Banks power system

[superyooper]

Trying to get more power out of my 2004 ford v10. I am thinking of getting a Banks system installed (air intake and exhaust) but the only install place listed is in california. Has anyone living in florida been able to get a system installed? Or is an install worth the time and money?

 

thanks in advance

[rpsinc]

I have no experience with that system on a V10 but have some with a 460 V8.  Definitely worth it on a 36' MH on the F53 chassis.  I am familiar with the Banks location and have worked at their facility.  They have racks to do those installs.  Most of this is aftermarket bolt-on equipment and might be handled by shops that service MHs, esp gas chassis's.  Not too difficult just time consuming, but really depends on skill level and available work area.

Banks does build good stuff.

[Kirk W]

I had a Banks system installed by my local shop in the Ft Worth, TX area when I got one 20+ years ago. I would bet if you contact Banks they can give you some places to get on put on.

[Chalkie]

16 hours ago, superyooper said:

I am thinking of getting a Banks system installed (air intake and exhaust) but the only install place listed is in california.

I just looked at the Banks website and it says you can get it installed at the manufacturer location, it does not say you must get it installed there.

[oldjohnt]

Super, having owned RV's over 50 years I've had most all the brands at one time or another and currently the V10 Ford which has served me quite well over 50,000 miles (hopefully a minor issue will be resolved soon). True it's NOT any great torque engine and it's my opinion sure a Banks system would add a few more horses AND IF I WERE YOUNG JUST STARTING AND PLAN TO DRIVE THE V10 A TON OF MILES I WOULD INVEST IN BANKS.....Instead of Banks the things Ive done with mine were to add a high capacity deep auto tranny pan and changed to synthetic fluid (I have the 5R 110 with Tow Haul selection) with the cooling tubes, gave it a fresh tune up some time back with new plugs fuel and air filters etc, flushed the cooling system, have ran full synthetic oil changed every 3/4 K miles etc..

 OOPS I almost forgot I did have to replace some exhaust manifold studs last fall, there were no exh leaks yet but had some broken off grrrrrrrrrr Nothing money didn't fix lol  

  But where to get it installed ?????????? YES Im a believer in Banks if you need a bit more power and will be driving it lots of miles. YOUR BUDGET YOUR CHOICE

 John T  

[Kirk W]

While I can't find a list of dealers, they have a page to register new dealers so they must still have them. Also it states that you can install the kits yourself and they do sell direct. I also located a dealer spotlight page that is hosted by Banks so there is no doubt that the do have dealers. 

[D&J]

I've had two Banks cat back systems, first was on a 91 Ford 460 and it was amazing. The second was on a 2000 V10 and it made very little difference.

Denny

[Kirk W]

I had one of the early release 1999 F53 chassis motorhomes, built in March 1998. At about 3000 miles I had the full Banks power pack of air intake, headers, and exhaust systems plus the TransCommand for the transmission. The improvement was amazing. I got mine after reading a review of it in Motorhome Magazine. I can't find the article but since that was a long time ago it may not apply now anyway. The review did a complete check out of the motorhome immediately before installation and again after. I did find some of the items in my notes from then and torque was increased by 47 ft/lb, engine temperature at the end of a long climb was down and transmission temperature was even more but I didn't keep that. Fuel mileage was improved only slightly. In our experience our ability to hold speed on a steep grade was greatly improved as long as you could keep the RPMs up but once a traffic problem forced you to slow it was difficult to recover. The catch to all of that if applied to the more recent versions of the V10 is that several of the features of the early Banks kit were made to the chassis by Ford on later engines. Ford added headers as part of the power upgrade and I believe other items so I suspect that the improvement would be less for the later versions of the V10. I also had the TransCommand installed into the transmission controls at the same time and it is difficult to know how much of the improvement I saw was from the Power Pack and what was from the TransCommand that I don't believe is even available today. TransCommand was a module that plugged into the transmission control electronics which changed the shift points and the torque converter lock up. 

[oldjohnt]

• Hi again sure, As a V10 Ford owner I'm enjoying this thread and look forward to your decision. Here are a couple interesting links I found regarding V10 upgrades as well as Banks performance reviews, however I would favor independent user reviews versus any the company publishes.. 

FMCA V10 Thread:      https://community.fmca.com/topic/94-banks-power-pack-system/

Banks performance reviews:    https://www.bing.com/search?q=banks+power+system+reviews&cvid=f9e83465754b4763bd3f354b8a4e8209&aqs=edge..69i57j69i64.10283j0j4&FORM=ANAB01&PC=EDGEDSE

 Let us know your decision

John T

[Randyretired]

I had a terrible experience with Banks and will never do business with them again. In 1999 I purchased a new diesel PU.  Ordered a Banks kit for it.  Per the directions I cutoff the existing tail pipes and muffler.   However, the new kit didn't fit.   I called Banks and they insisted I was doing something wrong and gave me the runaround. After fighting with them for a couple of weeks I guess they received enough complaints that they finally realized they had a problem.  They promised a fix was on the way but please be patient.   It will be at least 90 days. Our new PU was not useable for 90 days or more plus the 2 weeks fighting with them.  We missed one big RV trip planned with friends and more.  When the tail pipe fix finally arrived and we tried to drive the PU it set trouble codes.  That was another lengthy ordeal that was never resolved.  Many have had good luck with Banks but their customer service when things go wrong failed us miserably. 

[travelinbob]

I for one have had an excellent experience with Banks and proudly display their logo right under the F550 badges on the side of my truck. I elected to only have them install the exhaust brake and for that I will be forever grateful. Of course I w as only about an hour from Azusa, Ca where they did my install while I waited.

With the exhaust brake I can now decend hills comfortably pulling my 20,000 # trailer.

[TXiceman]

We had the Banks system on a 31' class C with the 6.8L V-10.  It was a great improvement.

Ken

[superyooper]

Called my local rv service guy and he didn't recommend getting the Banks system installed. Reason was not enough improvement for the money spent. I tried the 5Star tuner and all I got from that was a terrible engine miss so I will be content with the factory setup on the coach. 

thanks for all the input!

[Kirk W]

1 hour ago, superyooper said:

Reason was not enough improvement for the money spent.

That is a very subjective thing. A big thing to consider is how long and how many miles do you expect to keep it? For the complete performance package you are probably looking at $2000+ and the cost of getting it installed. For just over $300 you could get the Trans Command which will improve transmission performance. I had the entire package that includes the ram air, exhaust system and the TransCommand back in 1999 for about $2400, installed by the selling dealer. The RV was less than 1 year old at the time and we kept it for a total of 14 years so my amortization was less than $200 per year. A lot of early V10's had exhaust manifold problems and the headers removed that issue so that was a consideration for me but I also planned at the time to use the RV for at least 10 more years. 

If you were to get the Banks, would you be paying your mechanic to install it? I suspect that if you were to speak to a shop that sells and installs the Banks products you might hear a very different opinion.

Edited April 22, 2023 by Kirk W

[Anawilliam850]

Upgrading your air intake and exhaust systems can help improve engine performance and increase power output. The Banks system you mentioned is a reputable brand, and their products are designed to increase horsepower, torque, and fuel efficiency. However, before making any modifications to your engine, it's important to ensure that your vehicle's drivetrain, transmission, and other components are able to handle the increased power output.

It's also worth noting that installing an aftermarket system like Banks can be a significant investment in both time and money. You will need to have the system professionally installed, which can be expensive, and it's important to choose a reputable installer who is experienced with this type of modification.