How common is overloading vans and Sprinters?

[ntimevan]

Just tossing some greasy bacon around....lol

Yummy, bacon.........while recently looking at new sprinters i obtained a nice copy of what sprinters weigh empty and what weight they can Legally carry before driver, fuel, and personal items. .....so i m keep it for when someone starts bragging to my face about how much weight they can legally carry .....cause i m not too bashful to set you straight. .....

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[Jenny]

Also, with the unibody design, if you get too much weight, and it is not evenly distributed you run the risk of tweaking it.
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[OntarioVanMan]

Yummy, bacon.........while recently looking at new sprinters i obtained a nice copy of what sprinters weigh empty and what weight they can Legally carry before driver, fuel, and personal items. .....so i m keep it for when someone starts bragging to my face about how much weight they can legally carry .....cause i m not too bashful to set you straight. .....

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Great to hear....

 

[CharlesD]

But aren't all the good straights already working ?

We've currently got about 10 that used to be contracted to a much larger carrier and are doing well with us, and a couple who moved up from vans. There are always a few dissatisfied folks out there, or van people looking to make the jump up.

 

[bobwg]

Need to weigh the Sprinter with full fuel tank, driver , bunk set up , and all personal stuff tools, etc I know with my Cat Scale ticket I can carry 2,400 lbs of cargo legally

 

[xiggi]

There is a company out here that most know. They will put 4500 in their sprinters and at the mid to lower rate.

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[mxzane933]

I had a 2400 pound load in my Chevy and i was driving a low rider all 1200 miles. I burnt alot more gas and constantly had to get into the powerband to keep a decent pace.never again.

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[bobwg]

I had a 2400 pound load in my Chevy and i was driving a low rider all 1200 miles. I burnt alot more gas and constantly had to get into the powerband to keep a decent pace.never again.

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overloaded???

 

[mjmsprt40]

Yes, you can put 4,500 lbs into a 2500 series Sprinter. If you do, the vehicle will be resting on the rubber blocks and probably compressing them (forget the springs, they're fully used up), probably flattening the tires more than they should be and generally creating a risky environment. If you do this, I recommend not driving very far because the strain on parts never meant to handle that weight is enormous.

The 3500 series is better able to handle it, and you might as well spring for the dually while you're at it if you're going to do that kind of weight very often.

MX, what size Chevy are you driving? I have the heavyweight 2500 (GVWR of 8600 lbs) and it will handle 2500 lbs without showing apparent strain. I'm guessing you have a lighter unit. Assuming you didn't start out with a low rider in the first place (please say you didn't, though after certain other posts I can't be sure) you either have a 1500 series van or a lightweight 2500 from the sounds of it.

 

[FlyingVan]

I can legally put a bit over 3000 lbs on my sprinter since I don't have a bunk and I only carry minimal personal stuff. BUT, I have it listed at 2500 lbs. I had a few 2500 lbs loads and I did not like it. More stress on everything. I can't imagine how it would look with 4000 lbs in the back. Most of my loads are 1000 lbs or lighter.

 

[tknight]

It's amazing how many loads I've seen posted way beyond the capacity of a van or sprinter "just cause it fits it ain't right" I saw a sprinter at a dock last week getting ready to do a wheelie,asked the driver what he was thinking ,just gave me true deer in headlights -min your own dAmm business look,glad I wasn't behind him,although I could have gotten a rescue job whe he broke down or got pulled over

 

[ExFedEx]

So all this talk about overloading vans and Sprinters, what about getting a trailer hitch for the cargo vans or Sprinters? Tongue weight 600, gross 6000lbs trailer, if the trailer weighs 1,500 you can technically haul 4,500 on that, plus whatever weight the vehicle can carry, though I wouldn't want to go much above 2,000 in the vehicle (my thoughts only), so now us van guys can haul truck loads of 6,500 lbs? If a broker calls me and says I have 6 pallets at 1,000 lbs each, I'll get you a truck rate on it, you can sure bet I'll take it, and if the broker ABOVE MY BROKER LIKE PANTHER FOR EXAMPLE agrees to it which they usually do, then I guess I've got the load.

