Peterbilt Motor Co. plans to make the Bendix Wingman Advanced collision mitigation safety system a standard feature on its Model 579 highway tractor starting July 1.
A radar-based collision mitigation system aimed specifically at reducing rear-end collisions, Wingman Advanced also offers adaptive cruise control with braking as well as autonomous emergency braking (AEB), Bendix noted.
The Wingman system us based on the Bendix Electronic Stability Program (ESP), Peterbilt has offered as a standard feature on most of its Class 8 tractors – including the Model 579 – since 2012. Wingman Advanced has been an option on its entire range of on-highway truck models for the same period, Bendix noted.
“The pairing of our most sophisticated truck with Bendix’s cutting-edge active safety systems has proven popular with fleets and drivers over the past five years, so making Wingman Advanced standard on the Model 579 makes perfect sense from our perspective,” noted Robert Woodall, Peterbilt’s assistant general manager of sales and marketing, in a statement.
“Like the team at Bendix, Peterbilt is always working toward safer trucks and safer highways, and is dedicated to embracing technologies that have been road-tested and shown to make a positive, measurable impact,” he added.
In addition to Wingman Advanced and ESP, Peterbilt also offers Bendix’s “flagship” driver assistance system, Wingman Fusion, on both the Model 579 and the vocational Model 567. Bendix's SmarTire Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) has also been available as a factory-installed option on ;Peterbilt Class 8 tractors since 2014, and the Bendix ADB22X air disc brake has been standard equipment on Peterbilt Class 8 steer axles since 2012, noted Scott Burkhart, Bendix’s vice president of sales, marketing, and business development, in a statement.
“We’re excited to keep strengthening the relationship that Bendix technologies and the Peterbilt 579 have had since this trailblazing truck was launched in 2012,” he said. “As a trucking industry safety leader, Peterbilt has always set high bars for safety, reliability, quality, and performance in its vehicles. The 579 is no exception, and Wingman Advanced in standard position will help ;Peterbilt continue to reach and exceed those goals.”
