Can I fight this for commercial vehicle definition?

‘No house trailer, camping trailer, boat trailer, hauling trailer, boat, or accessories thereto, truck (excluding pickup trucks that are 1 ton of less), self-contained motorized recreational vehicle, motor home, jet ski, or other type of recreational or commercial vehicle or equipment, may be parked or stored on the lots, or parked or stored on any property visible from the ground level of any other lots, unless such parking or storage is entirely within the garage area of any lot, except that any such vehicle may be otherwise parked as a temporary expedient (not exceeding 72 hours) for loading, delivery, or emergency. This restriction however shall not restrict trucks or other commercial vehicles which are necessary for construction or maintenance of any portion of the community or any improvements located thereon.’

We received a letter saying there was a commercial vehicle parked in front of our house and that it violates the HOA rules, my fiance has a ford truck with toolboxes on the back and advertising on the side door. No where in this 'rule' does it say anything about not allowing toolboxes or really gives any definition of what they consider a commercial vehicle. I've looked it up and the State of Colorado considers a commercial vehicle to have a commercial license plate/drivers license or 10,000lbs or more.

Do you think we can fight this and just put a magnet over the advertising?

The truck weighs 14,000lbs I don't think any truck or car even weighs less than 1 ton. It really doesn't state that advertising is considered commercial but there is another rule about advertising so I'm just assuming that if we covered that up then we would be ok, it does not have a commercial license plate either, just a regular daily driver one.

It seems like you answered the question yourself. You said Colorado defines a commercial vehicle as one that weighs over 10,000 lbs and the truck weighs 14,000 lbs. So, have you stated the facts correctly?

The New York Times reported the average weight of automobiles produced in 2003 was just a little over 4,000 pounds. There are 2,000 pounds in a ton. I've seen mini-vans and SUVs in the 5,000 to 6,000 pound range.

When you hear of a truck being referred to as a "1-ton pickup" for example, the reference is to the payload capacity; not to the weight of a truck. A typical "1/2-ton" pickup has a curb weight (weight when empty) of between 9,000 and 11,000 pounds. It doesn't seem likely that an everyday light pickup would be classified as "commercial," but according to your definition of a commercial vehicle in Colorado it could be. I suspect you may have the number wrong.

The DOT has required all states to standardize their commercial driver standards. A driver must have a CDL (commercial driver's license) to operate any motor vehicle that has a gross vehicle weight(weight when fully loaded) exceeding 26,001 pounds. From this I would guess that if a vehicle weighs less than 26,000 pounds it is not a commercial vehicle.

However, your homeowners association may define things differently. They don't have to abide by state or federal DOT definitions, so that argument is likely to fall on deaf ears. It is entirely possible they are objecting to the apparent commercial use as indicated by the advertising. You will have to work out some arrangement that is acceptable.

It could be argued that the reference of "1 ton" in the covenants are vague. Do they refer to the weight or the payload limitations? 1 ton equals 2000 pounds but a "1 ton" truck weighs more. The "1 ton" refers to how much a truck could carry in addition to it's "curb weight," or weight without cargo or passengers. For example, a "half-ton" truck can weigh anywhere from 6000 - 11000 pounds and include trucks such as a Ford F-150 or a Chevy Silverado 1500. It sounds as if your fiance's truck would be classified as a "1 ton" truck.

As for the advertising on the truck, the covenants don't seem to distinguish between trucks with and trucks without advertising but I assume the combination of the size and advertising has been interpreted by someone as a violation.

It also doesn't hurt to mention that this iis a personal vehicle used for work and not a work vehicle used for personal use.

> I say those arguments are specious at best.

What he said, again.

> 1 ton truck

This has never meant that the entire truck weighs one ton. I think (by convention) this is the payload capacity of the truck.

A story along these lines. In my last HOA, we had a realtor with an SUV that had "advertising" on the back window. We had a SC Highway Patrol Officer with a decked out SC Highway Patrol car.

Another issue was two identical mini-vans. One said nothing on it. The other had signs saying Airport Shuttle and a phone number.

Talk about the Judgement of Solomon.....LOL

Rulings were safety vehicles are not commercial thus the cop car could park in the driveway overnight. The realtor could not.

Identical min-vans or not, the one with signs was commercial and could not park in the driveway.

How many inches before it is a good one?

Big vehicle, small sign. Small vehicle, big sign....LOL

The term "one ton truck" does not refer to the actual weight of the vehicle but refers to the load it can theoretically carry.

Most states rely on GVW (gross vehicle weight) which is the maximum weight of the vehicle and its load. A "one-ton" would generally be about 12,000 lbs GVW. Your covenants would have been better off had it used a GVW rating rather than "one ton."

I am not sure what to make of your statement that the truck weighs 14,000 lbs. It is not clear whether that is the actual weight or the GVW. Since most trucks do not carry their maximum weight that often, a truck that weighs 14,000 pounds may have a much higher GVW.

I had mentioned this but suggested the color of the magnet be the color of the vehicle vs. being just a white magnet.

maybe a BIG magnet, and just cover the entire truck?

As is the case in OP's situation, what is YOUR definition of a "commercial vehicle"? That is quite subject to interpretation and not necessarily so simple as just reading & following rules.

Any signage, John? Like Ford or Ram? Hunter Dodge, Tacoma Washington? I Heart Reagan?

let me clarify...if the vehicles has commercial plates on it regardless of the signage its a commercial vehicle per our CCR's.

Quite right. In SC one can have a business plate that allows them to park in Business Only Parking Spots which are meant for delivery, drop off, etc. The vehicles are usually an everyday personal vehicle such a Ford Escape but it has a business plate.

We don't have either of the above situations in Michigan. Though with the auto industry here, there are plenty of cars running around with manufacturer plates on them. Those could easily fit someone's "commercial vehicle" definition since they're owned by corporations and used for business purposes. But if any regulations are ruling against vehicles based on the license plate on them, one has a crazy/irrational situation on their hands, imho.

And I'll point out that we STILL have no clue what the "Ford Truck" is that started this thread.

If your fiance parks the truck for less than 72 hours and leaves the 4-way flashers running, then it qualifies as an emergency.