Just some thoughts on the trailer aspect of the expediting industry.

 

[paullud]

That opens you up to DOT regulations and a lot of wear and tear.

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[tknight]

trailer?????? now your looking like a u-shipper! I bet the shipper and receiver will just love loading a little trailer with a fork lift, that would last just 1 shipment in any dock workers book!

 

[mjmsprt40]

It doesn't take much of a trailer to put you up over that magic 10K number, once you're over that you're a "Commercial Motor Vehicle" subject to the whole laundry list of DOT rules and regs. Trailers add their own list of nightmares to the mix too. It's one thing if you're in lawn and garden or home construction, I've seen van/cargo trailer combos do well enough in those fields. I have a suspicion it would be trouble in our line of work.

Here's an idea: How about not taking work that seriously overloads your equipment? Sure, you won't get paid for not working, but counter that with the idea of how much it's going to cost you to repair broken equipment, or to pay fines and end up losing the run anyway when law enforcement steps in, or worst of all the losses that come about by accident when it becomes known that you were grossly overweight at the time of the accident. My van can't run a 4,500 lb load. I'll top out at a max of 2,900, as it stands right now. Really, even though I've weighed the empty van and know what I can do, it pays to top out at less than max on this van.

 

[ebsprintin]

Earlier this year I went to a shipper to pick up one piece at 1900 lbs. The pallet went on, and the van sank like never before. Rubber pucks were squashed between the axle and frame. Rear tires were half flat. All I said was--I won't even make it out of the parking lot. Shipper said--Want me to reweigh it? It scaled 3600 lbs. which would put the gross weight of the van at 9850 lbs. My van maxs out at 8550, so I don't see how those other people do it. If they really are loading 4000 lbs without flattening their tires, I want to know what kind of tires they're using, because I might get them for my next vehicle.

eb

 

[mjmsprt40]

I quickly point out that I'm running light by comparison to many of you to begin with. You're trying to keep half of your house on board and that makes for quite a bit of "tare weight" before you load the first skid. My old Sprinter had the same GVWR as EBSprintin has, and I could get more payload weight on simply because I had less of "my stuff" to begin with. Still, 2950 is the absolute max you can throw at a 2500 Sprinter and still hope to be legal, after you consider a tank of fuel and your own weight (these days I tip the scales at around 220 lbs, all up). After 2500 lbs payload, you're starting to push your luck in the 2500 series vans regardless of the door sticker GVWR.

 

[Monty]

At one time I explored the "trailer" option for my Sprinter.

I was quickly informed by Landstar that insurance would NOT cover a tow behind with electric brakes.

Add to that you have now became an articulated vehicle, that requires a Class A CDL and with the added capacity, you are over 10,000 pounds and would need to do log books.

If a "trailer" is what you want, then just upgrade to a class C or D truck.

 

[guido4475]

So all this talk about overloading vans and Sprinters, what about getting a trailer hitch for the cargo vans or Sprinters? Tongue weight 600, gross 6000lbs trailer, if the trailer weighs 1,500 you can technically haul 4,500 on that, plus whatever weight the vehicle can carry, though I wouldn't want to go much above 2,000 in the vehicle (my thoughts only), so now us van guys can haul truck loads of 6,500 lbs? If a broker calls me and says I have 6 pallets at 1,000 lbs each, I'll get you a truck rate on it, you can sure bet I'll take it, and if the broker ABOVE MY BROKER LIKE PANTHER FOR EXAMPLE agrees to it which they usually do, then I guess I've got the load.

Just some thoughts on the trailer aspect of the expediting industry.

Are you still at Woodstock??? lol.....

 

[jeffman164]

Was offered a 3500 lb load today even though I am listed at 3000 lb max . Happens A LOT more than people realize .