Registering a Big One
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Senior User
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 139
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From: Albany, Oregon
Registering a Big One
I know there's some others out there with more experience than me on registering and insuring your big trucks. I understand that the rules are different from state to state, but I'd like to get other opinions on the subject. According to the DMV officials and insurance agents I've talked with, here are the particulars.
Commercial driver's license is required only if the vehicles GVW is 26,000 or more.
Anything with a GVW of 10,500 or more requires the vehicle to be insured and registered as a commercial vehicle.
So, my F600 with a 17,500 GVW can be registered quarterly, at $60 for a 3 month period, or annualy for $240 a year. Cheapest insurance I found was $200 up front, $70 a month after that.
It will cost me $90 a month to make this thing legal. If it was a F350, it would cost next to nothing to have sitting around as a spare vehicle. Has anyone out there found a cheaper , easier way to register/ insure one of these trucks for personal use only?
Commercial driver's license is required only if the vehicles GVW is 26,000 or more.
Anything with a GVW of 10,500 or more requires the vehicle to be insured and registered as a commercial vehicle.
So, my F600 with a 17,500 GVW can be registered quarterly, at $60 for a 3 month period, or annualy for $240 a year. Cheapest insurance I found was $200 up front, $70 a month after that.
It will cost me $90 a month to make this thing legal. If it was a F350, it would cost next to nothing to have sitting around as a spare vehicle. Has anyone out there found a cheaper , easier way to register/ insure one of these trucks for personal use only?
I'll have the Roast Duck
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 9,622
Likes: 109
From: Northshore, MN
After reading the forms here in MN....if it's used as a farm truck, the commercial thing doesn't apply. This is the route I'm taking, since the old plates on it are already farm class.
Cargo Master
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 2,219
Likes: 190
From: Colorado Springs
mines registered as a bronco 
if the GVW is too high i heard that you can get it reduced or downgraded somehow. registering it as a classic sounds like the best option though.
if the GVW is too high i heard that you can get it reduced or downgraded somehow. registering it as a classic sounds like the best option though.
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Senior User
Joined: Jul 2009
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From: Albany, Oregon
I will look into lowering the GVW. But by the time I get the GVW under 10,500, the near 2,000 lbs. tongue weight of my 5-er will put me over. If you are over GVW and wreck the rig, the insurance company can deny any coverage - not a good situation.
I will look closer into the "special interest" method. DMV told me it could be registered as such, but could only be used for going to and from shows. Makes explaining the 1000 lbs. of scrap metal in the bed kinda hard when you get pulled over.............but I might be willing to risk it.
The other option for me (though an illegal one) would be using a different title. I plan on using a standard bed off a smaller truck; I could just buy a whole truck with a title, part the truck, and title the F600 as a F250 or F350. But then I'm back to being over GVW.........
I will look into the farm vehicle registration as well. Hopefully I can find some one at the DMV who is willing to help me out instead of just collect my money and spit me out the door.
Thanks everybody for your input. I'll keep you posted.
I will look closer into the "special interest" method. DMV told me it could be registered as such, but could only be used for going to and from shows. Makes explaining the 1000 lbs. of scrap metal in the bed kinda hard when you get pulled over.............but I might be willing to risk it.
The other option for me (though an illegal one) would be using a different title. I plan on using a standard bed off a smaller truck; I could just buy a whole truck with a title, part the truck, and title the F600 as a F250 or F350. But then I'm back to being over GVW.........
I will look into the farm vehicle registration as well. Hopefully I can find some one at the DMV who is willing to help me out instead of just collect my money and spit me out the door.
Thanks everybody for your input. I'll keep you posted.
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Cargo Master
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 2,219
Likes: 190
From: Colorado Springs
i thought a classic registration was limited only by how many miles you drive it per year, and not by where you actually go with it. limited to shows? how is that law defined exactly? sounds like they made that one up.
Elder User
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 693
Likes: 6
From: N E Ohio
Yes, all states have different regulations, best to talk with someone who has done it in your state. On the insurance, best bet is to talk with an insurance agent you already deal with if possible. Describe what the vehicle is, give the agent the VIN, and describe exactly what you will be doing with the truck. The agent should be familiar with minimum coverages required in your state (liability and such). Then decide on other coverages you want (comprehensive, etc.) and then they can give you a quote. I found that the basic minimum coverage was pretty reasonable in my situation.
New User
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Rv
Well you can always get an old trailer, take off the axles and bolt it to your truck. Then you head down to the DMV and register it as an RV. Take off the trailer when you get home and you have cheep registration, insurance, and don't need a class A or B license.
Super Moderator
Joined: Apr 2004
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I know there's some others out there with more experience than me on registering and insuring your big trucks. I understand that the rules are different from state to state, but I'd like to get other opinions on the subject. According to the DMV officials and insurance agents I've talked with, here are the particulars.
Commercial driver's license is required only if the vehicles GVW is 26,000 or more.
Anything with a GVW of 10,500 or more requires the vehicle to be insured and registered as a commercial vehicle.
So, my F600 with a 17,500 GVW can be registered quarterly, at $60 for a 3 month period, or annualy for $240 a year. Cheapest insurance I found was $200 up front, $70 a month after that.
It will cost me $90 a month to make this thing legal. If it was a F350, it would cost next to nothing to have sitting around as a spare vehicle. Has anyone out there found a cheaper , easier way to register/ insure one of these trucks for personal use only?
Commercial driver's license is required only if the vehicles GVW is 26,000 or more.
Anything with a GVW of 10,500 or more requires the vehicle to be insured and registered as a commercial vehicle.
So, my F600 with a 17,500 GVW can be registered quarterly, at $60 for a 3 month period, or annualy for $240 a year. Cheapest insurance I found was $200 up front, $70 a month after that.
It will cost me $90 a month to make this thing legal. If it was a F350, it would cost next to nothing to have sitting around as a spare vehicle. Has anyone out there found a cheaper , easier way to register/ insure one of these trucks for personal use only?
So, what are you going to use the truck for?
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Senior User
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 139
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From: Albany, Oregon
I'm going to ditch the 18 foot box on the back, shorten the frame rails, and put a regular pickup bed on it. It will be used primarily for towing a 32' fifth wheel: personal use only.
According to the dude I talked to at the DMV, I can legally lower the GVW down to 10,000 pounds, making it insurable and registerable as a normal 1 ton pickup. I'm thinking that the truck will end up being light enough (by F600 standards) that it should be under 10,000 even with the 2,000 pin weight of the trailer.
Does anyone have a curb weight of a F600? Mine should weigh about the same as a short flatbed........
According to the dude I talked to at the DMV, I can legally lower the GVW down to 10,000 pounds, making it insurable and registerable as a normal 1 ton pickup. I'm thinking that the truck will end up being light enough (by F600 standards) that it should be under 10,000 even with the 2,000 pin weight of the trailer.
Does anyone have a curb weight of a F600? Mine should weigh about the same as a short flatbed........
Elder User
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 833
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Wow I did not realize how easy we have it in louisiana. I pay $75 a year to register my truck with a 20,000lb+ CGVWR plate and about $200 every six months for liability insurance. As long as I am not getting paid to haul or using my truck to make money I dont need a CDL or commercial insurance.