Banks IDash gauge-- some Q's

[AH64ID]

I got my new iDash installed and I need some help with a few of the available parameters:

-On the "emissions" page, I see listed "DPF RG, DPF regen trigger %" but then I also see "PM 1, particulate matter %". What is the difference, and which one gives a picture of the current state of the DPF?

The DPF percentage is what you want to monitor. When it hits 100% a regen will happen. This could be time based or soot based.

PM deals with the particulate matter sensor after the SCR that monitors DPF health.

-What is the difference between "LOAD absolute" and "LOAD calculated", and which is a better picture of what the engine is doing?

-I notice there are multiple EGT sensors. Theres EGT sensors 1 thru 5, but then theres also EGT sensors 1/1 thru 1/5. What is the difference?

Likely the same data just different OBDII protocols.

-Lastly (at least for now), is Trans Temp supposed to available on the iDash? Because depending on which parameter list you read from Banks, one lists trans temp and one doesn't. Can anyone using the iDash on a 2024 confirm if its available on the gauge?

Couldn't tell ya, but the CTS3 has both.

After a regen my banks gauge goes to around 40% and then regens again around 95%.

If you shut your truck off, let it sit for a couple min, and restart soon after a regen the % should drop much lower than 40% and if it doesn't your regens aren't effectivley cleaning your DPF. I've seen multiple single digit reading this way.

Also, regen occurs at 100% and only 100%.

Kinda wish I would have kept my Edge because they've had six years to add lockup status and trans temp as there were available on the 4th gen.

Banks always seems to be developing things for these truck indefinitely.

 

[Will_T]

If you shut your truck off, let it sit for a couple min, and restart soon after a regen the % should drop much lower than 40% and if it doesn't your regens aren't effectivley cleaning your DPF. I've seen multiple single digit reading this way.

Also, regen occurs at 100% and only 100%.

I can confirm this. With a cold start this morning my regen% was at @ 4% for a while before starting to move up and around as it usually does between a regen and when the % reaches 50%. This made sense to me as the last 24 hour regen was only a few miles ago. What I consistently see is that below about 50%, the % number is not always that accurate and moves up and down quite a bit. I *think* this is because the gauge is trying to display the true % from sensors and is not able to always do it accurately. Once it reaches the 50% point, it starts displaying the % as a percentage of the 24 hours rather than from sensors. Mine will gradually and accurately count up the percentage matching the number with the hours on my engine hours PID. When it reaches 100% and not before, which corresponds to 24 hours, it will regen. So it seems to be measuring differently for the first 50% than it does for the 50 to 100% range. Not sure what happens on the % PID if a regen is needed before 24 hours.

I had one time, from a bad tank of fuel I believe, where the regen surprised me and came on before I expected it and then did not want to complete. So I was not watching close enough to know what the gauge actually said before it went into regen but it definitely was sooner than 24 hours. I had to drive about 45 minutes at highway speed before the regen finished. Then it started to climb faster than normal again. I believe it would have gone into regen too soon again had I not filled up with fresh fuel. A little while after the fill up things went back to normal.

To get regen info on my iDash, I have the %, EGT1, EGT3, and Regen ON/OFF PIDs displayed. This gives me all I need to know about the regen process and status. Plus the added benefit of seeing not to shut down the engine if I just came off the road and EGT 1 temp is still 500 degrees. Then I just choose the other four PID fields to show things I want that can not be shown on the EVIC. I have been very happy with my iDash overall.

 

[AH64ID]

What I consistently see is that below about 50%, the % number is not always that accurate and moves up and down quite a bit. I *think* this is because the gauge is trying to display the true % from sensors and is not able to always do it accurately. Once it reaches the 50% point, it starts displaying the % as a percentage of the 24 hours rather than from sensors. Mine will gradually and accurately count up the percentage matching the number with the hours on my engine hours PID. When it reaches 100% and not before, which corresponds to 24 hours, it will regen. So it seems to be measuring differently for the first 50% than it does for the 50 to 100% range. Not sure what happens on the % PID if a regen is needed before 24 hours.

