Is the payload under rated

[Bandit’s Lair]

the vehicle flips and rolls several times and lands on a minivan

Minivans are probably going to be the cause of the next apocalypse so………. I support this part of that statement.

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[Master_Cylinder]

I miss the '80s when everyone wasn't afraid of everything. Even in their own commercials they'd greatly exceed towing and payload to show just how under rated they really are. This Ford truck has a 3k pound payload and 8,800 pound towing capacity and in their own commercial it's got a 5k pound truck on the bed and another 5k pound truck on a 2-3k pound trailer. Only 2500+ pounds over the payload and right at the max tow rating while doing it. 2k pounds in the bed or an 8500 pound trailer aren't going to cause you to lose steering or braking or control of the vehicle. I'd bet it adds all of 10-15' to the stopping distance at freeway speed. Everything on the gladiator is beefier than an 86 Ford from the brakes to the frame to the steering. Nobody is suggesting towing a 15k pound trailer or loading a truck in the bed. Just truck stuff that may be a little over the rating.

Wasn’t there Chevy and Dodge commercials doing crazy stuff after this one?

 

[bleda2002]

Payload is vastly underrated in most American trucks if all you are talking about is doing occasional heavy hauls on short trips around town. Max payload is supposed to be something the vehicle can handle say in and day our with out issue and at it's intended purpose which is a much different requirement.

I've looked in to this before and the whole rating thing is just an obscure box where it feels kind of randomly set and will even differ greatly around the world for the same vehicle. Some one somewhere is making the decision but how much actual science and engineering went in to it versus just lawyer conservativism is unknown.

 

[Zachanadandy]

Wasn’t there Chevy and Dodge commercials doing crazy stuff after this one?

I believe so. Of course much more recently Toyota towed the 300k pound space shuttle with a tundra in one of their superbowl commercials and yet the internet tells us the gladiator will break in half and kill a bus full of orphans if you tow a few hundred pounds of the rated number?

 

[VA6489]

I really enjoy reading threads like this. The cord of wood story was particularly entertaining.... Use to have a fire wood business when I was a kid. t was great until it wasn't. Cord of wood in a 72 F250 4X4 heading down the highway at 55 when the rear axle housing snapped. Trip to the hospital, big fine and a totaled truck... The Gladiator is no 3/4 ton truck.....

I put 4 rail road ties in the back of my Gladiator and while the jeep was able to carry them home it was overloaded close to bouncing on the bump stops for 10 miles, 4 RR ties is about 500-550#..... next load was on the trailer.

I love hearing people brag about how much they can haul..... and then down the road, hearing about the axles bearings crapping out prematurely, tire belt/cord issues, brakes being burnt up and rear springs sagging... pinion bearings going south and even bent frames.... and then, what a POS the design is.

I digress, please pass the popcorn and continue.

 

[bd100]

Once with a different truck was pulling the camping trailer, saw a cool scenic overlook, hit the brakes, and sailed right past the turn out. Turns out the trailer brake controller wasn't turned up enough. On that trailer I can crank the controller to the max and it still won't skid on pavement. 10" drums on a single axle. But until that moment it seemed everything was fine.

Another thing to consider is weight on the top of the tailgate if leaning lumber on it, sticking out the back. I made a brace out of some 2x4s; just a cross beam sticking slightly above the tail gate and some posts transferring the weight down to the floor of the bed. This rests directly against the raised tail gate and the lumber rests on it instead of the top of the gate. I don't know how much weight the tail gate can hold up before it pops open, but I don't want to find out.

 

[Janster]

Payload is vastly underrated in most American trucks if all you are talking about is doing occasional heavy hauls on short trips around town. Max payload is supposed to be something the vehicle can handle say in and day our with out issue and at it's intended purpose which is a much different requirement.

I've looked in to this before and the whole rating thing is just an obscure box where it feels kind of randomly set and will even differ greatly around the world for the same vehicle. Some one somewhere is making the decision but how much actual science and engineering went in to it versus just lawyer conservativism is unknown.

Ok….let me just throw this out there…..(not at you, just a random thought)

I think majority of us here ….. on this ‘Automotive Enthusiasts’ site….where most of us pay attention to all things vehicle related…yadda yadda yadda….

Sure….most vehicles have the ability to handle more towing/hauling then they’re rated for. Sure….. I get it. We all get it…..

I can’t trust human beings to make a proper lane change without looking in their blind spots first. Do they even know what a blind spot is?? I can’t trust human beings to pay attention to the roadway while their clicking on their phones.

AND…… How many folks actually pay attention to and/or know what those tow/hauling ratings are? They blindly load shit up, half-assed tie things down (or not at all) and hook it up to their bumpers like they know what they’re doing. We’ve all seen it….. Not to forget, even when you are within the tow/haul ratings, people lack the ability to properly secure their loads for safety.

You can’t blame the auto manufacturers for tightening up the tow/haul ratings.
It’s not the TOOL that’s to blame, it’s the operator of the tool.

 

[VA6489]

yup, people are stupid.

 

[Bandit’s Lair]

You can’t blame the auto manufacturers for tightening up the tow/haul ratings.
It’s not the TOOL that’s to blame, it’s the operator of the tool.

Or the Tool operating the Tool.

In my mind it’s not whether you CAN tow a certain weight, it’s whether you SHOULD. Eventually that heavy towing is going to wear down components and ruin your equipment. The right Tool for the right job.

