Toterhomes are commercial vehicles

Just thought I would share this experience with you, which just happened TODAY.

Pete was driving my rig back from Topeka. I have a 2003 Freightliner Columbia NRC 16' toterhome and a T&E 5th wheel trailer that is 51 feet long. Total length is 85'2".

Just as he came in to California, a CHP officer from the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement department pulls him over. He wants to see driver's license, registration, log book, proof of insurance, etc. While Pete digs all that out, the officer grabs a tape measure and measures the length.

When I bought this truck a couple months ago, everyone told me it's a motorhome...except Lou Gasparrelli (thank you, Lou). So, I never tried to register it as a motorhome. Because I placed USDOT numbers (I even have IFTA stickers) on the truck the day was saved. One of this officer's jobs is to look for toterhomes and trailers all day long. If it's registered as a motorhome you are in deep doodoo...aka parked.

He also said because we are carrying racing fuel in containers larger than .6 gallons we need to have a simple form in the glove box along with a 24 hour phone number (like a cell phone number) of a contact person (me) in case of fire. The form indictates type of fuel and amount on board for the protection of firefighters just in case. He said we do not need placards even though my trailer says TORCO Racing Fuels all over it.

For us, this is the second time we've been pulled over. The first time was back in 1999 by a City of Brea police officer who wanted to see the same things. Back then we had an FL70 Freightliner with a 13' NRC conversion and a 46' T&E trailer which measured under 75'.

Now before you drive your rig through the highway truck scales, look at the front tires on your truck if you have a Columbia or Century Class Freightliner. The tire capacity they come with is rated at something like 7,130 pounds per tire or 14,260 total. I weighed the first truck I had (2002 Columbia, single screw rear axle, 505 HP Cat) and it weighed 15,150 with 3/4 of a tank of diesel WITHOUT the trailer hooked up. The second truck I bought which I have now is a 2003 Columbia Freightliner twin screw with a 500 HP Detroit. It also weighed over 15,000 pounds on the front axle. At the prompting of Lou Gasparrelli (again, thank you, Lou) I had Larry Miner at Diesel Performance change the front tires to a set that has over 15,800 capacity. The very first trip with the thing and sure enough, the red light comes on as it goes through a truck scales. The office comes out of his little booth with a flash light and looks at the weight rating on the front tires. He walks back in the booth and turns on the green light. Thank you, thank you, Lou.

Also, while educating myself the hard way, I lost my you-know-what by buying that 2002 Freightliner single axle I already mentioned in February of this year. I went through a scale after hooking my trailer up to it and "bing" 23,400 pounds popped up as the truck rear axle weight. Federal limit on a single axle no matter how many tires is 20,000 no exceptions, period. So, I either had to run an empty trailer down the road or trade it in for the twin screw toter I just got. Twin screw (dual rear axle) is allowed 34,000 pounds.

I have had some conversations with different individuals at several races who have similar stories in their states. Pete promised the officer we would share todays experience with our fellow racers, so in keeping that promise...here it is.

I was told that in Texas they have been pulling over dually pick-ups with one horse trailers whenever a rodeo is in town. If in fact they are on their way to compete in the rodeo, it's considered a for profit business and Texas wants to see DOT numbers.

GOOD LUCK!

RG

 

This may not apply to anyone here but Texas is really cracking down on trailers registered as homebuilt. I know one guy that had a 20' enclosed cargo trail seized (as in not getting it back) and another who lost a low boy. They couldn't provide the documentation to back up their claims. This is happening near Seguin, Tx on I-10 (Near San Antonio). These guys told me there is a large impound yard there crammed with trailers of all types. Another fellow had to unload a fairly large cargo trailer so the DPS could get to his four wheeles to check them against a stolen list (he was legal). Tese folks weren't racers but I bet they're pulling over just about any trailer. John

 

Will:

Playing dumb isn't the answer (although some of us are experts at it). Ignorance of the law is no excuse and is still going to get you parked. Lettering or no lettering, it's Federal law that makes us commercial vehicles, not Krispy Kremes or someone with an attitude at the DMV. States are wising up and enforcing laws that have been on the books many years. We just had good time while the cat was away, so to speak...but the cat is out of the bag now.

