what's the differance?

[zeiss150]

Hey guys, What is the differance between GVRW (what does that stand for by the way) and Curb weight?

I have a 240Z that was manufactured 5/72

My door plate say's that my GVRW is 2875lbs

but according to everything I have read and can find, my Z should weight 2355Lbs.

So what the hell is going on? Why would my door plate have the weight of a 75-78 280Z?

I should just go weigh the car and find out what it really is.

Anyone have any experiance with this?

[MikeW]

GVRW - Gross Vehicle Rated Weight

This is the maximum weight of the vehicle plus occupants and cargo. In other words, if you and your passenger both tip the scales at 250 you really shouldn't be carrying much in the back.

[zeiss150]

So If I understand correctly ... the GVRW is the most weight the car can take... so 2395+500# of people and crap... and just one more pound and the wheels fall offROFL . And the Curb weight is the actual weight of the car.

Thats why I love this site ... great info from great people!

Rock on Z people!

[MikeW]

To be honest I'm not sure where the number comes from. I've wondered about things like that. Surely driving the car hard or hitting a speed-bump or maybe even getting slightly airborne will put more stress on the car and suspension than you and your big friend eating a few more doughnuts. What about tire pressure? Just how far above the maximum pressure specified on the sidewall would you have to go before the tire burst? If there's not a big margin of error wouldn't you have to worry about bumps in the road?

In other words, I wouldn't worry too much about the weight limit:

http://www.swapmeetdave.com/Humor/Workshop/Overload.htm

[zeiss150]

I think that guy in the jetta exceeded the maximum GVRW.

Some of his possible thoughts...

"why am I only getting 3 mpg?"

"It doesn't handle like it used to?"

"just one more 80lb bag of concret!"

"now that's Farvagnuton"

"This is such a good Idea!"

"I just saved $40 on a truck rental, Who's the sucker now!"

Thanks Mike I had a good laugh with those pictures.

[onuthin]

I use my dodge 3500 to pull campers.With different weight numbers all over the truck and campers I tried to find what they all meant and how much could I go over some of the limits.I knew I could pull more than listed.It was finally explained to me like this.Engineers calculate these based on SAFETY.How much a vehicle can safely weigh,haul,and stop based on different conditions.Exceeding these numbers will not necessarily make your wheels fall of but it can void warranties on vehicles,and make you liable if an accident happens. I could be wrong on all of this but it sounded good to me.

[sblake01]

I've seen the shot of the Jetta before. I think it's a Photoshop job because the story on the version I've seen says it took place in Northern California. Same picture.

[MikeW]

I've seen the shot of the Jetta before. I think it's a Photoshop job because the story on the version I've seen says it took place in Northern California. Same picture.

Snopes is usually a good place to verify urban legends and other bizarre things like this:

http://www.snopes.com/photos/lumber.asp

[240Z-Fan]

Reviving an old thread.

I weight my 73 today. I was dissapointed with the following results

Front 1346 lbs

Rear 1193 lbs

Total 2539 lbs (w/o driver)

I thought a 73 should be closer to 2350 lbs. Or is it 2450?

The car has dealer added AC. And maybe a full tank. It also has the dealer added bumper gaurds. I still don't understand why so heavy?

Thoughts?

Al

[MikeW]

A full tank of fuel adds almost exactly 100 pounds:

6.216(lb/gal) * 16 gal = 99.456 lbs

Premium fuel is a little heavier:

6.35(lb/gal) * 16 gal = 101.6 lbs

If the dealer-added A/C is like my old York compressor and bracket (which alone just weighed in at 31.6 lbs) then that's probably another 50lbs total when you include the condenser, evaporator, lines, etc. If you subtract this extra 150lbs from your 2539 you get 2389 lbs which seems about right. My 72 FSM shows the 2350 that you already mentioned and I would expect the 73 to be just a bit heavier.

[tlorber]

Another revival here-just for curiousity's sake. I drove my '73 onto a scale the other day and it showed 2,660# with me in it (160 lbs).. It had almost a full tank of gas, my +/-25# tool box, a spare tire and the on board jack hardware. My wheels/tires are wider than stock so I'm sure they weigh a bit more. So I figure the car itself weighs about 2,350# dry.

My question is, for an apples to apples comparison when they talk about "curb weight" is this with fluids/spare tire etc. or just the car?

[FastWoman]

Yes, with the fluids (and a full tank of gas)...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curb_weight