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Old 12-03-2019, 09:41 AM   #1
Twisties
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Driver's Licenses

Hi,

We are moving towards our first ever RV, a 5'er. We got the truck last week, a Ram 3500 with 12,300 GVWR. It's rated to tow about 20,100 lbs with a payload of about 4600 lbs. We are looking for 5'ers in light to mid categories... possibly with a GVWR above 14,000 lbs, but most likely under. Combined vehicle length... IDK say a 35' 5er on a big ole Ram... crew cab long bed... 45-50'?

We are residents of Oregon and have Oregon Class C DLs.

In Oregon, in so far as we understand RV's for personal use are permitted without restriction on our DL's.

What we are concerned with is what happens when we cross state lines? Do we need to meet the requirements of each jurisdiction we enter, or do our OR rules apply? What about Canada and Mexico?

Should we make sure our CGVWR is under 26,000 lbs and our combined length is under 45', or are we ok to get what we have in mind?

Thanks so much for more help with noob questions!

Jan
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Old 12-03-2019, 09:58 AM   #2
flybouy
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I don't know about the agreements to the north or south but as far as the "lower 48" are concerned the issuing state's laws governing the driver's license should be recognized. It's called reciprocity.
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Old 12-03-2019, 11:04 AM   #3
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You will be legal in all states and provinces, Mexico doesn’t peak our interest in the least nor would we be fool enough to drag our Rv through their countryside.
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Old 12-03-2019, 11:25 AM   #4
Logan X
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The other states and north/south of the border will honor your Oregon DL and the Oregon restrictions or lack there of.

Although, at least for Mexico, I believe you would need to purchase a temporary international insurance policy. Also, if you don’t own your vehicles out right you may need a letter from the lien holder giving you permission to drive across the border. Another thing you may need, if traveling farther south than Baja, is a Mexican travel permit which can be obtained at the border.
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Old 12-03-2019, 11:41 AM   #5
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The other states and north/south of the border will honor your Oregon DL and the Oregon restrictions or lack there of.

Although, at least for Mexico, I believe you would need to purchase a temporary international insurance policy. Also, if you don’t own your vehicles out right you may need a letter from the lien holder giving you permission to drive across the border. Another thing you may need, if traveling farther south than Baja, is a Mexican travel permit which can be obtained at the border.

Logan is right about the insurance. If going south I would suggest a mega dollar accidental death policy for all travelers plus full body armor, armored vehicle with at least an M242 mounted somewhere, M4s for all occupants and at least a couple of M203 grenade launchers......or, just stay north and save the money....
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Old 12-03-2019, 02:36 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by sourdough View Post
Logan is right about the insurance. If going south I would suggest a mega dollar accidental death policy for all travelers plus full body armor, armored vehicle with at least an M242 mounted somewhere, M4s for all occupants and at least a couple of M203 grenade launchers......or, just stay north and save the money....
And take bottled water! You will need a Mexican temp import permit for the RV:

https://www.mexpro.com/mexico/rv-veh...rt-permit.html

And even if you have any sort of carry permit, it won't work south of the border. You will end up in a Mexican jail. Mexicans are only allowed to carry firearms if they are in the United States...
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Old 12-03-2019, 03:35 PM   #7
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And I tried SO hard to be non-political...
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Old 12-03-2019, 04:08 PM   #8
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And I tried SO hard to be non-political...

And you done good Jim!! When I was posting I was just thinking about my Christmas list....well, got the M4s but need some other "accessories" to go with my driver's license if I go "down south"...
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Old 12-03-2019, 04:20 PM   #9
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If you want to see the Mexican culture just go to LA or San Antonio. R
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Old 12-04-2019, 05:48 AM   #10
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Originally Posted by Twisties View Post
Hi,

We are moving towards our first ever RV, a 5'er. We got the truck last week, a Ram 3500 with 12,300 GVWR. It's rated to tow about 20,100 lbs with a payload of about 4600 lbs. We are looking for 5'ers in light to mid categories... possibly with a GVWR above 14,000 lbs, but most likely under. Combined vehicle length... IDK say a 35' 5er on a big ole Ram... crew cab long bed... 45-50'?

We are residents of Oregon and have Oregon Class C DLs.

In Oregon, in so far as we understand RV's for personal use are permitted without restriction on our DL's.

What we are concerned with is what happens when we cross state lines? Do we need to meet the requirements of each jurisdiction we enter, or do our OR rules apply? What about Canada and Mexico?

Should we make sure our CGVWR is under 26,000 lbs and our combined length is under 45', or are we ok to get what we have in mind?

Thanks so much for more help with noob questions!

Jan
Can't say for Canada or Mexico, but in Oregon no issue being over 26,000# GCW. I actually reached out to Oregon DMV when we bought our 2016 Ram 3500 DRW to pull our 2005 Copper Canyon 32' 5er
TV GVWR 14,000#
5er GVWR 12,300#
Total 26,300#
Max length in most states is 65'

In BC the troopers are known to scale rigs to be sure not exceeding GVWR. Convinced DD to get a Ram 3500 DRW to tow her horse trailers, just for that reason.
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Old 12-04-2019, 03:53 PM   #11
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I have never heard of a non-commercial vehicle having issues. My Dad is 82, lives in Vermont and has driven their motorhome all over the country and halfway across Canada.
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Old 12-04-2019, 08:44 PM   #12
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Thanks everyone! Great info!
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Old 12-05-2019, 04:55 AM   #13
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just to add Mexico...you don't need a 'special license' to drive down there. Other requirements are in place for other things though.



