Increased Engine Power?
I have a Gas Workhorse 8.1 with Allison 6 speed and want to increase power. I have added Banks Power exhaust systems on 2 coaches in past and was very pleased in Mts and on short entry ramps. I now ...
Forum Discussion
Gjac,
Thanks for the reply. I was hoping someone would respond regarding the Banks Water/Meth system. It sounds like it really helped your buddy.
I have owned two gas coaches where I installed the complete Banks header systems and it makes a huge difference in power and it does help fuel economy with a caveat. Since you have more power on the same amount of throttle, IF you always run half throttle and did 60mph on a flat highway, you would see noticeable difference in MPG. HOWEVER, most of us when we have more power, particularly in an already slow and very heavy vehicle, use that power. Particularly on steep grades. With the Banks header systems, you could climb the grades much faster but often you still had the pedal to the metal but were usually in a gear or two higher and going 50 to 60 instead of 20 to 30 thus using the same fuel. At least that was what I did. I would love passing a DP on a steep grade which was easy unless it was a higher end DP that had the 400hp or above engine or someone like your buddy who made his own performance mods.
The cost of a Banks complete header-exhaust system which now includes a ram air system plus a electronic adjustable programmer is about $2600 direct from Banks. You still have the install. Their brochure says this gives you 70hp. However, they also sell the same package, without the headers and their tests show it added 51 hp? They use rear wheel power from a dyno test which is always much less than engine hp. It seems strange that the headers themselves only account for 19hp. Without the headers, the 51hp and a decent amount of added torque system is $1300 and a much easier install. So, I am thinking I am going to add that plus the water/meth injection. The electronics that go with the meth systems keep the mixture within the range safely needed and immediately shuts down the system if the computer senses anything going wrong. If I see myself using this coach often, I can always add the headers and assume I would have increased power by about a third.
Thanks for the reply. I was hoping someone would respond regarding the Banks Water/Meth system. It sounds like it really helped your buddy.
I have owned two gas coaches where I installed the complete Banks header systems and it makes a huge difference in power and it does help fuel economy with a caveat. Since you have more power on the same amount of throttle, IF you always run half throttle and did 60mph on a flat highway, you would see noticeable difference in MPG. HOWEVER, most of us when we have more power, particularly in an already slow and very heavy vehicle, use that power. Particularly on steep grades. With the Banks header systems, you could climb the grades much faster but often you still had the pedal to the metal but were usually in a gear or two higher and going 50 to 60 instead of 20 to 30 thus using the same fuel. At least that was what I did. I would love passing a DP on a steep grade which was easy unless it was a higher end DP that had the 400hp or above engine or someone like your buddy who made his own performance mods.
The cost of a Banks complete header-exhaust system which now includes a ram air system plus a electronic adjustable programmer is about $2600 direct from Banks. You still have the install. Their brochure says this gives you 70hp. However, they also sell the same package, without the headers and their tests show it added 51 hp? They use rear wheel power from a dyno test which is always much less than engine hp. It seems strange that the headers themselves only account for 19hp. Without the headers, the 51hp and a decent amount of added torque system is $1300 and a much easier install. So, I am thinking I am going to add that plus the water/meth injection. The electronics that go with the meth systems keep the mixture within the range safely needed and immediately shuts down the system if the computer senses anything going wrong. If I see myself using this coach often, I can always add the headers and assume I would have increased power by about a third.
