Question for you truck guys/gals.

[bullet]

My brother was looking for and argument today I believe. He tried to tell me today that since my truck is a 1 ton, I couldn't legally haul more than a ton in the bed.
I told him that I thought that was wrong and if it was true, that would mean he couldn't haul more than 1000 pounds in his bed, since it was only a half ton. And if you think of it that way, if he had 5 full grown guys in his truck he would be at his load limit and not legally put anything in the bed right?

My question is what makes a truck a half-ton, 3/4 ton, 1 ton etc.

 

[bobbittle]

HowStuffWorks "What does it mean to call a pickup truck a '1/2 ton truck' (also known as a 'half-ton truck')?"

 

[karl77]

old standard (from the 1910's) giving the bare CHASSIS weight.

tare weight is what truck weighs empty, gross weight is loaded. the sticker in the door jam will give the weights LEGALLY allowable.

 

[IndyDave1776]

My brother was looking for and argument today I believe. He tried to tell me today that since my truck is a 1 ton, I couldn't legally haul more than a ton in the bed.
I told him that I thought that was wrong and if it was true, that would mean he couldn't haul more than 1000 pounds in his bed, since it was only a half ton. And if you think of it that way, if he had 5 full grown guys in his truck he would be at his load limit and not legally put anything in the bed right?

My question is what makes a truck a half-ton, 3/4 ton, 1 ton etc.

Brother is full of hot air. You will find inside the driver's side door a tag declaring the maximum gross weight for the vehicle. Your license place should correspond to that tag. That is the permissible weight for the empty truck plus the fuel in the tank plus the weight of driver and passengers plus the weight of any cargo including that in the bed and contained within the cab or otherwise attached to the truck plus the tongue weight and only the tongue weight of any trailer you may be towing.

 

[snapping turtle]

Most full size trucks plate out at 7000 pounds.

Truck and stuff = 7000.
you pay more for the plate the more the truck will haul.

 

[IndyDave1776]

Most full size trucks plate out at 7000 pounds.

Truck and stuff = 7000.
you pay more for the plate the more the truck will haul.

Generally a 1/2 ton will plate at 7000, and 3/4 at 9000, and a 1 ton at 11,000.

 

[snapping turtle]

They sell alot more 1.2 ton's than 3/4 or tons. so most will plate at 7000.

 

[IndyDave1776]

They sell alot more 1.2 ton's than 3/4 or tons. so most will plate at 7000.

This is true, but the original question was how much he could haul on his 1 ton.

 

[Hogwylde]

They sell alot more 1.2 ton's than 3/4 or tons. so most will plate at 7000.

So, if you don't HAVE truck plates on your truck......what's your limit? (I have Veteran plates by the way). Since it technically doesn't state a weight limit, is it a free for all?

 

[Aggar]

Your bro is full of air. I've never seen a pickup pulled over and weighed. Thy have more important things to worry about than how much your pickup can haul.

I've got 11k plates on one 3/4 ton diesel and a purdue plate in the other. My truck itself weighs more than 7k.

 

[eldirector]

As posted above. Your legal limit is on your license plate. It has little to with the actual capacity, which also has little to do with the truck's "rating". Modern trucks can carry WAY over the old 1/2, 3/4, and 1-ton "rating", which is why the manufacturers dropped it. Actual capacity is usually given as gross weight, so you have to weight your truck with all the normal stuff, and then subtract that from gross, to find what you can carry.

My "3/4" ton can carry 3000# in payload. GVWR is 9500#, and curb weight is 6500#.

 

[Lafayette Yeti]

This is true, but the original question was how much he could haul on his 1 ton.

I've had close to 3 tons in the back of a 1 ton (Chevy 3500) dually, if that helps.

 

[IndyDave1776]

I've had close to 3 tons in the back of a 1 ton (Chevy 3500) dually, if that helps.

I meant in the sense of the rated gross weight as found in the door frame with appropriately matched plates minus the weight of the vehicle, fuel, and occupants. What you can manage to haul without the truck folding up under you isn't really what we are looking for.

 

[downzero]

tare weight is what truck weighs empty, gross weight is loaded. the sticker in the door jam will give the weights LEGALLY allowable.

The sticker on the door has no legal weight at all. The amount of weight that your vehicle can legally carry is based on the license plates.

 

[Lafayette Yeti]

True. That particular truck was plated for 10k and if I remember right it would tare in on average at about 7k, which would leave 3k. Make sure your tires are rated to carry that much weight too.

 

[downzero]

Generally a 1/2 ton will plate at 7000, and 3/4 at 9000, and a 1 ton at 11,000.

I have 9k plates on my 1 ton truck. The BMV wanted to give me 7k plates, until I informed them that it weighs 7,080 pounds completely empty.

 

[downzero]

So, if you don't HAVE truck plates on your truck......what's your limit? (I have Veteran plates by the way). Since it technically doesn't state a weight limit, is it a free for all?

Check your registration. You should still have a weight rating, even if you have vet plates. One of my trucks has 7k and the other 9k; both have veteran plates.

 

[IndyDave1776]

The sticker on the door has no legal weight at all. The amount of weight that your vehicle can legally carry is based on the license plates.

The law requires the plates to equal the manufacturer's rated gross weight. The manufacturer's rating is considered to be the maximum safe weight for the vehicle and the plates correspond for paying your tax to place that much weight on a public road.

 

[downzero]

The law requires the plates to equal the manufacturer's rated gross weight. The manufacturer's rating is considered to be the maximum safe weight for the vehicle and the plates correspond for paying your tax to place that much weight on a public road.

Got a cite for that law? My truck has a 9900 lb GVWR. Plates are not available at exactly 9900 so if what you're saying is true, then there'd be no way for me to comply with that law. Also, the minimum truck plate is 7k, my compact truck has something like a 5000# GVWR, again, no way to comply. Most 1/2 ton trucks have 6kish GVWRs as well, so they wouldn't be able to comply either.

In other words, I think you're likely misinformed. The vast majority of trucks are plated for something other than their rated GVWR, some significantly more, some less.

When my trucks were registered in Illinois, one had an 8k plate and the other 12k. What you plate a truck for generally has more of a connection to what plate capacities are offered than the manufacturer's rating.

Also, if what you're saying is true, every newer DRW truck should have 12k plates on it, because those trucks are rated for that.

 

[Aggar]

I have 9k plates on my 1 ton truck. The BMV wanted to give me 7k plates, until I informed them that it weighs 7,080 pounds completely empty.

A 1 ton truck weighing 7080. That's a bare bones truck. My 3/4 weighs in at about 9k with tool boxes and fuel tank. My other 3/4 weighs in at 7100 with no boxes and the tailgate removed with 1/4 tank of fuel. I uses to pull this truck.