Keystone RV Forums - View Single Post

**sourdough** · 11-20-2014, 09:42 AM

I do not have the link for that statute. I found it by googling federal laws pertaining to towing/tires/axles. At the time my concern was the tires; the axle info was just a comment thrown into the conversation if I recall - this is from memory. I do have a reference to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 119 (49 CFR 571.119, S5.1(b) which may be of some help, or at least another paragraph of it.

If your trailer weighs more than your axles say they will support I would research the law and contact Keystone. One interesting comment the tech manager made to me when discussing tires/weight rating and axle rating was that the axle was "given" a weight rating that corresponded to what the tire rating was; ie; my axle rating for each axle is exactly what the maximum load of the tires is. Maybe it's just a generic axle that could support 2,000lbs or 12,000lbs...I don't know. I do know that the tech manager was very knowledgeable of the law and the NHTSA, which he said he worked with, and actually knew some of the folks there. From his comments to me I doubt that they have run afoul of the law, as I accused them of, intentionally unless someone mistakenly put the wrong axles on your trailer. He definitely knew the ins and outs so read all the fine print because I'm sure they have.

I don't want to muddy the water and send you off in the wrong direction: I am certainly not a legal expert on this. This is the experience I had and some of the things I learned (or was told at least) as I tried to work my way thru the maze. Food for thought I guess.

11-20-2014, 09:42 AM	#32
sourdough Site Team Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: W. Texas Posts: 17,677	I do not have the link for that statute. I found it by googling federal laws pertaining to towing/tires/axles. At the time my concern was the tires; the axle info was just a comment thrown into the conversation if I recall - this is from memory. I do have a reference to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 119 (49 CFR 571.119, S5.1(b) which may be of some help, or at least another paragraph of it. If your trailer weighs more than your axles say they will support I would research the law and contact Keystone. One interesting comment the tech manager made to me when discussing tires/weight rating and axle rating was that the axle was "given" a weight rating that corresponded to what the tire rating was; ie; my axle rating for each axle is exactly what the maximum load of the tires is. Maybe it's just a generic axle that could support 2,000lbs or 12,000lbs...I don't know. I do know that the tech manager was very knowledgeable of the law and the NHTSA, which he said he worked with, and actually knew some of the folks there. From his comments to me I doubt that they have run afoul of the law, as I accused them of, intentionally unless someone mistakenly put the wrong axles on your trailer. He definitely knew the ins and outs so read all the fine print because I'm sure they have. I don't want to muddy the water and send you off in the wrong direction: I am certainly not a legal expert on this. This is the experience I had and some of the things I learned (or was told at least) as I tried to work my way thru the maze. Food for thought I guess.