Exceeding my GVWR - Montana Owners Club

Montana_2924 · 01-19-2005, 03:45 PM

I am new member and a little confused on the subject of GVWR . We are about ready to order our 2005 Montana 2955RL and need to find out if my truck can do the job safely. I have a 2003 F-250 with the 6.0 PSD, 5 Speed Automatic, Camper Package, CC, SB. The 5W catalog specs shows a gross dry weight of 9380#, carrying 3000#, and hitch 1980#. With added options my gross dry weight will be 9660#. I know my truck can pull it with no problem but I will go over my GVWR of 8800#. This is how I am figuring it. On my vehicle registration my GVW is 6999#. I added the pin weight of 1980 which gives me 8979#. I have already exceeded my GVWR and I have not even added passengers and cargo. So am I stuck on getting a lighter unit or will it be ok. Thanks for any help on this.

lightningjack11 · 01-19-2005, 04:17 PM

Next time you hook up drive it to the truck scales at a truck stop.

The cost is about 7 dollars and it will give you the weight on the axles. Add both truck axles and you will have you GVW.

It is real easy to exceed that 8800. When you buy a truck, the more options you buy cuts into that 8800.

On my old ford my truck is relatively light. 2wd w/ extended cab.

My truck weight from the scales is 5960 with one tank full and one body and hitch. So I have about 2800 to play with.

My weight on the truck measured at the scales is about 8600 when I have the camper attached so I am very close to exceeding the GVWR.

A lot of people out there exceed their GVWR. I guess you know that the new(2005) 6L trucks have a larger GVWR than the older ones.

Countryfolks · 01-19-2005, 06:06 PM

Get the truck weighed like Lightingjack11 recommends, with full tank, and passengers. If it weighes less see if your DMV will change your registration. That should ease your mind and more specifically, tell you where you're at. My old 97 1ton dually only weighed 7200!
I looked up the specs:
http://www.ford-trucks.com/specs/200...perduty_1.html
and the heaviest GVW was 6410# with a payload of 2390# for a 4x4 crewcab. 6999# is too high! The GVW should be listed on a tag somewhere on the truck also.

Skip

Bob Pasternak · 01-20-2005, 03:02 AM

Whitt: You will notice we have a 2003 2955RL. I pull it with a 2001 Dodge 2500. The truck weighs 6750 full of fuel, all the maps needed to get thoroughly lost and my traveling companion in it. The allowable weight on it is 10584 lbs. Our 2955RL weighs 10870 road ready with 2/3 tank of fresh water and full LP tanks. My pin weight is 2450. Gives me a gross weight of 17620. I have no trouble at all pulling it and I am under my allowable weights.

Montana_2230 · 01-20-2005, 03:43 AM

These are my weights on my truck loaded and really to go camping without Monty attached....
4320 front axle
3040 back axle

7360 total truck weight

These are my weights with monthy and truck loaded and hitched for camping.

4340 front axle
5300 back axle

9640 total truck weight

8880 Monty axles

total weight 18520

Pin weight 2280

I am over on my truck weight, but within limits of my axles.

So far I have not had any problems with this set up. Since I am over my weight limits I do take extra care in my driving and braking. I also added the Edge/Attitude performance chip to my Duramax and performance did improve.

Montana_2924 · 01-20-2005, 03:22 PM

Thank you all for your help I really do appreciate it. I did take my truck to the scales today to get it weighed. After doing the math I am 463# Over My GVWR and 1141# under my Rear GAWR. How big of factor is this. Can this get me into a safety issue or am I ok. Thanks Again

Montana_2230 · 01-20-2005, 04:00 PM

I am not sure that it is as much of a safety factor as it might be a legal issue if we had an accident or a wear and tear problem with our truck and fiver. I am about in the same situation as you are and I am going to be extra careful and not worry about it. I sure can't afford a new truck... I will try not to increase my weights any further out of bounds. I really can't tell you that you are ok. I think that you will have to decide that. I know that so far I don't seem to be having a problem with the extra weight.

sreigle · 01-21-2005, 01:23 PM

Whitt, on our prior truck I was over GVWR by about a thousand pounds but under on GAWR. I have weighed this truck but have not recently re-weighed the Montana. I suspect I'm over on GVWR by somewhere in the 500 to 1000 lb range. It was never a problem with the prior truck and I don't expect it to be on this one other than with this one I'm going to have to add air bags since I am a little nose high on the truck with Montana in tow.

A note for those contemplating buying the new '05 F250. Our neighbor has a truck nearly identical to ours except theirs has the extra "helper" spring on the rear that ours does not have. It's like what our '03 F350 had on it. If I had that extra helper I wouldn't need air bags (didn't need them on the F350). Both our neighbor and we have the tow package and the 10,000 lb GVWR package. But they also have the "camper" package and we don't. I think that's how they got that extra spring.

I checked with the Ford Truck Service Center and the extra helper leaf is not available as an add-on kit. I'd have to go with the entire spring pack on each side, to the tune of a thousand bucks or so, installed. So I'll go with the air bags. First I'll do a little online searching. The '05 has larger springs, three inches in width, which will make it hard to find an aftermarket addon.

Broome101 · 01-22-2005, 01:50 AM

Whitt, Your total towing with 5th wheel should be 20,000lbs max. I think if I am not wrong your truck is 8,800 lbs give our take, mine is and you ahve towing capaicty of about 12,300, giving the total of 20K total weight limit with trailer in tow.

sreigle · 01-22-2005, 02:22 PM

If I may add to Broome's post, the 20k GCWR is probably correct. The GVWR is probably 8800. Actual weight of the truck depends on the cab and bed configuration. Crew Cabs are considerably heavier. Our '03 F350 1-ton supercab shortbed weighed 7200 actual with 3/4 tank of diesel. It was a 4x4. The '05 F250 3/4 ton we have now is also a 4x4 diesel but is the crew cab. With just under a full tank of diesel it scales at 7960 actual. The '05 has a heavier frame and frontend so will weigh more than it's counterpart in the '04 model. Oops, I just re-read and see he has a crew cab short bed so I'd guess on the '04 model it weighs in the neighborhood of 7500-7600 lbs or thereabouts. Anybody with that particular model in the '99-04 range?

CmdrDewey · 01-22-2005, 02:58 PM

My weights are almost identical to Florida Nomads and I have towed about 40,000 miles with out a problem. Way back when I did some research and wrote a comparison of the 2002 F-350 and the F-250. You might find it helpful.

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