Weight Terminology

[Airboss68]

What are the definitions/meaning/differences of the following relative to a vehicle?

Curb weight
Dry weight
Wet weight
Unloaded vehicle weight

[Nwcid]

Well most of those are "slang" terms so they can vary.

Curb weight typically = fully loaded ready to go.
Dry weight typically = the base weight of a unit with no fuel or fluids.
Wet weight typically = prepped vehicle with fuel and lubricants as found on the lot.
Unloaded vehicle weight typically = wet weight.

[Gary RVRoamer]

Unlike GVWR & GAWR, those terms aren't standardized. The federal safety standards (FMVSS) does define UVW, but vehicle manufacturers use that definition only where FMVSS labeling requirements apply. Elsewhere they may use their own definition.


Curb weight: as it came off the dealer sales lot, ready to drive, but no driver or passenger present. If in a sales brochure or website, it is for some configuration of the model that may or may not include any options.


Unloaded Vehicle Weight: no cargo or passengers onboard and fuel tank may not be full. However, if in the context of a federal vehicle weight, this is known as UVW and includes full fuel & oil. If LP tanks are in the equipment list, then full LP tank weight is included as well.


Dry weight: Same as unloaded vehicle weight with no water or fuel onboard


Wet weight. UVW plus full water & fuel.


You will likely get some conflicting answers, which reflects the lack of standardization on these terms. Usually the differences are minor but small differences can become important if weights are near limits.

[Old-Biscuit]

Curb, Dry, Unloaded----interchangeable (Base weight w/o water, propane dealer added options)

Wet weight.....Camp Ready/loaded

None have much meaning/relationship to ACTUAL scaled weight

[Nwcid]

See, 3 answers and 3 variations already.......

I did a little bit of googling and here is the most common theme I saw,
Dry weight refers to how much a vehicle, most commonly a car or motorcycle, weighs without "consumables," which usually means that the vehicle is weighed without any fluids, such as fuel or oil, in it.

Wet weight, or curb weight, usually means that the vehicle is weighed with all the fluids needed to drive it. The weight of fuel and engine oil are almost always excluded to obtain the dry weight, and sometimes coolant fluid, brake fluid, hydraulic fluid, and the entire battery are also excluded.

The term dry weight is commonly used in motorcycle specifications, and is often mentioned in articles related to motorcycle testing and handling. Dry weight is considered of interest because a lighter motorcycle has better handling and performs better than a heavier one.

I come with a motorcycle/ATV background and dry was always just that, dry = no fluids and wet = full fluids ready to ride.

[NXR]

Originally Posted by Nwcid

Well most of those are "slang" terms so they can vary.

Curb weight typically = fully loaded ready to go.

Actually, fully UN-loaded. No people, no stuff.

Ray