 

[Sandman 4x4]

I miss the '80s when everyone wasn't afraid of everything. Even in their own commercials they'd greatly exceed towing and payload to show just how under rated they really are. This Ford truck has a 3k pound payload and 8,800 pound towing capacity and in their own commercial it's got a 5k pound truck on the bed and another 5k pound truck on a 2-3k pound trailer. Only 2500+ pounds over the payload and right at the max tow rating while doing it. 2k pounds in the bed or an 8500 pound trailer aren't going to cause you to lose steering or braking or control of the vehicle. I'd bet it adds all of 10-15' to the stopping distance at freeway speed. Everything on the gladiator is beefier than an 86 Ford from the brakes to the frame to the steering. Nobody is suggesting towing a 15k pound trailer or loading a truck in the bed. Just truck stuff that may be a little over the rating.

Yea about the Ford. One of my brothers had an 85 F150 reg cab short bed, 4x4, 300 straight six 5 speed. At the same time our Dad had an 86 Dodge Ram D100, 4x2, slant six automatic, reg cab short bed. While at the same time my other brother had a beautiful old 24’ 68 Lyman lapstreek wooden boat, with 318 Chrysler Marine V8, complete with trailer was just over 7,900lbs. Once a year we would tow down to a slip for the summer, then back home afterwards. The little Dodge towed it down at the beginning with no issues at all, even up the long Braga Bridge uphill grade at the speed limit in second gear easily. The end of that year I had to use my other brothers Ford. I thought would be a slam dunk over the Dodge. But we were all sorely disappointed! The 300/5 speed couldn’t pull in top gear on flat ground and required 3rd to climb the same bridge. But the biggest challenge and issue was how the twin traction beam, that was unloaded and lifted up 2-3”, with the wheels camber at an extreme was seriously all over the road over 45 mph! With intense bump steer! We never used that truck again!

 

[ChrisNLA]

I really enjoy reading threads like this. The cord of wood story was particularly entertaining.... Use to have a fire wood business when I was a kid. t was great until it wasn't. Cord of wood in a 72 F250 4X4 heading down the highway at 55 when the rear axle housing snapped. Trip to the hospital, big fine and a totaled truck... The Gladiator is no 3/4 ton truck.....

I put 4 rail road ties in the back of my Gladiator and while the jeep was able to carry them home it was overloaded close to bouncing on the bump stops for 10 miles, 4 RR ties is about 500-550#..... next load was on the trailer.

I love hearing people brag about how much they can haul..... and then down the road, hearing about the axles bearings crapping out prematurely, tire belt/cord issues, brakes being burnt up and rear springs sagging... pinion bearings going south and even bent frames.... and then, what a POS the design is.

I digress, please pass the popcorn and continue.

Or the Tool operating the Tool.

In my mind it’s not whether you CAN tow a certain weight, it’s whether you SHOULD. Eventually that heavy towing is going to wear down components and ruin your equipment. The right Tool for the right job.

The heaviest I've been loaded is roughly 900 pounds in the bed (my toolbox full of tools, and two rows of concrete pavers stacked all the way up level with the bed rails - the big weird shaped pavers that are the size of baking sheets) and my 5x10 utility trailer connected with with my lawn mower on it. So add a little more in tongue weight. I think I was able to slide two dollar bills between the bump stops and the axle.

Took it 35-40 miles at 55 MPH. It was fine.

My truck stickers at 1,471 pounds payload - I was probably right on the numbers if you consider me, the bed cargo, and the tongue weight. With fuel, I was probably over.

I don't mind overloading a truck slightly on occasion to get work done - even if it's my 'new' truck.

 

[NC_Overland]

Like many have said, there’s a lot more involved in those rating than just the springs. My Rubicon LE springs are impressive though. It rides level with 1500 lbs in the bed. It starts sagging after that. I’ve never had more than 1700-1800 lbs in it and I’ve never driven it more than a few miles like that. Across town from the stone yard. I’ve had countless 1/2 yards in the bed. A full yard a hand full of times. A full yard fills it all the way up. lol.

 

[NC_Overland]

Wasn’t there Chevy and Dodge commercials doing crazy stuff after this one?

They used to jump the shit out of S10s in the Like a Rock commercials. They were awesome.

Volvo got in trouble for having monster trucks drive over their cars. The problem was that they had roll cages fitted inside.

 

[ChrisNLA]

They used to jump the shit out of S10s in the Like a rock commercials. They were awesome.

Volvo got in trouble for having monster trucks drive over their cars. The problem was that they had roll cages fitted inside.

Ahhh - the era of Bob Seger belting 'Like a Rock' while a Chevy truck is bounding through a muddy field or job site.

I have several like new brochures for trucks in that era at the house. So cool to flip through.

Whoops - age showing.

 

[JTdiRtyD]

The way I look at it, if I'm within a couple hundred lbs of GVWR I'm not too worried. The number on the sticker is not the failure point of the system, theres always a buffer factored in. It is, however, a point which engineers have deemed a safe line to draw in the sand where safety meets longevity meets functionality meets production costs without sacrificing too much one way or the other.

I'm far less concerned about my trucks ability to handle 1000lbs in the bed and still be able to maneuver, brake, etc. than I am about the folks with a family packed into their truck towing +6k lb travel trailers and thinking it's just fine. Sure, theres an argument that a Gladi is not a work truck, but theres a far better argument that it's not a tow rig.

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