Mack Trucks Offers Virtual Reality Rides in Certain Models

Mack Trucks said it now offers an online virtual reality test drive of models equipped with its mDrive HD 13-speed automated manual transmission, calling the experience a first for heavy-duty truck manufacturers.

Virtual reality is a computer-generated simulation of a three-dimensional image or environment that can be interacted with in a seemingly physical way by placing the viewer’s perspective within the image or video itself, Mack said.

Using virtual-reality headgear, Google Cardboard or a smartphone, viewers can look around 360 degrees to see the cab interior in its entirety as well as see what it feels like to be in the cab of a Mack model while it operates in quarries and on the highway, according to the Greensboro, North Carolina-based company. Mack is a unit of Sweden-based Volvo Group.

For example, the virtual-reality experience showcases the power of its mDrive HD 13-speed as it frees the Mack Granite model from mud on a job site; as it easily drives up and down a steep grade without having to continuously apply brakes, reducing brake wear-and-tear; and as it smoothly manages a fully loaded Mack Pinnacle model up and down a 15% and a 20% grade, according to Mack.

To experience Mack virtual reality, visit  http://www.macktrucks.com/VR. The virtual-reality videos also will be posted to the Mack website, but will not be as immersive as when Google Cardboard and the app are used, according to Mack.