The % is "accurate" it's just being driven by soot loading at that point and not engine hours. The PID is reporting that number accurately, but there is a belief that the ECM is calculating soot loading incorrectly, especially at low exhaust flow.

When my driving style is conducive to 24 hour regens I see the same thing. When it's not conducive to 24 hour regens that trend continues past 50% (12 hours) until the truck enters a soot based regen or my driving conducts enough passive regen to run the %age based off time.

 

[ErikTheRed]

Thanks everyone for your input and advice. I guess my issue is, I see all these available parameters, but with many of them, I don't understand what they tell me, or more importantly, why I would need to know it. An example, oldirteh posted his iDash screen above and he shows boost PSI, but also turbo RPM. Why would I want to know what turbo RPM is? Wouldn't boost PSI and turbo RPM kinda go hand-in-hand? If boost PSI is high, turbo RPM is also high. But knowing the turbo RPM, I don't understand how thats helpful to me as the driver. Theres lots of stuff on the iDash list that Im not sure why I'd need to know it. Somebody (Banks, are you reading this?) should write a tutorial on all the available parameters, what they mean in layman's term, and why the average Joe might find them useful (or not) to monitor.

 

[AH64ID]

Thanks everyone for your input and advice. I guess my issue is, I see all these available parameters, but with many of them, I don't understand what they tell me, or more importantly, why I would need to know it. An example, oldirteh posted his iDash screen above and he shows boost PSI, but also turbo RPM. Why would I want to know what turbo RPM is? Wouldn't boost PSI and turbo RPM kinda go hand-in-hand? If boost PSI is high, turbo RPM is also high. But knowing the turbo RPM, I don't understand how thats helpful to me as the driver. Lots of stuff on the iDash list that Im not sure why I'd need to know it. Somebody (Banks, are you reading this?) should write a tutorial on all the available parameters, what they mean in layman's term, and why the average Joe might find them useful (or not) to monitor.

Monitors aren’t usually meant for the average joe. The dash tells the average joe everything they need to know, and arguably more.

There are many parameters available that are just fun to watch, turbo rpm being one of them.

 

[ErikTheRed]

oldirteh,

Monitors aren’t usually meant for the average joe. The dash tells the average joe everything they need to know, and arguably more.

There are many parameters available that are just fun to watch, turbo rpm being one of them.

Yup that makes sense, totally agree-- the average Joe doesn't need to know more than the dash gauges show. (wait... that was like a mini limerick... LOL) But, like so many of us here on this forum, we aren't the average Joes. I wanna know stuff just to know it, probably because I'm a glutton for unnecessary stress. My bro-in-law in his brand new 24 Denali HD, doesn't want an iDash for exactly that reason-- just a bunch of numbers to stress about. But I'm ridiculous about this crap so yeah, I wanna see it. And you're right, sometimes it IS kinda fun to see whats going on.

oldirteh, I have EGT 1 and EGT 3 on my screen for the reasons AH64ID explained. But I see you also have EGT 2. Is there a particular reason for that one?

 

[ErikTheRed]

So this evening I set the following parameters on the iDash:

1- EGT1
2- EGT3
3-TRQ REF
4- LOAD
5- BOOST PSI
6- EMPTY FOR NOW
7- DPF RG %
8- REGEN ON/OFF

We drove the truck about 45 miles to friends house. EGT1 and EGT3 are working as I expected. I hit 650 degrees on EGT3 for just a moment at about 75 mph. TRQ REF does nothing but display a constant "850", it does not change. Not sure but I assume TRQ REF just displays the rated max torque of the engine? Which in my case is not correct since my truck is a HO, so if it simply displays the max torque rating, shouldn't it read 1075? On the parameter list from Banks it shows the TRQ setting displays LB FT, so I was expecting to see the numbers change according to the actual current (or calculated), always-changing torque output of the engine. This doesn't happen so I don't understand the point of it. LOAD is also confusing-- its supposed to be displayed in a percentage, but at idle, its around 75 and will jump to 150+ easily if I goose it. 150%? I don't understand the numbers, I don't have any basis. If stone low idle was 1% and max power screaming up a mountainside grade pulling 25k @ 75mph with the hammer to the wood was 100%, and then everything in between, those numbers I would understand. BOOST works as expected. DPF RG% is, uhh, I'm not sure there either. When I started the truck, it read 12%. About 10 miles down the road it was at 45% but never went higher. When I started the truck again several hours later, it was at 15% and again went to 45% after some miles. Is this normal? Not sure but after reading what you fellers posted above, I think it is? Regardless of what the iDash reads, the truck's DPF EVIC still shows 0 and has since I've owned the truck, 3850 miles.

