§ 393.42 Brakes required on all wheels.
Wording in the annual edition revised as of Oct. 1, 2012, superseded February 19, 2026.
(a) Every commercial motor vehicle shall be equipped with brakes acting on all wheels. This requirement also applies to certain motor vehicles being towed in a driveaway-towaway operation, as follows:
(1) Any motor vehicle towed by means of a tow-bar when another motor vehicle is full-mounted on the towed vehicle; and
(2) Any saddlemount configuration with a fullmount.
(b) Exception. (1) Trucks or truck tractors having three or more axles and manufactured before July 25, 1980, are not required to have brakes on the front wheels. However, these vehicles must meet the requirements of § 393.52.
(2) Motor vehicles being towed in a driveaway-towaway operation (including the last truck of triple saddle-mount combinations (see § 393.71(a)(3)) are not required to have operative brakes provided the combination of vehicles meets the requirements of § 393.52.
(3) Any semitrailer or pole trailer (laden or unladen) with a gross weight of 1,361 kg (3,000 pounds) or less which is subject to this part is not required to be equipped with brakes if the axle weight of the towed vehicle does not exceed 40 percent of the sum of the axle weights of the towing vehicle.
(4) Any full trailer or four-wheel pole trailer (laden or unladen) with a gross weight of 1,361 kg (3,000 pounds) or less which is subject to this part is not required to be equipped with brakes if the sum of the axle weights of the towed vehicle does not exceed 40 percent of the sum of the axle weights of the towing vehicle.
(5) Brakes are not required on the steering axle of a three-axle dolly which is steered by a co-driver.
(6) Loaded housemoving dollies, specialized trailers and dollies used to transport industrial furnaces, reactors, and similar motor vehicles are not required to be equipped with brakes, provided the speed at which the combination of vehicles will be operated does not exceed 32 km/hour (20 mph) and brakes on the combination of vehicles are capable of stopping the combination within 12.2 meters (40 feet) from the speed at which the vehicle is being operated or 32 km/hour (20 mph), whichever is less.
[52 FR 2803, Jan. 27, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49398, Dec. 7, 1988; 54 FR 48617, Nov. 24, 1989; 59 FR 25574, May 17, 1994; 61 FR 1843, Jan. 24, 1996; 70 FR 48049, Aug. 15, 2005; 76 FR 56321, Sept. 13, 2011]
Amendment history
6 distinct wordings on file since Oct. 1, 1996- [52 FR 2803, Jan. 27, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49398, Dec. 7, 1988; 54 FR 48617, Nov. 24, 1989; 59 FR 25574, May 17, 1994; 61 FR 1843, Jan. 24, 1996; 70 FR 48049, Aug. 15, 2005; 76 FR 56321, Sept. 13, 2011; 91 FR 7890, Feb. 19, 2026]
- [52 FR 2803, Jan. 27, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49398, Dec. 7, 1988; 54 FR 48617, Nov. 24, 1989; 59 FR 25574, May 17, 1994; 61 FR 1843, Jan. 24, 1996; 70 FR 48049, Aug. 15, 2005; 76 FR 56321, Sept. 13, 2011]
- [52 FR 2803, Jan. 27, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49398, Dec. 7, 1988; 54 FR 48617, Nov. 24, 1989; 59 FR 25574, May 17, 1994; 61 FR 1843, Jan. 24, 1996; 70 FR 48049, Aug. 15, 2005; 76 FR 56321, Sept. 13, 2011]
- [52 FR 2803, Jan. 27, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49398, Dec. 7, 1988; 54 FR 48617, Nov. 24, 1989; 59 FR 25574, May 17, 1994; 61 FR 1843, Jan. 24, 1996; 70 FR 48049, Aug. 15, 2005]
- [52 FR 2803, Jan. 27, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49398, Dec. 7, 1988; 54 FR 48617, Nov. 24, 1989; 59 FR 25574, May 17, 1994; 61 FR 1843, Jan. 24, 1996; 70 FR 48049, Aug. 15, 2005]
- Oct. 1, 1996 → Oct. 1, 2005annual editions 1996–2004[52 FR 2803, Jan. 27, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 49398, Dec. 7, 1988; 54 FR 48617, Nov. 24, 1989; 59 FR 25574, May 17, 1994; 61 FR 1843, Jan. 24, 1996]
A new entry appears whenever the regulatory words change between government snapshots. Day-precise from the eCFR (2017 onward); before that, one snapshot per annual CFR edition (revised as of October 1). Bracketed citations are the Federal Register history printed with the section.