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Why You Want a Cab and Chassis Truck

Dec. 2 2021 Buying Guide By 56 Auto Sales

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Trucking is a noble and vital profession, helping to enable every industry from shipping to supply to utility and beyond, but the type of truck you drive can be surprisingly limiting to your job prospects. Luckily, cab and chassis trucks are one of the most versatile trucks on the market, making them incredibly useful for fleet managers and private contractors alike. We here at 56 Auto Sales want to help you get the most from your tools, so we’ve put together a brief guide to what makes a cab and chassis truck different, below. To learn more, or to see the cab and chassis trucks we have for sale, contact our store in London, Ohio, today!

Build

First, it’s important to go over exactly why a cab and chassis truck is so useful. When they come off the lot, where a pickup truck might have a bed is nothing but frame—hence the name, since the truck is just a cab and the chassis. The chassis portion of the truck is also specially-reinforced, allowing it to have a wide assortment of beds and other equipment mounted to it.

Versatility

The unique setup may not make these trucks the prettiest on the lot, but it does allow them the flexibility to become any truck you need for any job a truck can do. The reinforced chassis can accommodate just about any truck bed and truck-mounted equipment there is, allowing these rigs to go from weird-looking to:

  • Dump trucks.
  • Utility trucks.
  • Service trucks.
  • Cranes.
  • Emergency vehicles.
  • Flexible shipping models.

And that’s just the start!

Considerations

Now, that said, a cab and chassis truck isn’t the be-all, end-all of trucking. It’s still a machine, and it has its limitations. 

Weight

Cab and chassis trucks can come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and each version has a different gross vehicle weight rating, also known as GVWR. This is the number that indicates exactly how much weight the vehicle can accommodate while operating safely, including the weight of:

  • The base model.
  • The bed and other aftermarket installations.
  • Cargo.
  • Passengers.
  • Fuel.

Power and Control

Some of the beds you can mount on a cab and chassis truck have power requirements, from operating lights to winches and hydraulics. Many of these will have independent power supplies, but some will require a connection to the truck’s engine, which can impact how well it operates. You also need to ensure your truck will be able to operate how you need it to with the bed installed. Even if you’re under your GVWR, hills and tight turns might become more difficult with some beds.

Ready to see what your cab and chassis truck can become? Contact us at 56 Auto Sales if you have any questions, or if you just want to see the cab and chassis trucks we have available. We proudly serve the people of Springfield, Dayton, and Columbus, Ohio—let us serve you today!