New Gen macks

[BottleHauler84]

@Geoff Weeks as far as Neway, i think its the best there is withe the EXCEPTION  of that ARDAB you're speaking of. Thats a really rare suspension.  Ive only ever seen maybe 2 or 3 of them in person. Neway messed up on that design and Ive heard nobody really liked that model. 

The ARD heavy Neway and the more modern ADZ were both great suspensions. The weak link on the ARD were the equalizer bar bushings,  and the weak link on the ADZ were the top tri-link bushings up top. We have both where I work and thats been the only issues. They are expensive as an option and to get parts for....but they are good suspensions.

[BottleHauler84]

11 minutes ago, 67RModel said:

I seem to remember a guy on here a little while back that had some scarce, weird Mack air ride suspension on a 2010s or teens pinnacle highway tractor that he said the parts were no longer available.

Wow. It wouldn't suprise me tho....I wonder if thats the MaxAir suspension? They referred to it as the "twisted sister" suspension, i thought was kinda weird. I believe that was a hendrickson suspension as well.

[Geoff Weeks]

Yeah the ARD is a totally different beast, nothing crosses between those and the ARDAB. I actually bought a nice lightly used walking beam cut off to replace the ARDAB with. Never got around to doing the swap, and it will now be up to the next owner what they want to put under it. 

[Geoff Weeks]

Look at the Maxilite and count the bushings, 4 per axle, then look at the 8 bag and count the pivot points and bushings.

[67RModel]

6 minutes ago, Geoff Weeks said:

Never got around to doing the swap, and it will now be up to the next owner what they want to put under it. 

Did you ever end up selling the Marmon?

[Mark T]

43 minutes ago, BottleHauler84 said:

Friend sent me these. The new 8 bag looks heavy duty in person and probably rides well, but it has alot of parts to it and its pretty sophisticated looking in its design. Also, it has a TON of bolts, fasteners and brackets. That might be bad for the guys in the rust belt later down the road with salt and rust hiding in around and under all those parts and pieces.....just my opinion there. 

🤢 What the huck

[Geoff Weeks]

The beauty of air ride is you can add lift axles and have the equalize simply, something that can't easily be done with spring suspensions. 

Company I worked for had ARD's on their heavy haul trucks. Can't say it did better or worse than the IHC (HAS) I had on mine. I had a Neway lift axle and it would equalize after a fashion with the IHC when loaded.

[BottleHauler84]

1 minute ago, Mark T said:

🤢 What the huck

Right! Thats what im say.....did they put enough of them in there holy crap.

[Mark T]

9 minutes ago, BottleHauler84 said:

Wow. It wouldn't suprise me tho....I wonder if thats the MaxAir suspension? They referred to it as the "twisted sister" suspension, i thought was kinda weird. I believe that was a hendrickson suspension as well.

That was that one with those Y shaped trailing arms (?)  I think they referred to the arms as " blades " wherever the special place they went, I think this overcomplicated huckfest is headed.

[Geoff Weeks]

2 minutes ago, 67RModel said:

Did you ever end up selling the Marmon?

Not yet, the 5th is off the frame, and I am going to paint where I blasted the rust off with a scaler, then re assemble and sell. To be fair it is going to need some work, and I don't know how many would be willing to put in the work. 

[BottleHauler84]

9 minutes ago, Mark T said:

That was that one with those Y shaped trailing arms (?)  I think they referred to the arms as " blades " wherever the special place they went, I think this overcomplicated huckfest is headed.

Ahhh I gotcha.  Yeah I remember that one. That didn't seem like a very good design from the start.  The Mack TD i believe it was called. 

[Geoff Weeks]

Makes me wonder, how many drivers outside of vocational uses have ever driven a truck OTR with spring ride? Good spring is better than bad air!

[Red Horse]

15 hours ago, JoeH said:

Looks are... meh. Maybe itll grow on me, but im still working RD's and an MR.

Take good care of these!  When you read about the electronics in anything new, the only winners will be the mice who enjoy snacking on wiring😎

[Joey Mack]

I pray for the owners of that set up..  repair costs will be insane... the Huck bolts cost alone would break a man with limited funds to fix this truck, because he would be recooperating from the other costs from the exhaust systems and all 500 computers that will fail..  (500 is an exageration for entertainment purposes only) but... you know what i mean..  

[mowerman]

Frankly I think there is too many holes in the frame 

[mowerman]

9 hours ago, Geoff Weeks said:

Makes me wonder, how many drivers outside of vocational uses have ever driven a truck OTR with spring ride? Good spring is better than bad air!

I’ve driven lotsa both I don’t see any difference especially bobtail versus loaded box … I think they have got the public swindled with all this unnecessary expense …. Cab air ride ok now you got something 

[The Heinz]

On 3/5/2026 at 10:02 AM, Bullheaded said:

Four more bags to change, LOL And what is the "electronic controlled" part of it they say?

I gotta say, I am a fan of Freightliner's Air Liner. I was running that since 2009 on a Freightliner, then two Western Star dump trucks working on and off road and I don't recall even ever changing an air bag. I was only replacing bags on the lift axles.

If it's like the current Mack/Volvo air ride, it'll have a sensor on at least one airbag that sends pressure readings to a module to toughen the suspension under heavy load, our techs call it the load sensor. We don't see too many failures out of it in all honesty. 

[Bullheaded]

9 hours ago, The Heinz said:

If it's like the current Mack/Volvo air ride, it'll have a sensor on at least one airbag that sends pressure readings to a module to toughen the suspension under heavy load, our techs call it the load sensor. We don't see too many failures out of it in all honesty. 

So basically an electronic levelling valve.

Myself I prefer Camelback or walking beam, or even Haulmax rubber block. But here in Ontario Canada, I've learned through experience that the only reliable way to make these stupid S.P.I.F. automatic lift axles work is with air suspension. Because with mechanical suspension they have to have load cells to work them and they just aren't reliable.

[Joey Mack]

Im always a fan of Camel Back, Hendrickson Walking beam and HN..  I found the HN to be easy to repair, done a bunch on trash trucks..  

[Bullheaded]

I don't think any manufacturer is going to go backwards on emissions even with Trump saying he is going to back off the EPA, but can we please have 18 speed manual transmissions back!!!! The only automatic that is any good is an Allison. These automated manuals are junk.

Just saw the introduction at Conex for the new C580 Kenworth and it had an automatic in it, LOL

I think if I ever had to get back into trucking, God forbid, I'd be buying one of those new Autocars.  Dash and door panels all have exposed screws, no buttons on steering wheel and only one screen on dash and it is for diagnostics. Not only does it show fault codes, it gives a full description, has a screen that shows all fuses and will tell you if one is burnt out, shows you the wiring schematic for that circuit throughout the whole truck. Now that is how you build a truck!