is anyone over exceeding their gross combination weight rating?

[northstar1960]

Originally Posted by bikendan

I'm sure glad those that are fine exceeding weight specs, aren't airline pilots.

Funny you mention airline pilots . i knew a pilot that did a New York to Paris route for over 10 yrs and he can't remember not even one flight because he was blacked out from drinking so fly them friendly sky's

[mrpep]

You make a valid point and I also agree just can't afford a new tv at the moment. I will be running extremely lean with May place me at about 300 over . I will brewing hung all items going into trailer as we load. Believe me I also am not one to push it but again, in this case I am in a tight spot and am looking for the safest way way to make it work.


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[Chpusmc]

Originally Posted by Dodge Guy

Yes! Just like when you get in an accident and get a DUI!

Insurance still pays out of an at fault DUI accident. If you are currently insured they pay. They are likely to drop you soon after and any subsequent insurance rates will be expensive.

[gfarmcafe]

Originally Posted by stevensmith2859

The decision is ultimately yours, but at the end of the day, the vehicle has a rating for a reason, meaning that it can handle up to a certain amount safely and mechanically. I had an avalanche with a 5.3L, rated for 7200, was pulling about 6700, the motor could not handle the weight, traded up to a ram 1500 with a Hemi, and feel much safer and more controlled on the road.

One factor no one has commented on is the amount of, or lack of braking control you have with a heavier trailer. I had a RV salesman explain the vehicle rating is given to provide the best braking control, and shortest distance in case the trailer brakes fail. I've taken that seriously when looking at either bumper pulls or 5th wheels. The last thing you need is to have the trailer "push" you through an intersection because your TV's suspension, wheels and brakes were too small, or lacking to brake it safely.

[mrpep]

I understand and appreciate the comment but in this case I have electric brakes and they work well. I have a tekonsha 90160 and it does the job - I spoke to a mechanic today and he said to check rear differential fluid levels and color, check trans level and color, check oil and the trans cooler is a good idea. He also stated that as long as I'm not overkilling the axles , which I'm am not I should be ok. I told him my concern was the engine and killing it. He said the Chevy 350 is a beast of an engine and the trans should be my main concern but with less than 500 over the max he said I should worry. I have gotten so much feed back and I'm going to continue to conduct pm jobs on the tv until the time is here. I did travel this exact set up once with zero problems but it was only one hour away and for some reason now that I'm driving 3 hours away , I'm concerned. I weighed my rig up too and that added extra concern. My gut tells me I should be ok as well. We will see what happens and I truly was hoping to read about more people who are doing it for the assurance .


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[Oaklevel]

Originally Posted by mrpep

I'm not very worried about crashing, I've taken it out and even ran it up to 70 mph . My concern is vehicle breakdown .


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I can tell you from my early days I did it ........ When conversion vans were popular we bought one and towed a 22 ft Terry behind it. The Vans gross weight was 6200 lbs, on a scale it weighed 6100 with no one in it........ No problems pulling, no problems stopping......... but the transmission was going out in it after a year.

Before that I had a real F150 bought a used 22 ft Terry. The Terry had no brakes.... I had no idea what trailer brakes felt like..... no issues stopping even on the DC beltway......... Got 100,000 out of the truck before I decided to trade.........

I will not comment as to would I do it now....... but do I recommend it NO. Today I'm towing all 5 of my trailers with a duelly

Again enough said about possible accidents .............. Your transmission is your week link and costly to repair............

[mrpep]

Just when I was starting to feel some calm, lol - yes I know the trans is what concerns me too. I just keep reading that the main cause of trans failure is heat so am hoping my trans cooler and gauge and low temps will save me


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[aufinger]

Originally Posted by Chpusmc

Insurance still pays out of an at fault DUI accident. If you are currently insured they pay. They are likely to drop you soon after and any subsequent insurance rates will be expensive.

Your insurance company will only defend you up to your insurance limits. If the person suing you is charging that it was your reckless and negligent conduct (by exceeding published safe load limits) that caused the accident and resulting damage and injuries, they may well go for big bucks beyond your coverage. Any judgement that exceeds your insurance coverage will be your responsibility. Larry G.

[goduc]

Originally Posted by tjerrard

IF you are in an accident and your insurance finds out you were overweight do you think they will pay out?

Yes they will.

[mrpep]

Getting sued would be scary if I was loaded but since I'm broke , theirs noting to take , lol. I'll be fine in regards to accidents. I drove over 60 miles into Wisconsin from Chicago area and I couldn't even tell I'm pulling a trailer, my electric brakes work great. Again, I'm more worried about mechanical failure.


