Gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR)
The manufacturer's maximum safe loaded weight for a vehicle, including passengers and cargo.
Gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) is the maximum weight a vehicle is designed to carry safely, including itself, passengers, cargo and fuel. It appears on the label in the driver’s door jamb. It is not the same as curb weight, which is the empty weight.
GVWR matters for paperwork more than scrap value: states use it to decide registration class, permit eligibility and some inspection rules. It doesn’t tell a junkyard how much your car weighs.
Federal safety standards define GVWR as the value specified by the manufacturer as the loaded weight of a single vehicle.1 California, for example, exempts diesel vehicles with a GVWR over 14,000 pounds from its Smog Check.2
References
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Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 49 CFR 571.3, “Definitions”, https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/subtitle-B/chapter-V/part-571/subpart-A/section-571.3 ↩
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California Bureau of Automotive Repair, “Smog Check: When you need one and what’s required”, https://www.bar.ca.gov/smog-check ↩