Table of Contents
- What Are Commercial Vehicles?
- Broad Definition
- Legal Definition
- Commercial Vehicles versus Fleet Vehicles
- What Are Commercial Vehicles: Types
- Buses
- Some Heavy Equipment
- Taking Care of Your Business Cars
Commercial vehicles: what are they? You might be surprised by the response.
The majority of people would probably say, “A semi-truck and trailer,” yet there are many other types of commercial vehicles that are driven on the road nowadays.
What precisely are commercial automobiles then? We’ll address every piece of information required for fleet management in this post, along with the answer to your query.
What Are Commercial Vehicles?
Broad Definition
In essence, a car is labeled as “commercial” when a company registers it as such and utilizes it for company travel. Cars, trucks, vans, and even scooters can fall under this category.
Basically, a commercial vehicle is anything that has a motor that operates on gasoline, diesel, or aviation fuel.
Legal Definition
The legal definition of a commercial vehicle is far more precise than the general meaning, which may cover more types of transportation than you might imagine.
A commercial vehicle is defined as follows by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which is in charge of policing commercial vehicles in the US:
Any self-propelled or towed motor vehicle used on a highway in interstate commerce to transport passengers or property when the vehicle:
- Has a gross combination weight rating (GCWR) or gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 10,001 pounds or more, depending on which is higher.
- Is intended for is now in use to compensatedly transport nine to fifteen passengers (including the driver)
- Is made to carry or be utilized for a minimum of sixteen passengers
- Complies with the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act and is intended for use in the transportation of hazardous materials
This more technical definition eliminates the vast majority of the vehicles on the list mentioned earlier and leaves us with:
- A few pickup pickups and light-duty vans
- vehicles with a medium load capacity
- Semis, or heavy-duty trucks
While this technical definition focuses on heavy trucks, there are some exceptions for specialty vehicles, cars, and heavy equipment.
Commercial Vehicles versus Fleet Vehicles
The word “fleet vehicles” is broad and encompasses all of the vehicles covered in the previous generic description, such as cars, lorries, motorbikes, scooters, golf carts, and push scooters.
However, the word “commercial vehicles” is more precise and covers the cars included in the previous section’s legal definition, such as vans, lorries, and semis.
These definitions allow a company to run a fleet even in the absence of any commercial cars.
For instance, a downtown pizza delivery company may give its delivery drivers access to a fleet of four golf carts, ten scooters, and five bikes. The FMCSA claims that none of those are commercial vehicles.
However, the truck is legally regarded as a commercial vehicle if the company adds a Class 3 pickup truck (more on this below) to its fleet.
See these posts from the Coast blog for additional details on fleet cars and fleet management:
What Are Commercial Vehicles: Types
Vehicles
Trucks make up the majority of vehicles on the road today and are, by far, the most typical response to the question, “What are commercial vehicles?”
Based on the gross vehicle weight rating, or GVWR, the truck can support, the FMCSA classifies trucks into eight categories:
- Class 1: (GVWR 6,000 pounds and higher)
- Class 2A: (6,001–8,500 pounds gross weight range)
- Class 2B: (8,501–10,000 pounds gross weight range)
- Class 3: (10,001–14,000 pounds gross weight range)
- Class 4: 14,001 to 16,000 pounds (GVWR)
- Class 5: (16,001–19,500 pounds GVWR)
- Class 6: 19,501 to 26,000 pounds (GVWR)
- Class 7: 26,001 to 33,001 pounds (GVWR)
- Class 8—GVWR greater than 33,000 pounds
Three basic categories are created by splitting those eight specific classes into smaller groups in order to simplify things:
- Trucks with Light Duty (Classes 1-3)
- Light-Duty Vehicles (Classes 4-6)
- Trucks with heavy loads (Classes 7-8)
However, not every one of these truck classes is regarded as a commercial vehicle. According to the FMCSA’s legal definition of a commercial vehicle, only trucks classified as Class 3 through Class 8 are covered.
