Mack shows refreshed Granite trucks at World of Concrete

Mack rolled out its refreshed Mack Granite vocational trucks, including a cement mixer at World of Concrete.

The new Granite gets a modernized front appearance and some handy new features to improve safety, especially when driving at night.

The company will start taking orders in February for the refreshed model, with production starting in summer.

The new LED headlights on the refreshed Granites deliver cooler, whiter, light and illuminate more of the front and sides of the road.Mack TrucksThe new Granites will come standard with Grote automatic-heating LED headlights, replacing the halogen ones. Heating is automatically triggered by outside temperature – no need to push a button – to remove snow and ice from the lenses.

"We've had great feedback from our field tests in the North, and it's actually performing better than the previous headlights," said Tim Wrinkle, Mack senior product manager. Noting that halogen lamps produce their own heat, he said the LED auto-heated versions were removing snow and ice quicker.

The lenses are impact resistant, and UV resistant to prevent yellowing over time, Wrinkle said.

The headlights are 50% brighter compared to halogen. They also illuminate a wider area, giving 50% more peripheral vision for better sight along the side of the road. Forward illumination is increased 12%.

"So you're able to detect objects sooner and react faster if there's anything coming in the road or any animals on the side of the road that you need to react to," Wrinkle said.

He noted that the lights’ color is cooler and whiter for easier detection of objects and reduced eyestrain.

During the day, amber running lights come on and double as turn signals.

The headlights can also be easily replaced should damage occur, Wrinkle said. The headlights are also available to replace and upgrade the lights on older Granites.

Mack TrucksCustomers will get a choice of new grilles, either bright or black. The standard grille has blacked-out crossbars surrounding the chrome Mack badge. Customers can also choose an all-chrome grille.

The grille's surround now goes straight across at the top instead of coming to a downward point at the center.

The Mack bridge logo design has also been incorporated into the grille. Turn signals have been placed on either side of the logo for easier indication to other drivers.

The air intakes have also been updated.

Customers will get a choice of grille on the new Mack Granites, black or bright. The photo above shows the new Granite cement mixer with all-chrome "bright" grille.Equipment World

The refreshed Granites will also come with a variety of features found on the latest current models, including mDrive HD 13th speed for startability and 14th speed as a creep mode, which is helpful when performing curb and gutter paving operations when slow movement is needed.

The Granites don't sacrifice fuel efficiency for the increased startability, with the ability to run faster rear-axle ratios at highway speed, the company says. Mack calls this feature "two trucks in one."

Interior features coming over to the refreshed Granites include:

Refreshed Mack Granite mixer truck at World of Concrete 2023Equipment WorldThe Granites also get the company's Guard Dog Connect telematics system. The system can get automatic updates through the Mack Over the Air system in which 57,475 Mack Trucks are enrolled, the company says. That prevents the need to take trucks into the dealership for the updates. Drivers can control the timing of these updates, and a new feature enables drivers to actually do the updates themselves, saving fleet managers time.

When maintenance issues do occur that require coming into the dealership, Mack ASIST provides a quick communication platform between dealers and customers during diagnostics and repair.

The black redesigned grille, as seen above, will be standard on the new Mack Granites, with the option for an all-chrome grille.Mack Trucks