A garbage truck and your pickup truck both fall into the same overall category: Trucks. Since these two types of trucks are actually very different from each other, it helps to break the larger category into smaller distinctions. Feel free to read on to understand the difference between light, medium, and heavy duty trucks.
GVWR
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating, or GVWR, is how the DOT classifies trucks in the United States. While this can give you a good idea of how much load capacity a truck has, there is more to it than that. In addition to the load that it’s carrying, the GVWR considers the weight of the actual truck. This includes the fuel and passengers that go inside of it in addition to any cargo that it might be hauling. Pickup trucks and SUVs are found in the first class, while cement and dump trucks top the list in class 8.
Understanding Duties
The GVWR system is broken down into eight classes, but there are only three when we talk about “duties”. Additionally, when you hear of a pickup truck being described as heavy duty on a television commercial, it might not mean what you think. All of the pickup trucks you see on advertisements are actually light duty, along with the rest of the vehicles found in the first couple of classes. Even large commercial vehicles that are in higher classes are considered medium duty, so the “heavy duty” attribute is comparing it to other light duty trucks. Actual heavy duty trucks, like garbage trucks, can be found in class 7, while class 8 is reserved for severe duty vehicles like truck tractors and sleeper cabs.
If you’re looking for a Tucson towing company that has all of these trucks in its fleet, call Barnett’s Towing at (800) 722-2302. You can also stop by or check out our website for an overview of our services.
