Mack Announces New Factory-Installed Idle Free eAPU for its Mack Anthem^® Model

NASHVILLE, TN (Oct. 25, 2021) – Mack Trucks today announced it will offer a factory-installed electric Auxiliary Power Unit (eAPU) for its 70-inch Mack Anthem^® sleeper models. The Idle Free Series 5000 eAPU offers customers increased air-cooling capacity, reduced idling and simplified maintenance for improved total cost of ownership.

Mack made the announcement during the American Trucking Associations Management Conference and Exhibition Oct. 23 to Oct. 26 at the Music Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

“Reduced idle time means increased fuel savings and engine life for Mack customers, along with decreased engine maintenance costs,” said Stu Russoli, Mack Trucks highway product manager. “The Idle Free eAPU also improves driver comfort because of its high-performing electric cooling capacity, which runs more quietly than diesel-powered APUs and can help drivers have uninterrupted rest time.”

The Idle Free eAPU features a 10,000 BTU compressor and three-speed evaporator fan to direct the airflow to the sleeper without duct work, allowing the driver to easily adjust temperature and fan speed from the control panel located on the evaporator in the bunk.

“The addition of the Idle Free eAPU to the 70-inch Mack Anthem sleeper maximizes efficiency in an already very fuel-efficient vehicle,” Russoli said. “The reduced idling also meets anti-idling laws and contributes to decreased emissions, which is better for the environment.”

The system can be retrofitted with an automatic start-stop kit which allows the truck to automatically idle to recharge the batteries, turning the engine off when they are fully charged.

The Idle Free eAPU option is installed at Lehigh Valley Operations, Macungie, Pennsylvania, where all Mack Class 8 vehicles for North America and export are assembled.

The Anthem featured at the ATA MC&E show in Mack booth No. 8063 is best-in-class when it comes to driver comfort, fuel efficiency and safety technologies making it ideal for the long haul. The Anthem is spec’d with the 13-liter Mack^®MP^®8HE+ efficiency package, which includes the Mack MP8 engine, Mack m DRIVE^™ automated manual transmission, Mack Predictive Cruise and multiple aerodynamic upgrades. When compared with the baseline Anthem* model, customers can see up to a 13% fuel efficiency improvement with the MP8HE+ package.

Mack’s revised MP8HE engine, which utilizes Mack Energy Recovery Technology, is instrumental in the fuel efficiency gains realized in the HE+ efficiency package. Energy Recovery Technology captures waste energy from the engine exhaust and converts it back to mechanical energy, which is then delivered to the engine crankshaft for increased torque. A redesigned wave piston to better distribute more evenly the air-fuel mixture within the cylinder burns fuel more consistently and completely than other piston designs. Increasing the MP8HE’s compression ratio to 18:1, and improvements to the wastegate and turbocharger also contributed to the increased fuel efficiency.

Also standard on the Mack Anthem is Mack GuardDog^® Connect, an uptime solutions service that proactively monitors the truck to help prevent unplanned downtime events, and driver-activated Mack Over The Air (OTA). Mack OTA allows customers to implement software updates themselves whenever it’s most convenient for them. The driver download feature is factory-equipped on models built at Lehigh Valley Operations since Nov. 30, 2020. The Macungie, Pennsylvania-based facility is where all Mack Class 8 vehicles for North America and export are assembled and where the Idle Free eAPU will be installed.

The Idle Free eAPU will be available for order in Q2 2022.

For more information about the Idle Free eAPU or the Mack Anthem model, please visit Mack booth No. 8063 at the ATA MC&E show, contact your local dealer or visit www.macktrucks.com.

CAPTION: Mack Trucks today announced it will offer a factory-installed electric Auxiliary Power Unit (eAPU) for its 70-inch Mack Anthem^® sleeper models. The Idle Free Series 5000 eAPU offers customers increased air-cooling capacity, reduced idling and simplified maintenance for improved total cost of ownership. Mack made the announcement during the American Trucking Associations Management Conference and Exhibition Oct. 23 to Oct. 26 at the Music Center in Nashville, Tennessee.