Not all trucks are created equal!

[RubberNail]

Well said. I'm a retired Structural Engineer and in my former life saw many a "homemade" structural repair; some by individuals who had spent many years working with structures but had little understanding as to what determined the real "weak link" in the structure. You knew when you walked on the site whether there was a competent engineer supervising, or a backyard welder. Based on what I know about my profession I can only imagine what considerations are weighed by the AUTOMOTIVE engineers in determining the vehicle load ratings. I do know that engineers design for the "lower limit" of the design components, and I've seen many structures standing that should not. That's a VERY fortunate CHANCE event where the components all exceeded their "lower limit". You don't want to drive your family across bridges on the CHANCE that it is safe and for the same reason you don't want drivers on the road with loads that exceed the vehicle rating on the CHANCE that it is safe. It's the same animal. If we don't want to be like the trucks that have to stop at all the weigh stations, we better pay attention to the load ratings of our vehicles. It will only take one bad accident and an ambitious news reporter, coupled with a slow news day, for this to become the next "gun control" issue.