Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaneajanderson
Dont get bent out of shape about the load rating. My F150 has a rear axle rating of about 1,100, with a max trailer weight of about 3K. I max out the axle and have double the trailer, no problem, just have to slow down a little.
Keep in mind most load ratings have a safety factor of at least 3-4X, sometimes more, you can easily run double "capacity" and be fine.
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Hello Shaneajanderson,
I'll be polite about this, because it's the first reply and is the most common response I run across when searching for more information on this topic. Next most common is "the tow rating is the tow rating, a weight distributing hitch makes the tongue weight disappear".
I'm sorry, my insurance company (and the insurance company for whomever else might be involved in a potential accident) won't accept either argument. Neither will the cop at the scene. I've towed over-gross before - it was not fun, and it was not a good idea. I do not care to do it again unless it's a very temporary situation involving getting a vehicle to a repair facility or similar.
Also, in general, to head off other similar ideas: no, there's no way to add load-carrying capacity to a given vehicle unless you are a registered up-fitter. Airbags and such just make the existing rating (minus the weight of the airbags and such) ride/handle better.
Extreme Lightening ideas, though, go for it! Tubular space-frame (full roll-cage, basically) cab with fiberglass sheet panels, for example.
Note: I already did some preliminary figuring for carbon fiber rock sliders with UHMW wear strips. They'd only weigh 10 pounds or so each but would cost over $900 in materials alone... Aluminum or carbon fiber skidplates, aluminum rims and skinnier/lighter tires, etc. all are fair game. Bonus points for links to places that already make them.
That sort of idea can offset the "off-road mods" weight.
Only trouble is, if it takes forever to fabricate, it won't get made. I've pretty much proven to myself that long-term projects just don't happen anymore.
