Buying the correct Truck for your Car Licence.

 Most of us have the fundamental thing needed to drive in Ireland, yes a licence. Also this licence entitles you to drive far more than a car. Basically when you flip open your licence and go down to the “B” category you will see it indicated up to 3500kgs. This figure refers to the gross vehicle weight of the vehicle. The gross vehicle weight of the truck refers to the chassis, body and load combined, so if the vehicle is under 3500kgs laden you are operating legally.

The reason people tend to look for truck sales vehicles under this threshold are numerous.

•  It is cheaper to employ a person with only a car licence.
•  The Doe or VTN test for the LGV vehicle is cheaper.
•  There is no tachograph requirement.
•  There is no speed limiter requirement.
•  The trucks themselves tend to be cheaper.
•  Even rental trucks and vans are more popular in this category

The most common question that we put to a truck sales customer is what they intend to carry in terms of weight and volume. This enables us to offer guidance to the truck sales customer on the correct vehicle for their application.

A quick example would be the tile industry : Typically tile companies use pallets with about 750kgs of a load. A Mitsubishi Fuso 3C13 3.5 tonne truck with a 14ft body would be physically be able to take 6 of these pallets, however at that it would be grossly overloaded.

 The Tile company will also need a curtainsider truck with lift. A curtain side truck is heavier than a box unit as it need reinforced bulkheads front and rear which further adds to the overload. For this type of application we would recommend a Mitsubishi Fuso 7.5 tonne truck with a 14 -16ft body, which should yield and effective load capacity of around 3.7 tonnes.

Quite often when we are evaluating trade ins against new sales trucks we find that the vehicle has been heavily overloaded , this affects the residual value of a vehicle as they are working outside of their manufacturer specification. The result is excess wear to components , particularly braking and suspension. Over the last 15 years on Ireland the issue of down plating has become common. This involves getting a higher rated vehicle and plating it for use as a car licence truck. The government has made moves against this. The down plating does not remove the increased weight of the vehicle and owners can find themselves with an unladen vehicle which weights bin excess of 3500kgs. This presents problems at the annual Doe or VTN test as a test will not test a vehicle that weighs more than 3500kg in a light doe test bay. The vehicle is also ineligible for a HGV test as it has no tachograph or speed limiter.

We have been offered many of these units as trade-ins but find that they are effectively un-sellable with the body/ tail lift combination that they have been operated on.

Our priority is the truck sales customer, and we will ensure that the Truck that they are supplied is fit for the purpose they intend to use it for. In the short term a light truck with a heavy load on a car licence may seem like a good idea, however the total cost of ownership in the long term works out higher.

Here are some of the reasons:

• Increased maintenance cost on the truck due to premature wear and component failure.
• Lower residual truck value upon trade in.
• Reduced vehicle lifespan.
• Risk of fines and legal proceeding for overloading.
• Difficulty in selling a down plated vehicle in the used market.

The Bottom line is if you intend to operate a truck on a car licence, a bit of realism is needed. Commercial vehicle dealers are there to help customers make an informed choice. The vast array of wheelbases and engine options are there to offer a tailored sales vehicle that fits your needs exactly. If you have any particular questions on loads, licences and vehicle suitability please feel free to contact us and we will do our best to guide you.