MackMann85

I was on the mack trucks website today (www.macktrucks.com), specifically the Mack shop part of the website. It looks like they added a bunch of new items on there. I had a couple favorites. -the two best t-shirts were the Titan grill coming through the chest of the t-shirt. There was also a really cool military t-shirt with a big camo bulldog hood ornament on the front -my other two favorites were all of the old hand painted magazine advertisements from the 40s and 50s that are now sold as posters, and a camo replica of the bulldog hood ornament made into a foam stress releaver and i was surprised it was only 5 bucks. I guess the military business must be doin Ok because they have some of that stuff on there for sale now. Check it out, i think there is alot more new stuff than i mentioned

Got up to 500 UPS units now I hear!

I heard from a buddy that works at Mack they just got an order for over 400 trucks from UPS. Looks like Mack might finish the year strong! Plus more workers are being called back to the Macungie plant which is always good. Long live the bulldog

The armored line haul tractor uses an export version of the MP8 engine that has no emissions aftertreatment. I beleive this vehicle was supposed to be part of an open competition to replace the armys line haul fleet, but the competition was pushed out due to budgeting issues by the army. There are some other military vehicles like troop carriers, and wreckers, etc that have been sold in europe, south america and in support of the war in iraq/afghanistan. They look like some pretty neat trucks...wonder if the military group has any other new projects going on? Anybody hear anything?

You guys dont actually beleive diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) is piss do you? Yes, urine has urea in it, but that isn't what is used in DEF. Automotive grade urea is extracted from natural gas. The details of the process I dont know, but thats the truth! It's a shame that we have to go through all this emissions mess, but lets remember who is causing it, the EPA. I'm sure all the OEMs would love to not deal with DPFs and the like too! As for finding DEF, I know that Pilot, Flying J, Loves, and Travel Center of America all will sell it. In a pinch all Mack, Volvo, Freightliner, Western Star, Cummins, Pete, and KW dealers and service locations will have it too. I was told to just keep a two gallon jug in the cab just in case becuase DEF is only used around 2% of diesel. (100 gal of diesel will burn about 2 gals of DEF) That 2 gallons could get you 5 or 600 miles to find a stop that sells it.

The bulldog was carefully hung at the Mack Customer Center in Allentown under the supervision of Mack employees. It will stay at that facility either in the Mack Museum wing or in the new truck display area when they are complete later this year.

http://www.roadtransport.com/blogs/big-lorry-blog/2010/08/scoop-photos-of-the-first-cat-.html New truck pics from the CAT/Navistar NC2 venture. They are VERY clearly exact copies of US International models. No wonder they came to market so fast. Anyone know what engines will be in them, or have any thoughts on how they will do down under? Seems like a joke to me.

Considering the warranty alone is good for 500k+ and the design life is over a million miles for highway use, yes. They could probably show you several thousand. How it would fare off road I don't know, but then that why it isnt offered in a Granite, just the Pinnacle models. Buy a T300 in that case.

You cant compare an automated manual to a Maxitorque or Roadranger. They are generally for different applications, i.e. a driver who uses a T300 usually wont be considering an AMT. The I-shift has been around for nearly ten years and improved since it's introduction I'm sure. There is plenty of data showing how it holds up compared to the competition. Mack knew exactly what they were asking for, and yes Mack people asked for it due to the many benefits. This decision wasnt forced by Sweden I feel very confident in saying.

kscarbel- why dont you have something positive to say for once about the Mack brand you obviously care and know so much about? You sounds like a broken record. Most of the changes you mention were largely engineered to some degree (sometimes almost completely) by Mack engineers in Allentown or Hagerstown. In the end, if it works well for the customer then who cares what country the idea started in? Let's be part of the solution, not part of the problem. Things change- companies get bought and sold all the time. There isn't a thing you or I can do about it other than continue to support the Mack we have today and hope that Mack engineers continue to make great and innovative products, along with preserving their great history. Positivity goes a long way and is contagious! BTW, ever driven a new mDRIVE? Don't knock it till you try it.

I didnt ask the question, just found it interesting and thought I'd share. It came from Mack's SCR blog on their website. It's a pretty interesting and straightforward source on info for 2010 emissions.