Despite what Banks shows on the parameters list, there is no TRANS TEMP on the iDash. Nor are there any transmission displays such as TC SLIP or TRANS GEAR, which are also on their list. I think a call to Banks may be in order.

 

[oledirteh]

A "EGT2" on a Banks iDash monitor refers to the Exhaust Gas Temperature reading from the second exhaust sensor, essentially allowing you to monitor the temperature of the exhaust gases at a point further downstream in the exhaust system, typically used to closely monitor engine health, especially when towing heavy loads or driving in demanding conditions.

Key points about EGT2 on a Banks iDash:

• Monitoring engine health:
  By tracking the EGT2, you can identify potential issues like excessive heat buildup in the engine, which could indicate problems with fuel injection, turbocharger performance, or clogged exhaust components.
  
  
• Diesel applications:
  This feature is particularly important for diesel engines, where managing exhaust gas temperatures is crucial for optimal performance and emissions compliance.

 

[AH64ID]

So this evening I set the following parameters on the iDash:

1- EGT1
2- EGT3
3-TRQ REF
4- LOAD
5- BOOST PSI
6- EMPTY FOR NOW
7- DPF RG %
8- REGEN ON/OFF

We drove the truck about 45 miles to friends house. EGT1 and EGT3 are working as I expected. I hit 650 degrees on EGT3 for just a moment at about 75 mph. TRQ REF does nothing but display a constant "850", it does not change. Not sure but I assume TRQ REF just displays the rated max torque of the engine? Which in my case is not correct since my truck is a HO, so if it simply displays the max torque rating, shouldn't it read 1075? On the parameter list from Banks it shows the TRQ setting displays LB FT, so I was expecting to see the numbers change according to the actual current (or calculated), always-changing torque output of the engine. This doesn't happen so I don't understand the point of it. LOAD is also confusing-- its supposed to be displayed in a percentage, but at idle, its around 75 and will jump to 150+ easily if I goose it. 150%? I don't understand the numbers, I don't have any basis. If stone low idle was 1% and max power screaming up a mountainside grade pulling 25k @ 75mph with the hammer to the wood was 100%, and then everything in between, those numbers I would understand. BOOST works as expected. DPF RG% is, uhh, I'm not sure there either. When I started the truck, it read 12%. About 10 miles down the road it was at 45% but never went higher. When I started the truck again several hours later, it was at 15% and again went to 45% after some miles. Is this normal? Not sure but after reading what you fellers posted above, I think it is? Regardless of what the iDash reads, the truck's DPF EVIC still shows 0 and has since I've owned the truck, 3850 miles.

Despite what Banks shows on the parameters list, there is no TRANS TEMP on the iDash. Nor are there any transmission displays such as TC SLIP or TRANS GEAR, which are also on their list. I think a call to Banks may be in order.

No clue on TRQ REF, but I’ve always found the HP and TQ data to be a bit wonky over OBDII readings.

Load is reading incorrectly. It doesn’t work quite like you expected, but it does work on a 0-100% scale. Load is the % of fuel being injected at that rpm. So you can see the load hit 100% on a hard acceleration at 1500 rpms, but you’re not making 100% of maximum power but rather 100% of the power for that rpm. For example, if you were cruising on the highway with a demand for 150hp that might read 50% load in 6th but if you drop to 5th the load would decrease even thou the hp production was the same.

