Mack’s suite of safety features delivers advancements across the board

The Mack® Granite® vocational truck is legendary for getting work done in the toughest of environments; whether that’s hauling large rocks to a construction site or carrying endless tons of fill dirt for land development. But whether you’re hauling dirt, plowing snow, or pumping concrete, Mack knows that safety is as important as durability. That’s why the all-new Granite now offers unmatched safety along with its best-in-class performance.

While every Mack truck rolling off the assembly line meets and exceeds federal safety standards, the new Granite goes even further with a new suite of industry-leading safety technology. Mack’s engineers took the in-depth focus on safety already found in the Anthem and Pioneer, which are designed for regional and long-haul applications, and brought that same attention to the Granite.

“We launched our new Pioneer last year,” says Scott Sokach, Senior Product Manager of Complete Vehicle and Safety Systems at Mack Trucks, “and the safety features on the Pioneer continue with the Granite. It is a direct carry-over in safety from what we have on the highway trucks.”

Sokach points out multiple improvements to the Granite, both in passive safety — features that help protect the driver should a crash occur in the Granite — and in active safety — features that help mitigate crashes altogether.

Passive Safety

The Granite’s cab is designed to be as tough as the environments it’s driven in. Instead of lighter-weight metals that other manufacturers use, Mack outfitted the Granite with a high-strength steel cab that withstands the Swedish Impact Test and other European crash testing standards (which surpass those found domestically).

“To pass the test, you have to be able to open the door after the crash,” Sokach says. “Some of our competitors use aluminum in building their cabs to keep the weight down. Mack, however, prioritizes safety. Our goal is to create a survival space if a crash takes place.”

In addition, the Granite’s chassis construction represents another pillar of passive safety. The front frame rails flare outward around the engine, allowing for multiple safety advancements.

“This design allows us to do a couple of things,” says Sokach. “We can drop the engine a little lower than the chassis for improved center of gravity for the Granite.” An improved center of gravity reduces the likelihood of rollover events.

Additionally, Sokach adds, “In the event of a frontal collision, the engine and transmission are designed to break away from the chassis and go underneath the cab. The goal is avoid crushing the firewall and floor of the cab to help prevent foot and leg injuries.”

Granite is now standard with a frontal airbag. Mack has also carried over the optional side curtain airbags from the Pioneer and Anthem, an industry first in North America. The frontal and side curtain airbags will automatically deploy in a frontal or roll-over collision to help prevent occupant injury from contact with the vehicle.

Sokach says Mack Granite introduces Roll-Over Protective Actions, a first for vocational trucks in North America. When the frontal airbag is deployed or a rollover event is detected, Sokach says specific actions will initiate automatically:

▪ The engine will immediately shut down

▪ The doors of the cab will unlock to avoid restricting fast and efficient exit

▪ Interior lights will illuminate, guiding occupants to the exits

▪ Hazard lights engage to alert approaching vehicles

▪ The parking brake will automatically be set to avoid additional vehicular movement

▪ E-Call 911 will be initiated

The new Granite introduces E-Call 911 for the first time in the vocational market. This standard feature will automatically trigger a call in the event of a crash.

“For any kind of emergency situation, if the driver is in distress, the Granite also features an optional SOS button that can be pushed to open communication with 911,” says Sokach.

Active Safety

While Granite drivers can rest assured knowing the truck will protect them in a crash event, perhaps more impressive are the new strides Mack has taken in active safety applications. The new Mack Protect safety features, implemented into the new Granite, represent the latest advancements in driver safety.

According to Sokach, Mack Protect has built on all the advanced driver assistance (ADAS) features that Mack customers have become accustomed to such as Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Change Support, and Lane Departure Warning. Mack has enhanced and added new ADAS features to Mack Protect.

“Previously with Mack Protect, we could only recognize speed limit signs,” says Sokach. “Now the system has been improved for the Granite to recognize multiple different traffic signs, such as ‘railroad crossing’ and ‘sharp curves ahead.’”

This new feature, Traffic Sign Recognition, can display up to three different signs directly in the instrument cluster. This ensures the driver is informed about the road ahead at all times.

Mack Protect has enhanced Lane Departure Warning with Active Lane Keeping Assist. This feature helps the driver maintain their lane of travel by actively steering the truck if it wanders out of its lane. Granite drivers additionally benefit from Mack Protect’s new Driver Awareness Support (DAS). This serves as the latest in lane-positioning technology.

“This feature monitors the truck’s location in the lane of travel,” says Sokach. "If it detects any erratic lane movement, a pop-up measure will be presented to the driver, indicating the need to stay alert.”

Mack prides itself on Granite’s communication with the driver. The new Heads-Up Display found in the vehicle provides the driver with potential collision warnings, and the new driver- and passenger-side radars offer alert capability on both sides of the vehicle.

“The new Granite also features an emphasis on pedestrian safety,” says Sokach.

“Not only is the Granite outfitted with the new Forward Pedestrian Detection and Warning technology, but it also features Side Pedestrian Detection and Warning technology, [thanks to] Mack Protect.”

Sokach adds, “The pedestrian detection is a huge benefit to the Granite and the vocational side of trucking, where the truck travels through urban settings to its final destination, as well as on job sites where they are faced with maneuvering challenges.”