Heavy vs. Light Duty Towing: what’s the difference?

heavy vs. light duty towing.

Towing a car is generally a super stressful experience, and most people rather avoid it even if they need to consider this option. 

But it’s also something that we need to go through if we want to keep our vehicles running!

Also, in an hour of need knowing the difference between heavy vs. light duty towing can be an ultimate lifesaver.

Depending on the condition and size of your car, a light or heavy-duty tow truck near you will certainly be used to get the job done effectively.

If you have finally decided to hire a towing service company, you have to explore these two different services to examine what your vehicle currently needs.

In this guide, we will illustrate the advantages and differences between heavy vs light duty towing. As well as a few important factors of both types of towing that will help you to choose which tow truck works best for you — including their benefits, capacities, degree of difficulty, cost, and more!

Top Advantages of Heavy Vs. Light Duty Towing

Light Duty Towing: Ideal for Passenger’s Cars and Small Trucks

A light-duty tow truck is ideal for those who have to maneuver through small spaces. Anyhow, it will not get you too far places if you are going to put large loads or looking to haul really heavy vehicles. However, they have good amount of power and can be used for number of tasks.

Here are some advantages of light-duty towing:

  • More energy efficient compared to larger alternatives

  • Convenient to operate than heavy trucks because of fewer equipment and tools

  • Able to move through more crowded and tighter spaces

  • Less expensive to hire compared to other big vehicles

 

Example of small vehicles: motorcycles, sedans and smaller SUVs.

Heavy-Duty Towing: Ideal for Semi-Trucks and Buses

If you typically need to haul different vehicles at a time or simply want to shift something that contains heavy-weight items, it’s vital to go for the heavy-duty tow truck.

If you need to haul multiple vehicles at once or want to move something that weighs more, a heavy-duty tow truck is vital.

Here are some advantages of heavy-duty towing:
 

  • Option for hauling specific types of vehicles (large trucks, tractors, industrial cranes, etc.)

  • The ability to haul more weight at a time

  • Versatility because of high GVWR

  • Ability to haul different vehicles simultaneously

  • Professional assistance with particular mechanisms needed to make use of the tow truck

  • Extreme durability in order to support heavy loads

Example of large vehicles: trailers, boats, trucks and RVs.

Light-Duty vs. Heavy-Duty – Major Differences

 Weight Capacity

Generally, light-duty trucks have the ability to tow vehicles with a weight of up to 12000 pounds. It is the class of cars where you will fund crossovers, pick-up trucks, and average sedans. 

On the contrary, heavy-duty ones can handle vehicles that have a weight of up to 26,000 pounds. This class has vehicles, including semi-trucks, large buses, and many other commercial machines.

Degree of Difficulty

As far as the difficulty factor is concerned, the light-duty tow truck is considerably more maneuverable compared to heavy-duty trucks. This is due to the fact that they are lighter and short. Therefore, more able to make sharp turns and navigate small spaces.

Meanwhile, the tow trucks with heavy-duty nature are generally less maneuverable compared to light-duty ones. Well, the reason behind this is that they are heavier and pretty long. Plus, they are unable to navigate concise spaces & make super sharp turns easily.

Tow Equipment

Typically, light-duty trucks come with light towing equipment. It is because they’re specifically designed for compact vehicles. And you’ll find tow trucks with a winch or dolly here.

In contrast, heavy-duty trucks are usually designed for bigger and heavier vehicles. Basically, they contain more sophisticated machinery, like wheel lift, boom lift, and flatbed.

Towing Cost

The cost can vary from one truck to another, depending on the features and size. Anyhow, light-duty trucks are more reasonable than heavy tow trucks. It’s because they are built for small vehicles & contain less towing power.

On the other hand, heavy-duty tows require great knowledge and skill to handle highly tricky unpleasant situations and are complicated to handle. As a result, you will find it more expensive because of the heavy machinery and parts.

Bottom Line

That’s all about the advantages and differences between heavy vs. light duty towing! We hope that you are now completely aware of the basic factors for both of them!

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