We alky racers step our operations up for our sponsors, want NHRA to pay us more, want TV time and want respect. Then, while travelling down the road, we want to be treated like Willie and Ethel on vacation in the Winnebago or something. Can't have it both ways, I suppose.

FYI, these trucks aren't $80,000 new from the factory. In 2004, I went to Los Angeles Freightliner and priced a fully loaded Columbia Freightliner day cab with the MBZ engine, 12 speed Freedom tranny, ABS and the works. Not including 10% FET (Federal Excise Tax), it was $98,500. Add the FET (commercial vehicles) and you're looking at almost $110,000 out the door.

One of the larger truck and trailer dealers which caters to horse owners in the southern US was selling Topkicks/Kodiaks with added utility or truck beds on them and sold them as big pick-up trucks. They were busted for not paying the 10% FET. They appealed and lost. Supposedly, they were fined and had to pay the FET on the 50+/- trucks they sold. OOOUCH!

RG

 

What I am hearing is that if you presently have a toter that is registered as a motorhome you should have it DOTed, keep the log books current and get a DOT license if you want to avoid problems with the law. Is this correct?

 

One other thing. If you do all the above must you also stop at the weight stations?

 

By law, it has to be registered as a commercial vehicle, you need a CDL and medical card to drive it, keep a log book, have insurance, stop at the scales, keep files, submit to random drug testing, have B.I.T. inspections, and get permits when travelling state to state and/or IFTA (which is not manditory, but a lot easier).

 

OK, here is my experience with the toterhome deal.

Bought a matching GMR FL112 and 51 ft trailer. The salesman tells me this is the trick of the week. You can blow past the scales, get RV insurance, so on and so forth. I thought that this was the ticket and signed on the dotted line. I registered the FL112 as a motorhome and the trailer as a travel trailer in the state of New Mexico. I also found out that travel trailer insurance was a lot less money than cargo trailer insurance. I thought I had the tiger by the tale.

Second trip out with my new rig we are going through Texas and get pulled over by a state trooper for speeding. (63 in a 55) He asks for my CDL and all the other crap that Randy speaks of. I play dumb as Will suggest and give him my motorhome info and my Class E license. (Class E lets you drive a vehicle over 26,000 pounds) He asks what I have in the trailer and I tell him I have a show car. He runs my info and issues me a speeding ticket and lets me go. Hey life is good the salesman was telling the truth.

Got stopped in New Mexico for running the scales told the same story and got the same results. The guy wasn't happy and gave me a big lecture but let me go again. Funny thing was he didn't even ask for my license this time.

Now five years later... As they say the third time is always the charm right. Last month we are heading for Nebraska, I run the scale as usual but this time the guy chases me down. (I estimate about 20 to 25 miles) I pull over and expect the same routine as the other two guys but this time it's different. He attaches a tape measure to the back of my trailer and walks to the front bumper. He then writes something down and jumps on my step to talk to me. He tells me I'm 82ft. Says I'm over length. I proceed to tell him my bs story and he listens to me ramble on and when I'm done he politely tells me that motorhomes are not allowed to exceed 65ft. Long story short it didn't work this time and he gave me a $300 welcome ticket to his state. I will say he was a nice guy.

Another friend got a ticket as well in Nebraska for his toterhome. His is 81ft but he had to pay $360. His guy was a jerk.

The DOT is getting wise to us. Will I really think the gig is up. Now I have to decide if it is worth taking the chance every time I go out. Probably not.

We just returned from a trip to Kansas and I had my eye on that mirror all the time. Not a fun way to go racing. I'm going to have to look at going the Randy route.

Randy did your insurance go up a lot or were you able to keep the motorhome insurance on your rig? Any help would be appreciated.

