Why do so many Americans hate European trucks?

It is certainly true that Euro trucks put far more weight on the front axle, in fact it is most of the weight of the drivetrain and the cab. However some NA drivers pointed out that this is perfectly legal as long as the axle and the tyres can take the weight. So such a heavy load may not be customary in NA, but it is not illegal.

 

As long as the tires and axel are rated for the weight your good .
How are you going to get around the bridge laws , I actually DROVE a cab over in NA and that limits overall load

 

It's just a pity that (For whatever reason) this Thread has degenerated into a D1ck Measuring contest over the European way of life/Culture versus the the American way of life/Culture.
But for that We all have to accept some responsibility..

Australia is one the few Countries that have All types of Heavy Vehicles sold here (Euro, American & Japanese) & at the risk of sounding Facetious I would be one of the few contributors to this Thread who has recent/current real life experience with Driving Owning & Operating Both European & North American type of heavy trucks.
As an outsider looking In this Thread (at times) has bee quite Educational (& not just about Trucks

 

Good point, I will have a look on those bridge laws. On the other hand, the Alkane company is going to produce a similar tractor for the NA market, so I suppose it can be done.

 

My understanding that they're still limited to 80,000lbs GCM so if the more that is on the steer axle the less allowed on the Drive axles..
But this is something neither of us have experience in..

 

That hideous alkane truck will probably just work around certain ports that have a nat gas restriction , I don't see any OTR driver wanting the truck or the hassle

 

That's why I like Canada's laws. You can do 17k kg on tandems (tridem will vary by province though. Usually around the 24k kg range) I think BC will let you run up to 7,500 kg on a steer axle if you've got the proper front end components. From what I can tell, there is no real GVW limit here out west. As long as the vehicle has the proper axle configurations and is registered for the proper GVW you're good to go.

 

You can run 20k lbs on a steer axel in the US if it's rated and the tires are rated for it

 

Yes, I suppose you're right. With a NA tractor much of the weight of the drive train and the cab is put on the rear axles, instead of the front axle as with an EU truck. So with two rear axles on a EU truck, these rear axles can take more load from the trailer. In Europe the trailers usually have three axles, and they are mounted more to the middle of the trailer, putting less load on the fifth wheel. Those wo things combined make it possible to use only one axle on most EU tractors.

I will have a look at the bridge law, and see how EU tractors with two rear axles and with one axle turn out.