Curious why the GVWR of your RV is greater than the GAWR? Concerned that the math seems shadowy? Fear not, because there’s a perfectly reasonable answer.

Federal Law Allows GVWR to Be Higher than GAWR (Sometimes)

Federal law restricts how GVWR should be calculated. Per CFR 49 571.120 and 571.110 in the FMVSS:

S9.1 On motor homes, the sum of the gross axle weight ratings (GAWR) of all axles on the vehicle must not be less than the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR).

• The math assumes you’ll load your tongue properly. But if you don’t load your travel trailer properly, and you have <10% or <15% on the tongue, then you’ll have overloaded your axles by the time you max out your GVWR.
• The math assumes equal side-to-side weight distribution. This one in particular has gotten a lot of motorhome manufacturers in trouble. It is possible, depending on how you load your trailer, that the tires on one side could be overloaded, even if you’re within your GVWR!