[ August 31, 2005, 11:28 AM: Message edited by: Lawren Jones ]

 

Will:

QUOTE:

"yes, if your racing is a for profit business, yes you should go commercial. if you are a hobby racer, you shouldn't have to go through all that. also, the california laws are by far the most strict in the country, and living there, govern how you are registered.

if you don't ever race in california, then you might not have to go through the dot process."

This is incorrect. The USDOT has set the standards with federal laws for interstates, not California. California is just quicker at catching on. You are racing a car hoping to bring home something (hobby or whatever you want to call it), and that makes you commercial. But that's not the only key criteria. Are you over 65'? Do you have a GVW higher than 10,001 pounds? If you aren't getting caught, good luck. All states are getting on the ball and from some of the stories I've heard, California isn't the toughest anymore.

"it sounds as if the number of cases of people getting pulled over by dot is rising. you always hear stories. however, the other 90% of registered motorhome toter rigs don't get messed with. it's like reporting good news in the media...you don't hear about the normal trip where you go to the race and come home no problems."

See Lawren Jones post. If you don't mind taking the risk of having everything you own impounded that's your business, but you are not in compliance with the law. Every time you drive by the scales or permit office you need to say a little prayer and watch the rear view mirror for 30 minutes or so.

This isn't new. Dennis Taylor was pulled over on I-5 back in the early 1990's with the Crawford and Head rig when he used to drive for them. The tape measure came out and the next question had to do with the driver having a CDL.

"so if you dont have sponsor decals and/or 'john smith racing' on the side of your trailer, it's registered as a motorhome, and this legitamately is your hobby, you shouldn't have to register your rig as commercial and go through all the hassle."

Again, this is dangerous advice and completely incorrect. There are a lot of people who think that because so-and-so said this or that or a friend of a friend who works for the State Troopers Office and said so-and-so, then we don't need to be in compliance. I had to get a VIN inspection by the City of Fullerton Police Department when I bought the rig. He told me he liked my motorhome and even wrote "motorhome" in the section where the form asks for the type of vehicle. Now what do you suppose a CHP officer with the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement division would say if I told him a local city police officer told me I have a motorhome? He'd probably tell me that the officer should stick to his day job investigating residential burglaries or something.

Since Pete was pulled over this week, if improperly registered my stuff would have been stuck on the side of the road until I could have reregistered it (if the officer had an attitude about it). The officer said the reason he pulled Pete over was just to see how it was registered and to have a look at his driver's log book, CDL and medical card. My choice is compliance...like I said...at the strong encouragement of Lou Gasparrelli who's also been-there-done-that. So, after confirming that we had all the proper paperwork, the officer wished Pete a good afternoon.

I share our experience to save others a lot of grief. Now you know the law, and if you decide to take your chances, good luck. If you get stopped and your life comes to a halt for several hours or days at great expense, then you knew going in that it could happen.

I walked the pits and it's true that very few rigs have DOT numbers on them. The CHP told me whenever they see "Not for Hire" on a rig it really means "Improperly Registered...Pull Me Over."

Keep in mind, I'm only the messenger on this. I think it stinks just like you do.

RG

[ August 31, 2005, 05:45 AM: Message edited by: Randy G. ]

 

watch www.dragracingonline.com "Dead-On" column, coming Sept. 7th on the DOT!

 

here is the deal
75 ft is max legal length w/out a permit

What size trucks have to report to the scale?
Gross vehicle weight rating of over 16,000 pounds

What are the requirements for having a CDL?

Class A - If trailer is over 10,000 pounds and combination is over 26,000 pounds.

What do I need to enter a state.

Vehicle Licensing, permits.
Fuel license (IFTA). you can get a permit for this.
Single State Registration (if for hire)

some of this may vary, but hardly, if any by much state to state. but these rigs need to be licensed as commercial vehicles..times are changing, so pay a little now, and save alot later.
also if your traveling across the states call ahead to each and every state dot office you will be in and get your permits faxed to you saves many hours, because you cannot get your permits at most truck scales and or point of entries.