity. my neighbor is not an idiot but someone who makes blank statements is. snip i said he was an idiot if he actually grossed 32k in a one ton truck. not that he was an idiot per se. maybe you need to work on your reading comprehension. and i quote dodge 3500 specs.. the dodge ram heavy duty cummins turbo 600 boasts an enormous towing capability of 15500 lbs. a payload of 5020 lbs. and a gross combined weight rating gcwr and gross vehicle weight rating gvwr of 23000 lbs. when properly equipped. dodge 4500 and 5500 specs... four cab-axle lengths 60 84 108 and 120 inches are available. maximum gross vehicle weight rating gvwr for 4500 models is 16500. for 5500 models the maximum gvwr is 19500 lbs. the gross combined weight rating gcwr for both 4500 and 5500 models is 26000 lbs. so if your neighbor has every towing option available for a factory 3500 then he would be 9000 pounds overweight if he was actually loaded at 32000 lbs. i will stand by my statement and expand on it. anyone that hauls 2.5 tons over the weight limit of a non cdl truck is a moron. now if someone was a couple of tons over on a 80000 gvwr big truck it might not be quite such a bad margin. but on a pickup truck that much over weight is risking the lives of innocent people if something goes wrong. if he has a cdl like you just stated and the truck is a factory 3500 as you implied he is breaking the law knowingly any time the truck is ever loaded near to what you said is written on the door. now if it is a non commercial truck such as an rv a person does not have to have a cdl to drive a vehicle in excess of 26000 lbs. the only requirement in this circumstance is not to exceed the vehicles manufactureres rating. what i dont know is if your neighbors truck may have been optioned by a third party vendor and rated for what he has written on the door. that is actually possible. but if that is the case you cannot use his custom truck as a basis to tell someone that they can haul that much weight with their factory optioned and rated truck. if that is the case then guess who gets to wear the dunce hat... michael .
From : nunya
time is of the essence! yesterday we went out to do laundry and ended up buying a new 07 dodge ram 3500 four door dually. it has the cummings 6.9 diesel engine. the truck is rated to haul 13800 and we told the salesman that our 5th wheel weighs 16000. he said that the official numbers are very conservative and that we need not worry. after speaking with a salesman friend from my high school days and i wont admit to how many years ago he said it was borderline. this truck has the towing package and a six speed automatic. we drive perhaps 15000 miles a year and being in the west some of this will be mountain driving. any ideas about this we might be able to renege on the deal if we can prove that this is an unwise or dangerous. we bought this from a washington state dealer. thanks for your advice. i think your first and most important thing should be to find out exactly what it is rated to tow. not what the salesman said. accorcing to the dodge company website the 2008 3500 dually with a cummins is rated at 15750 lbs tow weight. it is a simple enough proceedure. open the door and look at the sticker on the door jam. it will give you all the information you need. my opinion is that you never exceede the manufactureres ratings. pulling the load is not the crux of the matter. stopping it is. if you have to engage in a panic or emergency braking manuever with more weight than the vehicle is rated for then you will be sorry. are you sure that your camper weighs 16000 pounds. according to the fleetwood website the heaviest 5th wheel camper they manufacture weighs 14500 lbs. of course by the time you add equipment personal stuff fresh water greay water and black water in the tank it would be easy to gross 16000 lbs. if your manufactures curb weight is 16k you could actually be pushing 20k. i am unsure where but we were actually asked to pull across the scales with our camper somewhere out west. it may have been new mexico or arizona but am unsure. it was no deal for us because our camper is a 23 foot ultralight. but i would have to get caught pulling an overweight rig. you would be fined and parked until you could get the proper sized truck to move the trailer. so to start i would confirm the weight of the camper look inside the door jam and confirm the towing capacity and gwvr of the truck and do some very simple math. if you are out of specs you only have two real choices. buy a bigger truck or a smaller camper. let us know how it works out. michael .