DPF regen seems to be working correctly. Read up on all the discussions of how to interpret it here on the forums. Short answer is that your truck must have completed an active regen recently (no more than 3 hours before your drive) which was represented by the 12%. That also tells me the DPF is relatively clean. Jumping upto around 45% while driving is normal within the first 12 hours after a regen. Soot is driving the gauge at that point and on a clean DPF with passive regen helping out the gauge likes to read around 40-50% while cruising.

A "EGT2" on a Banks iDash monitor refers to the Exhaust Gas Temperature reading from the second exhaust sensor, essentially allowing you to monitor the temperature of the exhaust gases at a point further downstream in the exhaust system, typically used to closely monitor engine health, especially when towing heavy loads or driving in demanding conditions.

Key points about EGT2 on a Banks iDash:

• Monitoring engine health:
  By tracking the EGT2, you can identify potential issues like excessive heat buildup in the engine, which could indicate problems with fuel injection, turbocharger performance, or clogged exhaust components.
  
  
• Diesel applications:
  This feature is particularly important for diesel engines, where managing exhaust gas temperatures is crucial for optimal performance and emissions compliance.

AI response? Lots of words but doesn’t actually tell you anything.

EGT2 is DOC outlet temp. When there isn’t an active regen EGT2 will generally be slightly lower than EGT1 and really won’t tell you much. Where EGT2 is important is during an active regen, and the ECM will use EGT2 to control fuel being injected during the post-injection to sustain the DPF temp needed for active regen. I occasionally look at EGT2 during an active regen to see what the DOC is making for temps, just out of curiosity.

 

[oledirteh]

No clue on TRQ REF, but I’ve always found the HP and TQ data to be a bit wonky over OBDII readings.

Load is reading incorrectly. It doesn’t work quite like you expected, but it does work on a 0-100% scale. Load is the % of fuel being injected at that rpm. So you can see the load hit 100% on a hard acceleration at 1500 rpms, but you’re not making 100% of maximum power but rather 100% of the power for that rpm. For example, if you were cruising on the highway with a demand for 150hp that might read 50% load in 6th but if you drop to 5th the load would decrease even thou the hp production was the same.

DPF regen seems to be working correctly. Read up on all the discussions of how to interpret it here on the forums. Short answer is that your truck must have completed an active regen recently (no more than 3 hours before your drive) which was represented by the 12%. That also tells me the DPF is relatively clean. Jumping upto around 45% while driving is normal within the first 12 hours after a regen. Soot is driving the gauge at that point and on a clean DPF with passive regen helping out the gauge likes to read around 40-50% while cruising.



AI response? Lots of words but doesn’t actually tell you anything.

EGT2 is DOC outlet temp. When there isn’t an active regen EGT2 will generally be slightly lower than EGT1 and really won’t tell you much. Where EGT2 is important is during an active regen, and the ECM will use EGT2 to control fuel being injected during the post-injection to sustain the DPF temp needed for active regen. I occasionally look at EGT2 during an active regen to see what the DOC is making for temps, just out of curiosity.

yea lol AI

 

[Will_T]

Despite what Banks shows on the parameters list, there is no TRANS TEMP on the iDash.

I just display the trans temp on the EVIC which leaves me all the eight spots on the iDash for other things that are not on the EVIC and important to know or just fun to watch.



Edit to add FWIW: I have other iDash screens set up that I can go to but this seems to be the one I have settled on for a while.

 

[Will_T]

oldirteh, I have EGT 1 and EGT 3 on my screen for the reasons AH64ID explained. But I see you also have EGT 2. Is there a particular reason for that one?

When I set mine up, I came to the conclusion that EGT1 and 3 were important for getting temps when in both passive and regular regen. I don't think EGT2 adds anything needed to that but someone can correct me if need be.

Having said that, you can also see from the post before this one that I have a couple of other PIDs, ("PM1" and "DPFDP1"), displaying that I go back and forth on. In theory they seem to be of value but I don't find myself paying much attention to them generally. They don't stay at 0 like in the photo all the time as under load I remember DPFDP1 showing a readout. (I remember someone once posting telling me what the DPFDP1 range should be, but I can't remember now what that was.) Not sure if I can remember PM1 showing a number, but I think it has. I don't think about them much and then when I do it has been so long, I forget exactly what they are showing and why I put them there in the first place! The other 6 displayed PIDs however, I do pay attention to. Gear is just for fun I guess, and DEFCON just gets a glance to make sure there is not an issue for some reason. So far that has always been 33 to 34%.