Examples of these trucks include:
- Ford F-350 Super Duty (Class 3)
- Class 4 Chevy Silverado 4500HD; Class 5 Peterbilt 325
- DuraStar International (Class 6)
- Mack MD7 (Class 7)
- Class 8 Western Star 47X
For more information on these types of commercial trucks, take a few minutes to read the following articles from the Coast blog:
Vans
Vans are classified in the same classes as trucks (e.g., Class 2, Class 3), but they can also be used to carry passengers in addition to goods.
The GVWR is another criterion used to categorize cargo vans, which vary in size from compact Class 1 models to spacious Class 3 models with enormous capacities.
As examples, consider:
- Class 1 Dodge Grand Caravan
- Class 2A Ford Transit-150
- Class 2B Ford Transit-250
- Class 3 Ford Transit-350
Commercial vehicles are limited to Class 3 vans.
Essentially, passenger vans are cargo vans with additional seating. Although they belong in the same classes (Class 1 through Class 3), they are distinguished as commercial vehicles when they:
- Intended or utilized to compensatedly transport nine to fifteen passengers (including the driver)
- Intended for or currently in use for 16 passengers or more
The GMC Savana Passenger and the Chevrolet Express Passenger are two models of commercial passenger vans.
Check out this post from the Coast blog for additional details on work vans for companies of all sizes:
Buses
Due in large part to their size and ability to carry passengers, buses are virtually always classified as commercial vehicles.
In a similar vein, minibuses, sometimes known as shuttle buses, are classified as commercial vehicles as they can accommodate more passengers than a van but fewer than a full-size bus.
Motorcoaches are sometimes regarded as commercial vehicles and are included in the general bus category.
High-floor buses known as motorcoaches have luggage storage beneath the passenger cabin. When they are utilized for private charters and tours, they are considered commercial vehicles.
An RV can be built from a motor coach and used for private transportation. They are not categorized as commercial vehicles in certain circumstances.
Unique Automobiles
Specialty vehicles are frequently modifications of the previously described truck, van, and bus chassis.
As examples, consider:
- Trucks that haul trash
- sweepers of the streets
- Fire engines
- Septic vehicles
- Tow vehicles
- carts for passengers
- RV-style mobile services (such as health service vehicles and bookmobiles)
A Few Automobiles
Commercial vehicles are typically not ordinary passenger cars. However, the FMCSA considers them commercial when utilized for certain purposes.
Commercial vehicles include, for instance:
- Rental automobiles
- Delivery vehicles: taxis
For example, an electronics company might provide its salespeople a company car to use for commuting to meetings, but these are fleet cars, not commercial vehicles.
The car would be regarded as a commercial vehicle if the same electronics company gave its technicians a car to use for equipment delivery and servicing calls.
Some Heavy Equipment
Because they are not meant to be driven over long distances on public roads, the majority of heavy equipment models are not classified as commercial vehicles. To transport heavy equipment from one jobsite to another, a heavy-duty truck and trailer are usually required.
Nevertheless, some machinery used in mining, farming, and building is a commercial vehicle. For further information, get in touch with the department of motor vehicles in your area.
Regulations for Commercial Vehicles
Not every vehicle in the previous section is governed by federal motor carrier safety requirements, even though they are all arguably classified as commercial motor vehicles (CMVs).
For example, taxicabs are exempt from federal rules based on the FMCSA’s definition of a CMV.
Similarly, a vehicle and its operator will probably only be governed by state and local regulations rather than federal rules if they exclusively participate in intrastate commerce. However, the FMCSA’s regulations are exactly the same as many state requirements.
Owners of vehicles that satisfy the FMCSA CMV criteria are required to adhere to the safety regulations set forth by the Department of Transportation (DOT) with relation to:
- Testing for alcohol and other banned substances is necessary for everyone applying for a commercial driver’s license (CDL).
- Driver requirements, such as physical examinations
- operating and operating a CMV
- components and add-ons required for secure operations
- Rules for service hours
- Every car inspection, maintenance, and repair
In addition to these rules, business owners also need to be aware of the FMCSA’s fleet compliance standards, which include things like accessibility, commercial driver’s license holders, vehicle insurance, and driving records.
Taking Care of Your Business Cars
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With the Coast card, you can track expenses in real time and have complete insight over every dollar spent thanks to a robust online management platform that puts your whole fleet at your fingertips.
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