Mack Trucks on Wednesday introduced Mack Protect, its new proprietary active safety and collision mitigation system, debuting with the all-new Mack Pioneer.
According to Mack, this comprehensive safety technology package represents a significant shift from the Bendix Fusion system previously used across Mack’s Class 8 product line to a proprietary collision mitigation system, delivering enhanced protection with features specifically engineered for Mack trucks.
“With Mack Protect, we're not just introducing new safety features — we’re fundamentally changing our approach to active safety technology,” says Jonathan Randall, president of Mack Trucks North America. “By developing our own proprietary system, we’ve created a seamlessly integrated safety experience that’s optimized specifically for our vehicles and our customers’ needs.”
Mack Protect is available in three distinct packages, which the company says enables customers to select the level of protection that best suits their operation:
- Mack Protect (Standard): Includes forward protection technologies such as forward collision warning, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, traffic stop and go functionality, forward pedestrian detection, road sign recognition and frontal airbags.
- Mack Protect Pro: Builds on the standard package by adding comprehensive side protection, including side curtain airbags, lane change and blind spot support on both driver and passenger sides, as well as side pedestrian detection.
- Mack Protect Premier: The most advanced option, adding active steering capabilities with lane-keeping assist to the Pro package features.
[RELATED: Mack touts new safety features for Pioneer]
“We’ve taken a thoughtful approach to packaging these safety technologies,” says Blake Routh, senior highway product manager at Mack Trucks. “Rather than overwhelming customers with complex option lists, we've created intuitive packages that make it easy to select the right level of protection for their specific applications.”
Additionally, Mack says the Protect system introduces several new safety technologies that have never before been offered, including:
- Driver Awareness Support with heads-up display capability
- Driver- and passenger-side radar detection systems
- Forward and side pedestrian detection with automatic warnings
- Active steering assistance with lane-keeping functionality
“The driver awareness features we’ve developed respond directly to the challenges professional drivers face every day,” says Scott Sokach, senior safety product manager at Mack Trucks. “Our system is designed not just to respond to emergency situations, but to help prevent them from occurring in the first place by extending the driver's awareness of their surroundings.”
