Results of Banks Monster Exhaust fix.

[RKrueger]

Well, I finally resolved the cab noise, resonance, and droning problem with the Banks 4" exhaust system. I promised to let other TDR members know the results of this, as many of you provided suggestions that eventually led to this solution.
As I've said in past posts, Banks is having considerable complaints on the noise of this system primarily from Dodge Cummins owners and Chevy Duramax owners, the common theme being the inline 6 cylinder diesel.
So, after checking several locations for pricing, the best price was from www.exhaustproslinc.com. I purchased the 30" SS body Magna-Flow for $179. 00, and the 14" SS body Magna-Flow for $104. 00, all plus shipping, plus one extra 4" clamp.
A young lady by the name of Angela was a tremendous help on this problem and in selecting the correct components.
On the Quadcab Banks systems, you have a small 24" piece of extender pipe just forward of the Banks muffler. That was removed and a 5" piece was cut off to serve as the bridge piece between the two MF mufflers. After removing the burrs on all edges, we slid the 14" MF on, then the 5" bridge piece, then the 30" MF, and finally the tailpipe.
It went on incredibly easy, no heat required.
Absolutely no modifications had to be made anywhere, the whole thing fit like a glove.
I took it out on the road, and sunk my foot deeply into the floor, all the way to 80 mph. I could not believe the results. The interior cab noise was no louder than the OEM exhaust system, I was stunned.
There is no drone, no resonance, no roar, no nothing except a steady low volume sound that never increases in volume beyond a certain point. The results were far better than I had hoped. We can now turn the radio back on, hold quiet interior conversations at normal levels, and most importantly, when using a lot of power, there is no more cab rumble or resonance anymore. It truly is now comfortable to drive again, only this time with a full-flow 4" system front to back.
I highly recommend this solution to anyone else with this problem. I would also recommend the purchase of the 14" MF unit to add ahead of the Banks muffler for reduced noise and resonance for those folks wanting to keep the Banks unit.
But anyhow guys, I am happier than a pig in s--- with the results.

Oo.

Robert

 

[illflem]

So you're running two mufflers in series? Different idea.

 

[RKrueger]

It serves two purposes with respect to this problem.



1. It cuts down the length of free pipe before the first muffler device, thereby changing the resonant properties of the pipe.



2. It acts as a resonator, lowering the db's another 3 - 6 db before actually entering the 30" muffler.



Robert

 

[John]

Whoa!

I did exactly this fix (major upgrade really) in the middle of July at Rip Rook's shop in Hermiston, OR.



However, I elected to use the 24" long stainless steel MagnaFlow (4" inlet/outlet) muffler in place of the 22" long Banks Dynaflow muffler, adding the 14" long stainless steel MagnaFlow (4" inlet/outlet) muffler at the other end of the slightly shortened piece of (new) Banks, 24" long QC extension tubing.



It worked out sweet, completely eliminated the drone, gave it an authoritative, low-db-level rumble, and a quieter in-cab noise level!

 

[Lil' Dog]

Originally posted by RKrueger

... . Banks is having considerable complaints on the noise of this system primarily from Dodge Cummins owners and Chevy Duramax owners, the common theme being the inline 6 cylinder diesel.....

HUH????



The DMax is a V8... No common theme here... But hey, whatever. .



J-eh

 

[Rip Rook]

WOW

those are great prices on the Magnaflows you quoted, but... ... . I'll beat them. Rip www.sourceautomotive.biz

 

[RKrueger]

Hey, John, it's me... . Robert! You were the one that got me started on this! Boy, does it work dandy Oo.
As a followup, I told the head of the Technical Dept. what the solution was, and so they issued two UPS pick-up tags for both Banks' mufflers. (If you remember, the first was the original, the second is the one they modified with the venturi's)
They are going to refund the cost of the muffler, which will help me offset the Magna-Flow purchase.
Total cost was:
30" Body Magna-Flow SS $179. 00
14" Body Magna-Flow SS $104. 00
Installation @ muffler shop $56. 00

I think the shipping for the mufflers was about $30. 00 for both.
In retrospect, I should have paid the extra $100 for the MF system to begin with, but installed the 14"Body MF in addition to the 30" that comes with the kit. I still think that combo is why the interior is so quiet.
So, after all is said and done, my 4" SS system fron to back was still under $1000. It was worth it, IMO. To go along with the exhaust, I also purchased the AFE Mega-Cannon intake filter unit. The whole truck is much peppier than before, and the EGT's have dropped almost 200deg. I wish there was a dyno in my area, I'd stick it on there just to see what's it's putting out.
Anyhow, thanks, John, for your help a couple months ago. We can both highly recommend this solution to other TDRers with the Banks problem.

See 'ya,
Robert

 

[CrewCabDiesel]

Going to a 4" is a great idea, BUT get it from someone who is going to take care of you and not just clean your walet out. With the 4" exhaust I gained 4lbs of boost and dropped over 100 degrees in EGTs

Kyle

 

[fj40charles]

I did the exact same thing. Only, I did everything in one step. I ordered a MF resonator from Jerry Jardine (Pinnicle) and paid around 35. 00 (plus shipping) for the resonator when I ordered my 4" exhaust and installed everything at once. No drone and extremely quiet.



Charles

 

[RKrueger]

Kyle,
I don't feel as though Banks did not take care of me. Once I relayed my problem, they made an attempt to rectify the problem, and shipped the modified muffler to me 2nd day air at no cost to me. The fact that the modification didn't work is no reflection on their customer-oriented philosophy, IMO. At all times during several conversations with their Customer tech support people, they were very polite and receptive to this problem, even indicating that others were experiencing the same problem.
They even are refunding the cost of the muffler to me, as well as paying the entire cost of shipping both mufflers back to them. They have established an excellent engineering reputation for producing fine products which many TDR members have purchased, and I doubt that they are not pursueing a permanent solution to this problem in order to maintain their reputable standing in all facets of their product line.
IMO, their customer approach to this problem was excellent, and I would not hesitate to do further business with them in the future.

Robert

 

[CrewCabDiesel]

Sorry Robert, I was not referring to Banks, I should have been more specific. Banks has come a long way in the last year in the customer service department. There are others out there like Stans Headers that will leave you hanging and not take care of the customer(speaking as one of Stan's FORMER customers)

Kyle

 

[John]

Oops! Sorry Robert!

Geez, I don't know what I was thinkin'...



Anyway, I noticed my mistake after I had gone through a dozen or so pages of Products and Accessories threads yesterday and saw the original thread.



Sorry... I'm not on this BB very much anymore and subsequently forget what I posted on.

 

[RKrueger]

Kyle,
One of the advantages of the TDR is that those of us who gain insight and experience through our own mistakes are able to pass this knowledge along to the other members so that they do not repeat these mistakes. No problem at all

John,
Nice to hear from you again
I posted the results in this forum as I thought the subject matter was more appropriate here, but now think it would have been better in the original forum so that others, including you, could have picked up on the outcome easier. Ah, well, live and learn...

You guys have a nice day,

Robert

 

[RKrueger]

Hi Rip,
Based on recommendation's from John, I did indeed call you for a quote on these two mufflers. When I told you what ExhaustPro's had quoted me, you told me you couldn't match the price.
In fact you thought that perhaps they were getting a higher volume discount.

LilDog,
That's strange
Although I didn't specifically ask about the cylinder configuration, the context of the conversation with both Banks and Magna-Flow led me to believe they shared the inline configuration.
They both were aware of the problem on these two engines (no Ford issues).
I do understand the technical side of the inline exhaust problem, so now I'm not sure why some of the Duramax owners are experiencing this same problem. Interesting...

Robert