From : peterd
on fri 8 aug 2008 195949 -0400 bill bargerw@bellsouth.net wrote on fri 8 aug 2008 143604 -0400 bill bargerw@bellsouth.net wrote gvwr 32000 is next to his dot number. which has a useful thread on the topic. however that 30k figure is suspect imho. ill have to look at my truck but i doubt it is anywhere near that number. g so youre saying he painted it on the door ok i see... what im saying is yes it is painted on the door in sight of the people that weigh your vehicle at weigh stations all over the country. so i would doubt it would have the wrong numbers as the people that write tickets would just love it if it was wrong. the law states the gvwr must be on each side of the vehicle along with the dot stickers. well im sure that they have a good laugh if nothing else! bg with a gvwr over 27k one needs a cdl to drive it. that said the only meaningful number is not the one on the door but the one on the registration documents and if thats not available the one on the vehicle placed there by the manufacturer required by dot for *many* years. if they weigh him the wont look at that painted number theyll check the registration and the manufactures specification plate and then if hes over those theyll take appropriate action. for example paint 25000 gvw on the door of this one and it still wont fly! http//www.swapmeetdave.com/humor/workshop/overload.htm rofl .
From : bill
what im saying is yes it is painted on the door in sight of the people that weigh your vehicle at weigh stations all over the country. so i would doubt it would have the wrong numbers as the people that write tickets would just love it if it was wrong. the law states the gvwr must be on each side of the vehicle along with the dot stickers. on fri 8 aug 2008 143604 -0400 bill bargerw@bellsouth.net wrote gvwr 32000 is next to his dot number. which has a useful thread on the topic. however that 30k figure is suspect imho. ill have to look at my truck but i doubt it is anywhere near that number. g so youre saying he painted it on the door ok i see... .
From : mac davis
on fri 1 aug 2008 094653 -0700 pdt tom tomgorrell@gmail.com wrote time is of the essence! yesterday we went out to do laundry and ended up buying a new 07 dodge ram 3500 four door dually. it has the cummings 6.9 diesel engine. the truck is rated to haul 13800 and we told the salesman that our 5th wheel weighs 16000. he said that the official numbers are very conservative and that we need not worry. after speaking with a salesman friend from my high school days and i wont admit to how many years ago he said it was borderline. this truck has the towing package and a six speed automatic. we drive perhaps 15000 miles a year and being in the west some of this will be mountain driving. any ideas about this we might be able to renege on the deal if we can prove that this is an unwise or dangerous. we bought this from a washington state dealer. thanks for your advice. go here http//www.trailerlife.com/output.cfmid=42175 and download the pdf for 2007 and look up your truck.. t. l. is the most reliable info ive ever found.. remember that the rule of thumb for safety is the max towing weight should be just that maximum and that your rv should be at least 10% under that.. also the max weight is the trailer contents including water propane etc. and whatever cargo is in the truck.. mac please remove splinters before emailing .
From : peterd
on fri 1 aug 2008 182951 -0400 bill bargerw@bellsouth.net wrote i think your numbers are wrong. my neighbor has one of and he tows at least twice that. well actually around 30k or 32k is what is stamped on his door along side his dot number. time is of the essence! yesterday we went out to do laundry and ended up buying a new 07 dodge ram 3500 four door dually. it has the cummings 6.9 diesel engine. the truck is rated to haul 13800 and we told the salesman that our 5th wheel weighs 16000. he said that the official numbers are very conservative and that we need not worry. after speaking with a salesman friend from my high school days and i wont admit to how many years ago he said it was borderline. this truck has the towing package and a six speed automatic. we drive perhaps 15000 miles a year and being in the west some of this will be mountain driving. any ideas about this we might be able to renege on the deal if we can prove that this is an unwise or dangerous. we bought this from a washington state dealer. thanks for your advice. a reference to start with would be http//www.cumminsforum.com/forum/towing-hauling/55296-towing-14-000lb-gvw-more-2.html which has a useful thread on the topic. however that 30k figure is suspect imho. ill have to look at my truck but i doubt it is anywhere near that number. g .
