‘Gears, Guitars & Grub’ Mack Anthem Tour

Mack Trucks had six Anthem trucks with three engine specs on the road to test their fuel efficiency. Starting in Greensboro, N.C., the Mack convoy made a 1,000-mile trip to New Orleans. Land Line Staff Writer Tyson Fisher was in one of those trucks. This is his travel log of the trip dubbed “Gears, Guitars & Grub.”

Day 1: Tuesday, Sept. 18

7 a.m. – I’m in Asheville, N.C. The Mack people have driven the six trucks from the headquarters in Greensboro.

8:45 a.m. – And we’re off. I’m in truck No. 1, which has a MP8 445C engine, 1,860 lb-ft of torque, M-Drive transmission with 6×4 tandem rear drive. It has all the aerodynamic packages. Of the three various engine specs, this is supposed to have the lowest miles-per-gallon. Worth noting: There are no ELDs in these trucks. They qualify for an exception for drivers who are required to keep records of duty status not more than eight days within a 30-day period. At any rate, the scenery at the North Carolina-Tennessee border is majestic.

11:30 a.m. – We arrive at the Pilot Flying J in Knoxville, Tenn. I don’t even get 2 feet out the door before a trucker comes up wondering what’s with all these Macks pulling in like they own the place. Super nice guy. I ask him what he thinks of these Anthems. He thinks they look super sharp. I don’t disagree. Another driver, a Volvo guy, also digs these trucks. We have lunch at Denny’s, because when in Rome …

3:15 p.m.– Parking the trucks at McMahon Truck Center in Nashville, Tenn. My truck got 7.7 mpg. Trucks 3 and 4 got nearly 10 mpg. More on those trucks tomorrow. The hotel has a Bluetooth speaker shaped like a guitar amp. Of course. Other things I have noticed about Nashville: 1. Everyone has a dog. 2. There are just as many electric scooters as there are people.

10 p.m. – Guy at the bar from New Jersey starts up a conversation about how technology is taking over jobs. I mention autonomous vehicles and truckers. I think I blew his mind, because he never thought of that before. After explaining the situation, he is no longer sure about having fully self-driving trucks. I’m doing the Lord’s work here.

Day 2: Wednesday, Sept. 19

9:45 a.m. – Leave for the second leg of the trip, which will take us from Nashville to Memphis, Tenn., about a three-and-a-half to four-hour drive. This will be the shortest day. For this trip, I’m in truck No. 3, which is equipped with a MP8 HE 415SE engine, 1,760 lb-ft of torque, M-Drive 6×2. With less horsepower and one drive axle, this model is expected to get the best miles-per-gallon compared with the other two. Because of the low RPMs, not only is this truck more fuel efficient, but it’s also much quieter than the MP8 445C engine I was in yesterday.

One of these trucks did 8.5 mpg while the other one did 9.9 mpg. Why the large variance? It could be many reasons. When you have two nearly identical trucks, it’s likely the driver. One driver could have been more patient, reducing slowing down from the adaptive cruise control on a hill, for example. Total weight is supposed to be 65,000 pounds for all trucks. However, Mack didn’t weigh the loads to the exact pound. There’s likely a margin of error of plus/minus a few hundred pounds.

12:45 p.m. – I’m writing this piece right now while still inside the truck. We’re sitting at 8.9 mpg after three hours into the trip. Trucks 1 and 2 (the truck model I was in yesterday) are sitting in the low 8s. Trucks 5 and 6 are in the mid 8s. Truck No. 4? No one knows. It’s too far back to reach by CB.

2 p.m. – So what was the mpg for the truck that had the highest fuel efficiency in Day 1? An astounding 10.5 mpg! This is where I reiterate that experience is everything. The guy behind the wheel was not a Mack rep. Rather, it was Jim Park, equipment editor at Today’s Trucking and Heavy Duty Trucking and former trucker. Most of the Mack reps have had a CDL for only a few years and mostly just for stuff like this. Jim has real-world experience. Makes all the difference in the world.

6:15 p.m. – If you have never been to Memphis, go to Beale Street. Yes, it’s a tourist thing to do, but for good reason. Today is Wednesday in mid-September. I point that out, because Beale Street looks like freakin’ Mardi Gras tonight. Insanity, but in a good, fun way.

Day 3: Thursday, Sept. 20

7:30 a.m. – Time to leave for New Orleans! This time, I’m in truck No. 5, which is being pushed by a MP8HE-445SE engine with Mack Energy Recovery Technology and the Mack HE+ package. This is the middle ground truck. Same engine but more horsepower than the most fuel-efficient trucks (Nos. 3 and 4). We’re expecting mid-8 mpgs on this truck.

9:30 a.m. – Something was bound to happen on the final leg of this trip, considering how smoothly things have gone so far. After all, this is a real-world scenario test drive where anything can happen, just like everyday trucking. Thanks to Murphy’s Law, truck No. 2 was forced to pull over after the dreaded check engine light came on. Without knowing details right now, there appears to be an issue with the fuel system. Sadly, we left that truck for dead. We’re on a time-sensitive mission!

NOON – Arrive at our pit stop at Tri-State Truck Center in Jackson, Miss. As we walk in there, there’s a beautiful old school International truck at the entrance. Even though this is a Mack event, I had to take a picture. Kind of felt like checking out a beautiful woman while I’m out with my wife.

9 p.m. – For the sake of brevity, let’s skip to Bourbon Street. Wow! Another funny story, as I’m walking down the street complaining about how a pack of cigarettes in New Orleans cost $10 (twice as much as K.C.), two guys in front of me are laughing. They are laughing at me. Turns out, they are from Australia, where cigarettes cost (and I kid you not) $30 a pack! Yes, $30 USD. They also replace branding on packs with images of people basically dying of lung cancer. They don’t mess around in Australia.

The point of this trip was to put Mack Anthem trucks’ fuel efficiency to the test in a “real word” situation. It is not totally the same as the life of a trucker. For one, we were ELD exempt and not racing against the clock. We had Mack dealerships for parking, so that was not an issue either.

With that said, driving 1,000 miles will give you a good idea about how well these Anthems perform. We started the trip with six trucks, but ended with five. Remember that truck with the check engine light? It was in fact a fuel system issue, and Mack had to end the trip for that truck. Ironically, Jim (the guy consistently getting better fuel mileage) was behind the wheel.

Before we get to the final numbers, let’s review the three types of trucks.

Keep in mind that depending on the day, some of these trucks were not driven by career truckers. Second, each leg had different terrain, with the first leg taking us through the mountainous region of the North Carolina-Tennessee border. As you’ll notice, truck

No. 2 has weird numbers. That’s because it only made it halfway through.

Overall, the trucks performed very well. During one trip, I sat back in the 70-inch sleeper to write Part I of this series. Surprisingly, I did this with little difficulty as the ride was relatively smooth. LL