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[goduc]

Only on an RV forum is one chastised for being 500lbs over weight. I guess no one has ever noticed all the construction trucks pulling all kinds of trailers. No WD, or regards for weight. I find these threads to be ridiculous. So many people tow overweight and never get noticed. It doesn't make it right but at the same time it's not the apocalypse as some thing it is.

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by goduc

Only on an RV forum is one chastised for being 500lbs over weight. I find these threads to be ridiculous. So many people tow overweight and never get noticed. It doesn't make it right but at the same time it's not the apocalypse as some thing it is.

X2.... preach on, I'm with ya.... now get some popcorn... this is gonna be interesting😂

[Platokidd]

These threads always turn into the weight police and the weight bandits.

The op sounds like his concerned is with mechanical breakdown. Lets try to post on topic.

Had a 98 chevy 1500 5.7 3.72 rear end pickup in great shape. Towed on the heavy side but not over my max weight. The 5.7 was bullet proof and did a fine job.
In a short period of time I burned up the rear end. Cost over 2k to have repaired.
For me more truck is always better, upgrade 2500hd here I come.

Your truck is old , a lot depends on the condition of your truck. You know its going to be working its rear end off. Find the sweet spot and drive in it. For me that was 62mph.
Be safe!

[mrpep]

Originally Posted by Platokidd

These threads always turn into the weight police and the weight bandits.

The op sound like his concerned is with mechanical breakdown. Lets try to post on topic.

Had a 98 chevy 1500 5.7 3.72 rear end pickup in great shape. Towed on the heavy side but not over my max weight. The 5.7 was bullet proof and did a fine job.
In a short period of time I burned up the rear end. Cost over 2k to have repaired.
For me more truck is always better, upgrade 2500hd here I come.

Your truck is old , a lot depends on the condition of your truck. You know its going to be working its rear end off. Find the sweet spot and drive in it. For me that was 62mph.
Be safe!

These are the kind of stories I want to read about and scare the heck out of me. How much over were you? Do you recall?

I was told to check rear differential level and color so that the rear differential doesn't break down - hope this prevents any issues

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[Platokidd]

Originally Posted by mrpep

These are the kind of stories I want to read about and scare the heck out of me. How much over were you? Do you recall?

I was told to check rear differential level and color so that the rear differential doesn't break down - hope this prevents any issues

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I was not over weight but under by about 500 lbs. And as I stated before my truck was in great shape.
Changing / checking all the fluids is a good thing to do! Do what you can and drive accordingly.

By the way, I used to live near york and green in Bensenville.

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by mrpep

These are the kind of stories I want to read about and scare the heck out of me. How much over were you? Do you recall?

I was told to check rear differential level and color so that the rear differential doesn't break down - hope this prevents any issues

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Since we are sharing war stories.... here's mine

Pulled an extremely overweight utility trailer all over the country with a 1979 Chevy C10 (half ton). Had to use overload springs and heavy duty bumper welded to the frame. Yep... blew up my differential.... at 175,000 miles.

Guess my point is that mechanical issues happen.. are they due to load abuses, normal wear/tear, or just bad luck? who knows.....

All we can do use some common sense, good maint, and keep going down the road.

[Filterman]

Well....30 years ago I used to get a bit hung up on all these weight numbers. Now, not so much. I have a problem with my current setup with 300 lbs over on rear TV axle if we load really heavy....full water etc. I'm under on GCVW and under on TV GVW, well under on vehicle towing capacity. Just can't quite get as much transferred from rear to front axle of the TV as I would like. I've done lots of adjustments on my WD hitch and TV even rides level within specs...about 1" lower over the rear axle. Tows like a dream....I make sure my cold tire pressure is at max on that rear axle and all is well.

[Dodge Guy]

Originally Posted by bikendan

I'm sure glad those that are fine exceeding weight specs, aren't airline pilots.

Airlines aren't any better! We were on a runway once and had to wait for a longer runway because we were overloaded! They needed the longer runway to get up to speed!

[dan4jeepin]

A friend tows with a Toyota FJ40 right at or probably over the max rating. Even using Amsoil oil in the rear axle he is on his third set of gears in 300K miles. He probably only tows about 500 miles a year but it's is just more than the rear axle was designed to handle.

I'd say run what you have for now but start looking for a larger TV or smaller trailer if you don't want to deal with break downs.

[Dodge Guy]

The OP is asking about GCVWR. As I stated earlier, that is dependent on the gear ratio and/or engine! And again, on my X the 3k lb difference in GCVWR is dependent on he gear ratio! 3.73 or 4.30!!