CarBrandLogos archive · Mack · 1953

MackMack B Model

The best-looking American truck of its era, and it worked as hard as it looked good.

Photo: dave_7 · CC BY-SA 2.0

The story

A defining chapter in Mack history.

Explore the ideas, engineering and context that shaped the Mack B Model, then continue into its specifications and place in the marque's lineage.

Flickr - jimduell - 6-18-11 MACUNGIE ATCA TRUCK SHOW

Origins

Mack replaced the L-series in 1953 with a truck that broke with the flat-fronted, upright convention of the period. The B-model's bonnet was rounded and tapered, the wings flowed into the cab, and the windscreen was a single curved piece. It is widely regarded as the most attractive American heavy truck ever built, and it was styled that way partly because Mack believed appearance sold trucks to owner-operators who took pride in them.

Flickr - jimduell - 6-18-11 MACUNGIE ATCA TRUCK SHOW · Jim Duell from Warsaw, NY, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0

Design and engineering

Beneath the sheet metal it was thoroughly conventional and thoroughly durable. Engines ranged from a 6.8-litre Magnadyne petrol six through a series of Thermodyne diesel sixes up to 11.6 litres, some turbocharged. Transmissions were Mack's own Duplex, Triplex and Quadruplex arrangements, combining a five-speed main box with a two, three or four-speed auxiliary to give ten, fifteen or twenty ratios, which drivers learned to manage with two levers and no synchromesh.

Mack B81 dump truck at Hershey 2019 · Mr.choppers · CC BY-SA 3.0

In production

It was sold as a highway tractor, a rigid, a dump truck, a fire apparatus chassis and a cowled chassis for school buses, and it turned up in every one of those roles across North America for thirteen years. Production ended in 1966 when the R-series took over, but B-models stayed at work for decades afterwards and are now among the most collected classic trucks in the United States.

At a glance

The facts that define it.

Produced

1953–1966

Engine

6.8&nbsp

Body

Truck

Technical specification

The Mack B Model, in detail.

Production: 1953-1966
Class: Truck
Body style: Truck (bonneted cab); Semi-truck; Tractor; Straight/rigid truck; Cowled chassis School bus; Fire truck; Multi-stop truck
Engine: 6.8 L Magnadyne I6 (112 kW) (petrol); 8.4 L I6 (103 kW) (diesel); 11.0 L Thermodyne I6 (139 kW) (diesel); 11.0 L Thermodyne I6 T (164 kW) (diesel); 11.6 L Thermodyne I6 (157&n
Transmission: Mack 10-speed duplex (5-speed, 2-speed auxiliary); Mack 15-speed triplex (5-speed, 3-speed auxiliary); Mack 20-speed quadruplex (5-speed, 4-speed auxiliary)
Manufacturer: Mack Trucks