Tow vehicles and CCC ratings

[Chewwi]

People who add items to your truck after you have purchased it do not fit the definition of “altered” according to the CFR definitions contained in section 567.3. Anyone can add heavier duty springs to your truck to increase its carrying capacity, heavier duty bearings to increase your carrying capacity and larger axles. All without placing any altered or additional information on your pillar.

An alterer is someone who alters the vehicle after manufacture; but before first sale. 49 CFR 567.3

Clearly anyone can and do alter vehicles all the time without meeting the definition of alterer. I see them all the time in parking lots and used vehicle lots. Jacked up, giant wheels and tires, crazy suspension changes, real monster trucks. Most, if not all, have been modified without any real knowledge or consideration of their effect on towing anything. I wouldn’t trust any of them to even come close to the meeting SAE tow test standard.


2020 2600RB,
2017 Silverado Crew Cab 1500, 6.2L

[CWSWine]

Visit the Wrangler Forum to see Jeep owners’ modifications. Many start the day it comes home and it never ends. Some built Gladiators out of Wranglers, so Jeep resurrected the Gladiator. Many dropped V8’s in so Jeep now offers a Hemi. Lifts, springs, steering linkages, bumpers, axles, are changed every day (often significantly raising the center of gravity), and many are done by commercial shops. They drive among us all the time but nobody ever changes VIN’s. I haven’t seen much discussion of insurance effects either. There’s no mechanism to notify the insurance company and I can’t imagine how any company could rate the endless potential Jeep mods. Your premium probably boils down to VIN and driving/accident history. Wouldn’t a non-commercial pickup be the same?

That is true and I looking at a 2” lift for my Jeep and have read the instructions of several lift kits and all of them said this is for off-road use and suitability of operation on public streets is the responsibility of the end-user. My installer also had the same statement in their work order paperwork and you are required to sign. Even my aftermarket bumper had a statement that end-users responsibility if it alters the crash ratings of the vehicle. Even the Firestone airbags state on the box that they do not increase payload capacity. It's called CYA and a lot of thought and legal advice goes into those statements. So it's up to the end-user to prove the mods are suitability for operation on public streets and good luck with that.

[CWSWine]

Clearly anyone can and do alter vehicles all the time without meeting the definition of alterer. I see them all the time in parking lots and used vehicle lots. Jacked up, giant wheels and tires, crazy suspension changes, real monster trucks. Most, if not all, have been modified without any real knowledge or consideration of their effect on towing anything. I wouldn’t trust any of them to even come close to the meeting SAE tow test standard.


2020 2600RB,
2017 Silverado Crew Cab 1500, 6.2L

It's interesting that you mention. the SAE Tow test because if you exceed you GVWR you fail the test.


SAE J2807 States that exceeding the GVWR is a reason to fail

5.4 GVWR/Rear GAWR and Tongue Weight/Kingpin Weight Considerations

The tow vehicle shall be able to accommodate appropriate trailer tongue and/or kingpin weight to attain a particular TWR without exceeding Rear GAWR and/or GVWR. Required minimum conventional trailer tongue weight shall be 10% of TWR and required minimum fifth wheel or gooseneck trailer kingpin weight shall be 15% of TWR.

TWR = Trailer Weight Rating

http://fifthwheelst.com/documents/to...ds-2016-02.pdf