How much does a truck weigh? This article will help determine whether your truck is capable of carrying the load that you plan for hauling. Keep reading to know it.
You must have seen different trucks on the road but don’t know how much a truck weighs. How heavy are they, and what is the average weight of a truck? What are the different types of trucks? This is because different trucks will have a different load.
Trucks vary in size and type. For example, if I take smaller trucks like 1-ton pickups, then they usually weigh between 4,000-6,000 pounds (1.8-2.7 tonnes) depending upon their size and model. For bigger-sized 3-ton or 2-ton pickups, they weigh up to 10 tons (more than 8 metric tonnes).
So here I have discussed all these things you want to know about “How much does a truck weigh?”.
Different Types of Trucks
Generally speaking, there are three different types of trucks:
- Dump Truck
- Semi-trailer
- Cargo Truck
Let’s go into details of each truck type.
Dump Truck
A dump truck is a vehicle that is used for transporting materials like sand, gravel, etc., from construction sites to another place for disposal or as a part of mining operations. The most important feature of the dump truck is that it has a hydraulically operated mechanism that tilts the bed of the vehicle allowing its contents to be deposited at a designated location with minimal spillage.
They are also called tippers as they suck out material from their front end and empty it in the specified area by tilting towards one side on hydraulic cylinders mounted on both sides of the bed or body.
Semi-trailer
These are the most common type of trucks used for transportation across countries. They usually run at a speed limit of 63 mph (101 km/h). Semi-trailers are very efficient as they carry cargo over long distances without much manual labor while reducing fuel consumption and wear on roads.
A semi-trailer is attached to a tractor unit which pulls it from the front while guiding it by controlling its steering mechanism. The basic structure of a standard semi-truck includes a frame, tandem axle, and brakes.
Cargo Truck
Cargo trucks transport goods from one place to another or from one country to another. Their main purpose is to deliver goods from manufacturers or suppliers to retailers, wholesalers, or directly to consumers.
They come in different sizes; the smallest of them is known as a van truck which is usually used for light delivery duties and can carry up to 1,000 pounds (450 kg). The largest cargo trucks are known as semi-trailers and can weigh more than 100 tons. Their weight depends upon their size and load capacity; bigger ones may require two or three axles for support, while smaller ones need only one axle.
Average Weight Of A Truck – How Much Does A Truck Weigh?
As we all know that there are thousands of trucks available in the world, so it’s hard to give an exact answer regarding the average weight of a truck. But here, I will try my best to list down a few important pieces of information about trucks that will help you in finding “How much does a truck weigh”.
Dump Truck Weight
The weight of a dump truck depends upon the amount of material that it carries. For example, a light-duty truck may weigh between 8,000 pounds (3.6 tonnes) to 10,000 pounds (4.5 tonnes). And a medium-duty dump truck can weigh up to 20 tons or 16 tonnes, while heavy-duty trucks can be as much as 40 tons which means a massive 64 tonnes!
Semi-trailer Truck Weight
They are the most common type of truck, and they weigh between 3 to 4 tonnes or about 6 to 8 metric tonnes depending upon their size and capacity. How much a semi-trailer truck weighs simply depends on its capacity and not its overall length, which is usually in excess of 53 feet (16 m).
Cargo Truck Weight
As the cargo trucks come in different sizes, so does their weight range. Cargo trucks can weigh as little as 10,000 pounds (4.5 tonnes) to as much as 100 tons or 90 metric tonnes, depending upon the size and load-carrying capacity. For example, a standard semi-truck has a gross vehicle weight (GVW) of 32 tons (30 tonnes), but they can go up to 44 tons (40 tonnes) with an extended cab and sleeper box.
Pickup Truck Weight
Pickup trucks can weigh as much as 3 tonnes (6,600 lb) to 4.5 tons (8,300 lb). In general, the total weight of a pickup truck depends on the type of engine it has and not its overall length or size.
Delivery Truck Weight
Delivery trucks can weigh almost the same as pickup trucks depending upon their loading capacity. Accordingly, a delivery truck can weigh up to 6 tonnes. How much a delivery truck weighs is based upon its load-bearing capacity and not its length or size.
Light Duty Truck Weight
A light-duty truck, which weighs between 3 to 4 tonnes (6,600 lb to 8,300 lb), has a gross vehicle weight between 10 and 14 tonnes (16,400 to 19,800 lb). The total load of a light-duty truck is based upon the engine it uses; for example, some of them may have a GVW of 12 tons while some others may go up to 18 tonnes with larger engines. This huge difference in weight is because of the type of engine that they use.
Heavy-duty Truck Weight
Heavy-duty trucks can weigh as much as twice as much as light-duty trucks. As they are mostly used for commercial purposes, their weight can reach 30 tonnes (33 tons) to 40 tonnes (44 tons). In fact, the total weight of a heavy-duty truck simply depends upon its engine capacity and not on its overall length or size.
Dump Truck Weight
The dump trucks are usually the heaviest out of all the other types of trucks because of their usage. How much a dump truck weighs is based upon the amount of load it carries; there are many different types of dump truck models available in the market that use various engine capacities to drive them. And some may have gross vehicle weight ranging from 10 to 19 metric tonnes.
Oversized Truck Weight
There are some trucks that have large-scale load capacity which cannot be carried by standard semi-trucks. For instance, a tandem axle dump truck can carry as much as 66 tons (60 tonnes) of payload! Another example is the articulated tipper that can have an extra axle at its rear end to support its weight of up to 80 tons or 72 tonnes, depending upon its overall dimensions.
Conclusion
To summarise everything I have discussed here, I can say that there are three types of trucks: dump trucks, semi-trailer trucks, and cargo trucks.
The average weight of all these three trucks is different depending upon their type, size, and carrying capacity. The smallest of them are lighter, while the larger ones are heavier, of course. But if we talk about the average weight of all types of trucks together, then it would be between 8 to 10 tonnes or 16 to 20 metric tonnes.
I hope this article helped you in finding the answer to “How much does a truck weigh?”. Thank you for reading the article, don’t forget to leave your feedback in the comment section below.