 

[ErikTheRed]

I think I'll give Banks a call on Monday. That the iDash doesn't display trans temp, or any of the transmission displays listed on their parameter list, and the fact that the iDash seems to think my engine is a 850 lb ft SO, and that the LOAD display doesn't appear to be reading correctly, and that no glove-box copy of an owner/user manual is included, are all concerning for a $300 gauge.

 

[AH64ID]

I think I'll give Banks a call on Monday. That the iDash doesn't display trans temp, or any of the transmission displays listed on their parameter list, and the fact that the iDash seems to think my engine is a 850 lb ft SO, and that the LOAD display doesn't appear to be reading correctly, and that no glove-box copy of an owner/user manual is included, are all concerning for a $300 gauge.

I pulled that torque ref PID up on my CTS3 and it also says 850, so it’s not an iDash thing it’s what the truck is reporting. It’s torque reference, so somewhere in the programming the ECM is configured to have that PID read 850, it likely has nothing to do with SO vs HO.

The CTS3 does have a PID where you can input your vehicle weight and it will estimate torque, I don’t use that.

 

[deanfx]

I think I'll give Banks a call on Monday. That the iDash doesn't display trans temp, or any of the transmission displays listed on their parameter list, and the fact that the iDash seems to think my engine is a 850 lb ft SO, and that the LOAD display doesn't appear to be reading correctly, and that no glove-box copy of an owner/user manual is included, are all concerning for a $300 gauge.

Good luck. When I called a couple weeks ago about convertor lock status, the guy told me they were working on it. lol

 

[ErikTheRed]

Good luck. When I called a couple weeks ago about convertor lock status, the guy told me they were working on it. lol

Yeah I expect to hear something like that. For as much as I've raved about Banks (with all their gear I had on my 06 and the help I got from them over the years), so far I'm pretty disappointed with this iDash in the new truck. Mostly I'm irritated that they advertise it does stuff... that it doesn't do.

 

[deanfx]

Yeah I expect to hear something like that. For as much as I've raved about Banks (with all their gear I had on my 06 and the help I got from them over the years), so far I'm pretty disappointed with this iDash in the new truck. Mostly I'm irritated that they advertise it does stuff... that it doesn't do.

Did you call them??

 

[ErikTheRed]

I called Banks last week to discuss the issues I'm having. They advised me, even though I had already done it when I set up the gauge initially, to go back into the set-up screen and reconfigure my truck/engine details and let the gauge restart. After doing so, I now have trans temp and the other trans parameters that were missing before, so thats cool. But now the TRQ REF just shows two dashes (--) where the static 850 used to be, the the LOAD readout is still reading from 75% to 150% so I have no idead whats happening there. And neither does Banks.

 

[GrtPyr]

I called Banks last week to discuss the issues I'm having. They advised me, even though I had already done it when I set up the gauge initially, to go back into the set-up screen and reconfigure my truck/engine details and let the gauge restart. After doing so, I now have trans temp and the other trans parameters that were missing before, so thats cool. But now the TRQ REF just shows two dashes (--) where the static 850 used to be, the the LOAD readout is still reading from 75% to 150% so I have no idead whats happening there. And neither does Banks.

This is good to hear. I installed a CTS3 last year on my truck (same truck you have) and never could find the transmission temp in the CTS3. I suspected the Aisin transmission was possibly not supported by the CTS3 since it reportedly has it's own computer for the transmission. I will have to try updating it again and see if that knocks anything loose.

 

[AH64ID]

This is good to hear. I installed a CTS3 last year on my truck (same truck you have) and never could find the transmission temp in the CTS3. I suspected the Aisin transmission was possibly not supported by the CTS3 since it reportedly has it's own computer for the transmission. I will have to try updating it again and see if that knocks anything loose.

With the Aisin the better temp to monitor is TQ converter outlet temp, since trans temp is redundant with what’s on the dash.