ANOTHER Towing Question.

Has anyone ever heard of a wrecked half-ton truck and trailer being taken to the scales to determine if he was over the door jamb numbers? Is being over the door jamb numbers even illegal? Everyone seems to think so, but as far as I know, those numbers are simply recommendations to cover the manufacturer and are not law.

I’m NOT recommending that anyone drive overloaded. Just curious.

Also, why is there a 1k difference between GVWR and GAWR? (Mine are 7200 and 8150, respectively)

 

If you hurt someone, i would definitely expect a shark attorney to look into it

 

And your insurance company will/must hire one of those attorneys to defend you! Let's be clear on the issue. You are being negligent if you are overloaded. Most states have comparative negligence which can apportion some of the fault of an accident to you due to your negligence.

 

With all the Tundras out there that are towing (most are going to be over their payload) can someone post if they have had an accident and were sued?

 

I wouldn’t want to be the first

 

Don’t know why people advocate going over what Toyota says. Is going 10 mph over the speed limit going to kill you? Most likely not. But you will get a ticket or be at fault in an accident. Just like @ColoradoTJ said above. He won his case partly due to the guy speeding and he being within limits. Can commercial truck drivers tell the weight scale guy “I’m just a little over, my max numbers are conservative, I’m fine?” Pretty sure they’ll get fined.

Whether you are in a wreck or not, are you more worried about getting sued or do you want to put your family or other vehicles in danger by thinking Toyota was wrong with their numbers and you know better?

 

Now i am as guilty as the next guy of dogging my own tundra’s lack of payload.

however it is pretty funny and ironic that we consider our HALF TON truck’s 1000lb payload to be a joke

 

I’m not advocating for being overweight. Commercial trucks are held to different standards. In most (or all?) states, they have to have GCWR numbers posted on the side of the truck. They’re also required to weigh in regularly. Being overweight can get them fined, unlike non-commercial half-ton trucks.

Agreed. Same exact argument applies to each state’s DOT and how posted speed limits are set. And I’d bet $1000 at least 75% of the members here regularly exceed posted speed limits on the highway.

I’m not going to be towing any more than a 4500lb ski boat. But if I need to haul 1200lb of rock for a new fire pit and patio back to my property (which would put me 120lb over payload with me in the drivers seat, yet with 810 lbs of GAWR remaining), I’m not going to buy a new truck just to stay within my door jamb numbers on that one-mile trip.

 

Well I guess your buying a Dodge than, good luck.

 

One thing about that - my Tundra can have 1300+ lbs in it, the wife's 2020 Ram: 1200 lbs.

 

The towing capacity of the 4.6L was 6500 lbs. I was just stating it did it without effort.

 

Random internet photo.

So how are these guys doing this legally? How are the truck camper companies allowed to do this.

To the original poster. Tow the Camaro to the strip, don’t worry about it.

 

I wanted to a buy a truck camper when i was single. I shopped them all, they are almost all way too heavy for the truck they are pictured with

 

They are not doing it legally. Truck camper companies doesn't give a butt hole what you put their camper on. It's the responsibility of the owner to know what weight the truck can carry safely. Just like when you buy and TT. Most of the RV sellers will gladly sell you a 30' TT and hook it up to your Tundra and smile all the way to the bank. It's one of the reasons for the confusion between payload and towing capacity and the reason you see so much of it on the highways.

 

This is my local RV dealer, CANAM RV here in London Ontario, they actually will tell you this is safe.

How is towing an Airstream with a Jetta safe. I didn’t buy my trailer from them.

 

Those pop ups are probably within limits. That lance most likely is not. But lance has a disclaimer and I’m sure it’s more detailed when you are doing your paperwork so they don’t get sued.


Lance Camper Manufacturing Corporation makes no warranties or representation express or implied as to the performance or reliability of your truck with a Lance camper.


https://www.lancecamper.com/truck-camper-compatibility-guide/

That’s a nice way of saying it’s on you to check and your fault if something goes wrong.

 

Wow, that's amazingly stupid.

 

I just checked out their website compatibility guide and it says the Tundra double cab would be able to carry a Lance 865.

 

Says a crewmax can carry a 650. 1700 lbs dry and 1903 lbs wet. No crewmax has that payload. You’d have to remove all your seats and skids and get some smaller tires than stock and maybe your headlights and only drive during the day to free up that much.

 

It sucks towing unpowered or under weight. If I am over 6 Klbs I am going 1 ton. (3/4ton useless same drivetrain pkg as 1 ton but derated, get the 1 ton). My opinion (useless I know) if you are towing with anything but diesel take your tow rating and divide in half if you want a safe comfortable experience and not get run over.

 

GM and Ford run the same powertrains in their 3/4 and 1 tons, no difference in power. Only Ram has an extra choice with the 1 tons with the HO Cummins and Aisin.
Tundra can handle close to 10k lbs, but when the trailer takes up 1000 lbs of payload it really only allows for the driver and nothing else in the truck. It's stiff enough, has tons of power, and very good braking. If I was doing it frequently I'd go HD diesel, not because it's needed but because HD diesel's tow that much just like you're driving unloaded, no reason to push limits if it's done frequently. But for a once a month or less I'd feel comfortable in a Tundra with it.

 

I guess everyone would be safe if we only used half of the tow rating. Not using the last 25% might be a more realistic goal while staying safe in the worst conditions. But hey, I’m just hoping people stop trying to tow full sized 5th wheels with their Tundras.

 

Depends on the full size 5th wheel. Winnebago make a nice full size that has a pin weight of around 825lbs. So it can be done with the right Tundra.

 

The only logical conclusion to all of these campers that are marketed to Tundra drivers even though the Tundra isn’t rated by Toyota to tow/haul them is that it’s not actually illegal to go over the door jamb numbers.

Even so, if I wanted a 1700lb camper in the bed, I would’ve bought a different truck.

 

Yes, but I would not call that a “full sized” 5th wheel. I am referring to the ones with way over 1k pin weights.

 

Looks pretty full size to me.

https://www.winnebago.com/models/product/minnie-plus?GroupID=GROUP277