I figured the devout V8 following out there might be interested in some details on why the engine offering was killed, plus some good news on the performance of the MP10 and improved Titan orders! Taken from Mack's SCR blog... From Kevin, 7/15/2010: Thank you for all the enlightening information you have provided on SCR. I'm wondering why Mack doesn't offer a ClearTech SCR-equipped EPA2010 V-8 engine? Mack Truck's legendary V-8 powerplants have been a long-time signature Mack product. Wouldn't an SCR/EGR/particulate filter combination (or SCR/EGR/DPF) combination) allow Mack to offer an EPA2010 V-8 engine? I'm a Mack man thru-and-thru, but given the positive experience I had with Scania-powered Mack R-487Ps, I've kept an eye on Scania, who recently launched a new V8 range with 500, 560, 620 and 730 horsepower ratings, with max. torque up to 2,581 ft.lb (3,500 N.m), that are designed to meet Euro-6 EEV standards (enhanced environmentally-friendly vehicle), which is very close to EPA2010. Scania's V-8 developments catch my attention because Mack Truck's legendary E-9 V-8 had a very loyal customer following (actually still has), not unlike Scania's 16.4-liter V-8, Mercedes-Benz's 15.9-liter V-8 and MAN's 16.2-liter V-8 engines sold today. Although the V-8 might be called a niche market, Scania, Benz and MAN have continued to profitably meet customer demand for V-8 powertrains while also meeting evolving emissions standards. Scania's new V-8 reaches Euro-6 and I'm confident that Benz and MAN will as well. Why doesn't Mack take advantage of its decades of V-8 engineering expertise and introduce a "pedigreed" Mack-designed EPA-2010 V-8 engine? If stricter EPA emissions standards indeed killed Mack's E-9 V-8, how have Scania, Benz and MAN been continually able to upgrade their V-8 engines to meet tightening emissions standards? I'm confident that Mack customer demand for a pedigreed V-8 powerplant both in the North American market and Australia would be very favorable. In the U.S. market, Mack would be the envy of the competition, having the market all to themselves. Hello Kevin - Since you and I have communicated about this a number of times, you know I have a BIG soft spot in my heart for this product. Ever since I was a teenager, the sound of a Mack V8 is literally music to my ears. As an adult (although some may debate that point), I had the opportunity to be the Branch Manager of Capital Mack (1991) Inc., located in Ottawa ON. The V8 was a hot seller in that area, primarily for logging and heavy equipment hauling. I remember us selling a few RD822SX models that were strictly for use in the bush. After we had done all the local work and the engine was tuned up by the best V8 man in Canada, Jean Claude Strasbourg - the ground shook when the trucks were running! That's something I'll never forget. Let's fast forward 8 years... EPA 1998, the V8 at any HP output could not meet the new emission regulation -- and it would have cost a small fortune to make it compliant. We also knew that in 2004 there would be an additional reduction in regulated tail pipe emissions. Little did we know that it would end up being 2002! So in simple business terms - we could have "electrified" the V8 and spent a fortune to meet 1998 and 2002. Based on the number of V8's sold in a good year, there was just no commercial business case to be made. I was there, I watched this, I didn't like the decision then and frankly still don't like it now. But facts can be brutally factual. Zipping ahead another 11 years (and seemingly countless emission regulations) and we launch the Mack MP-10, a 1,000 cubic inch behemoth 6 cylinder, in a new model, the Titan by Mack. To be honest, being somewhat biased toward a V8 configuration, I was not expecting too much. I was wrong. Completely wrong. This engine is a monster! It has what I call all power all the time. My opinion is one thing, but customer buy-in is what truly matters. We just got a follow up order from an old Mack customer in Quebec, for an additional dozen MP10-equipped Titans! This was after testing an one for almost a year, hauling >300,000# of logs every single load! So I can tell you without any reservation, we are not going to reintroduce the V8. I would suggest that all the tooling is gone as well. When I visit Hagerstown, I always walk by the engines on display. The V8 there has my fingerprints all over it. I hug it every visit! Kevin, my friend, that is it on the V8.

Westcan Bulk Transport, based in Edmonton, Alberta, has agreed to purchase 127 Mack Pinnacle mid-rise sleepers over the next two and a half years, with an option to buy 55 more. MORE POSITIVE NEWS FOR MACK!

abf.bmpMack just got a new order for over 300 Pinnacle Axle-backs going to ABF for delivery this year. It's always good to get positive Mack news these days. Hopefully 2010 ends up being a good year for the bulldog.