From : peterd
on fri 1 aug 2008 143406 -0400 nosey kfrei43@removethis.hotmail.com wrote tom wrote time is of the essence! yesterday we went out to do laundry and ended up buying a new 07 dodge ram 3500 four door dually. it has the cummings 6.9 diesel engine. the truck is rated to haul 13800 and we told the salesman that our 5th wheel weighs 16000. he said that the official numbers are very conservative and that we need not worry. yes he doesnt need to worry because it is your problem now not his. unless you were smart enough to get it in writing which i know you didnt because even car salesmen are smarter than to do that! bg after speaking with a salesman friend from my high school days and i wont admit to how many years ago he said it was borderline. borderline doesnt cover it. way over the line doesn. say it is rated at 13800 and you two 14100. thats borderline. towing 16000 is not the way to go. this truck has the towing package and a six speed automatic. we drive perhaps 15000 miles a year and being in the west some of this will be mountain driving. any ideas about this we might be able to renege on the deal if we can prove that this is an unwise or dangerous. we bought this from a washington state dealer. thanks for your advice. some salesmen will say anything to get you to buy a vehicle. its not fair but unless its in writing he never said it. if you get in a wreck while overloaded it may lead to complicated leagal issues. i wouldnt want to be in your shoes if that ever happened. most if not all states give you three days to return a vehicle. if its already past three days then you may want to start shopping around for a lighter camper. or a bigger truck! g read noseys reply carefully. there are gems of insight there. .
From : bill
i think your numbers are wrong. my neighbor has one of and he tows at least twice that. well actually around 30k or 32k is what is stamped on his door along side his dot number. time is of the essence! yesterday we went out to do laundry and ended up buying a new 07 dodge ram 3500 four door dually. it has the cummings 6.9 diesel engine. the truck is rated to haul 13800 and we told the salesman that our 5th wheel weighs 16000. he said that the official numbers are very conservative and that we need not worry. after speaking with a salesman friend from my high school days and i wont admit to how many years ago he said it was borderline. this truck has the towing package and a six speed automatic. we drive perhaps 15000 miles a year and being in the west some of this will be mountain driving. any ideas about this we might be able to renege on the deal if we can prove that this is an unwise or dangerous. we bought this from a washington state dealer. thanks for your advice. .
From : nosey
tom wrote time is of the essence! yesterday we went out to do laundry and ended up buying a new 07 dodge ram 3500 four door dually. it has the cummings 6.9 diesel engine. the truck is rated to haul 13800 and we told the salesman that our 5th wheel weighs 16000. he said that the official numbers are very conservative and that we need not worry. after speaking with a salesman friend from my high school days and i wont admit to how many years ago he said it was borderline. this truck has the towing package and a six speed automatic. we drive perhaps 15000 miles a year and being in the west some of this will be mountain driving. any ideas about this we might be able to renege on the deal if we can prove that this is an unwise or dangerous. we bought this from a washington state dealer. thanks for your advice. some salesmen will say anything to get you to buy a vehicle. its not fair but unless its in writing he never said it. if you get in a wreck while overloaded it may lead to complicated leagal issues. i wouldnt want to be in your shoes if that ever happened. most if not all states give you three days to return a vehicle. if its already past three days then you may want to start shopping around for a lighter camper. -- ken .
From : bill
i dont remember stating he didnt have a cdl. which he does. anyway i was responding to the op about the trucks hauling capacity. my neighbor is not an idiot but someone who makes blank statements is. i think your numbers are wrong. my neighbor has one of and he tows at least twice that. well actually around 30k or 32k is what is stamped on his door along side his dot number. snip your neighbor is an idiot if he grosses 32k in a one ton truck. he will also end up in big trouble. anything over 26000 requires a class b cdl commercial license. michael .
From : howard page
k&w trans-x with clean fluid and see what happens. =a0plan to do this on my day off. any comments or other ideas thanks martin . 222 345182 p9wdnanfqp8oytvnz2dnuvzjcdnz2d@comcast.com before i bought a new truck i would spend a little bit of cash and buy the wife a washer/dryer. itll make it easier to sell her on a new truck! i think your numbers are wrong. my neighbor has one of and he tows at least twice that. well actually around 30k or 32k is what is stamped on his door along side his dot number. snip your neighbor is an idiot if he grosses 32k in a one ton truck. he will also end up in big trouble. anything over 26000 requires a class b cdl commercial license. michael .
From : nunya
i think your numbers are wrong. my neighbor has one of and he tows at least twice that. well actually around 30k or 32k is what is stamped on his door along side his dot number. snip your neighbor is an idiot if he grosses 32k in a one ton truck. he will also end up in big trouble. anything over 26000 requires a class b cdl commercial license. michael .
From : peterd
on fri 8 aug 2008 143604 -0400 bill bargerw@bellsouth.net wrote gvwr 32000 is next to his dot number. which has a useful thread on the topic. however that 30k figure is suspect imho. ill have to look at my truck but i doubt it is anywhere near that number. g so youre saying he painted it on the door ok i see... .