You are good to go in North America.
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Old 12-05-2019, 06:14 AM   #14
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License? We don't need no stinking license.
LOL
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Old 12-05-2019, 08:27 AM   #15
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What they said, You should be good in all 50 states and Canada,
Marshall, I can say something about an M4 and reciprocity but I might get in trouble.
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Old 12-05-2019, 10:50 AM   #16
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What they said, You should be good in all 50 states and Canada,
Marshall, I can say something about an M4 and reciprocity but I might get in trouble.
Some things are best unsaid.
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Old 12-05-2019, 12:55 PM   #17
Ken / Claudia
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Think about drivers and vehicle licenses this way. You are supposed to be a resident of a state to get their licenses. I belive they all say Resident of XX on everyone's drivers license. Each state makes their own laws on non-comm DLs.
You must comply with your states regulations. But are allowed to travel through every state with your states DL and vehicle license plates.
Each state can and does regulate how and where you drive. How big or how heavy you are. How many trailers you pull.
I have said this before, someday DOT may make nationwide rules on RVs and their drivers as they have on comm vehicles and than force each state to adopt said rules. If we as RVers (as a group) can stay off of the DOT radar on safety issues it likely will not happen in our lifetime.
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Old 12-12-2019, 10:50 AM   #18
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As of now, no state requires a special license for GCVW under 26,000 lbs.
As far as what you can tow, forget about the maximum towing weight stated by Ram. The GCVWR, payload and GAWR are what matter. A 5er that weighs 20,000 lbs will probably have a "pin" load of 4.000 lbs. This will probably exceed the GAWR for the rear axle. If not, the weight of the hitch and "pin" load will put you so close to payload, that you won't be able to take your spouse with you, since all the other items you will be hauling (cooler, bicycles, pet, etc.) will put you over the payload. Not a good plan.
Fortunately, a 35' 5er. like you said, is going to be close to 14,000 lbs GVWR, as long as you don't get carried away with how much stuff you haul in it. Because 5er's have a lot of storage space, it's easy to exceed its GVWR, based on our experience. It is critical to weigh and adjust what you take with you, to avoid exceeding any axle ratings, and to avoid any individual and combined weigh ratings. When we started full-timing, we exceeded our GCWR by 1,000 lbs. Suddenly, we realized there were a lot of things we thought we needed, that we realized we were taking "just in case".
Overall length of our Ram 3500 dually and 37' 5er was 57'.
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Old 12-12-2019, 11:47 AM   #19
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I have a Class A

In Texas, way back when I first started the Horse Trailer with Living Quarters travel, then went to 5th wheel, I decided to go ahead and get my Class A license just to know more about things big rigs have to deal with. At that time, I know CA had license restrictions on weight and length that I was pushing against.

Anyway, I got the study manual and thought it had lots of good info. I skipped a section that appeared to be only for hauling hazardous materials. When I took the written test I saw a number of questions on stuff I hadn't seen in the manual. When I turned in the test, and mentioned that, she pointed out the section I had skipped had all those questions and examples!!

I made a 75 anyway so didn't have to retake quiz. The road test went well.

So anyway, whether you want to go for an license upgrade or not, just pick up a copy of the training guide - and read more than I did.
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Old 12-12-2019, 01:01 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by johnlewis View Post
As of now, no state requires a special license for GCVW under 26,000 lbs.
As far as what you can tow, forget about the maximum towing weight stated by Ram. The GCVWR, payload and GAWR are what matter. A 5er that weighs 20,000 lbs will probably have a "pin" load of 4.000 lbs. This will probably exceed the GAWR for the rear axle. If not, the weight of the hitch and "pin" load will put you so close to payload, that you won't be able to take your spouse with you, since all the other items you will be hauling (cooler, bicycles, pet, etc.) will put you over the payload. Not a good plan.
Fortunately, a 35' 5er. like you said, is going to be close to 14,000 lbs GVWR, as long as you don't get carried away with how much stuff you haul in it. Because 5er's have a lot of storage space, it's easy to exceed its GVWR, based on our experience. It is critical to weigh and adjust what you take with you, to avoid exceeding any axle ratings, and to avoid any individual and combined weigh ratings. When we started full-timing, we exceeded our GCWR by 1,000 lbs. Suddenly, we realized there were a lot of things we thought we needed, that we realized we were taking "just in case".
Overall length of our Ram 3500 dually and 37' 5er was 57'.


While part of this is correct, in California, there are certain licensing requirements for different types of RV's wether towable or driven, regardless of the GCWR.

Summarized: TT over 10k GVWR needs a non-commercial class A
5th wheel 10k-15k is an endorsement on your regular driver license, over 15k is a non-commercial class A
Motorhome 40-45' is a non commercial class A or an endorsement on a commercial class B.

Yes it's confusing.
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