Why European Trucks Can Pull More Weight Than American Semis

American semi trucks are quite an iconic sight, and not just in their homeland either. While European trucks, or lorries as they can be called in England, have flat fronts, American semi trucks boast long hoods with huge chrome grilles — it's quite a distinctive and imposing style. So, it might surprise you to learn that the plastic-laden, flat-fronted trucks of Europe are actually more capable when it comes to hauling hefty loads.

While the American trucks are more often than not physically larger than their European counterparts, the permitted total weight they are rated to carry is capped at 80,000 pounds on the interstate highway system, as decided by the FHWA. In comparison, the European Union dictates that five-axle European trucks can pull up to approximately 88,000 pounds — a 10% increase over what American semi trucks can manage. In some Scandinavian countries, such as Sweden and Denmark, particular applications are being trialled with maximum ratings of up to around 207,000 pounds.

There are numerous reasons for this, but primarily the difference is due to those aforementioned regulatory differences and the types of roads on which European and American trucks encounter on a regular basis. With different regulatory bodies deciding the limits, it's unlikely that both types of trucks will be granted the same limits, and with the differences in how and where they operate, the lower limit given to US trucks begins to make more sense.

It's not just the trucks and regulations that look different from one another — the roads on which they drive do as well. In Europe, the majority of truck driving will be completed on well-developed highways, which have been engineered to withstand the weights and stresses that come from being subjected to heavy trucks, day in and day out. That's not to say that Americans can't pave a road. The interstate highways are similarly just as capable, and handle heavy abuse from trucks just as well, especially those that rank among the most congested highways in America. However, the US boasts a wide array of environments, and modern highways just aren't to be found in the more sparsely populated areas. As such, rural and secondary roads need to be taken into account when setting weight regulations for semi trucks.

This one might come as a surprise, but American semi trucks can also sport less power in comparison to European trucks, too, which, of course, will have an effect on how much can safely be towed. While the majority of semi trucks will boast around 600 horsepower as a maximum figure, some European models, such as the Volvo FH16 and Scania R730, will pack north of 700 horsepower. How much horsepower do you really need when driving a truck? When it comes to pulling, horsepower and torque are needed in huge quantities, especially when we're talking about 80,000 pounds and above.