Banks iDash Pro is not limited to newer OBD-II vehicles. With Banks sensor modules, it can monitor and log pressure, temperature, thermocouple, frequency, and turbo speed data on older vehicles, custom builds, and mixed systems that need more than factory information. That matters when the real problem is not visible on a stock dash—or there is no dash data at all. On a custom supercharged setup, pressure and temperature sensors showed that the blower was making heavy boost at idle, overheating the air because it had nowhere to go. Catching that trend early let us correct the system with a bypass strategy before the blower was damaged. That is the point of iDash: real data, in real time, before heat and pressure turn into broken parts. The system also does more than display raw readings. It can use sensor inputs to calculate values like RPM from a trigger wheel, intercooler contribution, and air density changes across the vehicle or across individual components. If you have OBD-II or an aftermarket ECU, iDash can use that data too. The result is one powertrain information center that gives you a much clearer picture of what the engine, turbo system, cooling system, or chassis is actually doing.
The video centers on Lockjaw, a 1966 Chevy C20 that predates digital dashboards, factory data logging, and any OBD2 connection. Despite that, the truck was outfitted with a modern Banks iDash DataMonster system by adding external sensors rather than relying on factory vehicle data. The point is that an older vehicle does not need an OEM data network to be thoroughly instrumented. With the right modules and sensors, the iDash can still display, calculate, and log a wide range of operating parameters.
To add external inputs to an iDash, Banks uses expansion modules. A four-channel analog module accepts four analog sensors such as pressure and temperature inputs, while a four-channel thermocouple module accepts four thermocouples for higher-temperature environments. Banks also offers a five-channel module that can accept a frequency input from devices such as a Hall effect sensor.
A Hall effect sensor detects the presence and magnitude of a magnetic field. When aimed at a trigger wheel, it produces a frequency signal. The iDash can use that frequency, along with user-supplied trigger-wheel information, to calculate RPM. That RPM does not have to be limited to engine speed. It can also be used for supercharger speed or wheel speed, which can then be displayed directly on the iDash.
For turbocharged applications, Banks also offers a turbo speed sensor. Turbocharger shaft speed is presented as a critical tuning parameter, and the sensor is designed to survive the extremely high RPM seen by a turbocharger.
The broader instrumentation strategy relies heavily on pressure and temperature sensors, which can be installed in many locations on a vehicle. In the Lockjaw forced-induction system, those sensors were placed at several key points: pre-supercharger, post-supercharger or pre-intercooler, and post-intercooler. That arrangement allows the team to see how pressure and temperature change across each stage of the induction system rather than relying on a single manifold reading.
The most important example in the video is how sensor data prevented a failure on Lockjaw. The truck used a large Whipple blower on a Duramax, which the team describes as an untested configuration for them. To achieve the blower speed they wanted at 4,000 RPM, the setup ended up producing about 14 PSI of boost at idle.
That created a serious problem: the blower was compressing air with nowhere for it to go. As a result, the air was being overworked and overheated. The iDash showed that the temperature kept climbing, which alerted the team before damage occurred to the supercharger. They then added a Turbosmart wastegate to act as a bypass at idle. Without those sensors, they would not have known anything was wrong until the hardware had already been damaged.
The iDash does more than display raw sensor readings. It can also calculate new values in real time from the incoming data stream. One example given is intercooler analysis. If pressure and temperature sensors are installed at the intercooler inlet, intercooler outlet, and intake manifold, the iDash can isolate the power contribution attributable specifically to the intercooler.
According to the video, that result can be displayed either as a percentage or as an actual horsepower value. The broader point is that a relatively small number of well-placed sensors can produce much more insight than simple gauge readings. By comparing conditions before and after a component, the system can quantify what that component is doing.
The video also highlights how pressure and temperature measurements can be used to understand airflow around the vehicle. By placing air-pressure sensors in different locations, the user can identify high-pressure areas on the vehicle. That information can help locate a Ram-Air pickup point that improves inlet conditions while potentially reducing aerodynamic drag.
Temperature monitoring is described as one of the most important uses because rising temperatures often signal trouble in the engine or transmission. In one example, the team observed temperatures starting above 105 degrees and then dropping to about 90 degrees once the vehicle began moving, helped by Ram-Air effects. They note that this kind of temperature reduction makes a significant difference for naturally aspirated engines.
Banks emphasizes that pressure, temperature, and frequency inputs alone can provide a large amount of useful data. The pressure sensors can be used in either air or liquid, which makes them suitable for manifold air pressure, engine oil pressure, or even air-suspension pressure. Temperature sensors can be used for transmission and differential monitoring, but they can also be mounted in more open or unconventional locations.
On Lockjaw, the team used open-air temperature measurements for items such as blowoff-valve temperatures and fan inlet and outlet temperatures. The wiring is described as plug-and-play: the sensor is mounted where needed, then connected with Banks cables. Even though Lockjaw carries a large amount of wiring and many sensors, the Banks sensor modules can stack together and mount in series, which helps package a heavily instrumented system.
The video identifies the Banks AirMouse as the most powerful single sensor in the system. It functions as a portable weather station for the vehicle by measuring ambient temperature, pressure, and humidity. From those values, it determines ambient air density.
Ambient air density is important because it indicates the horsepower potential of the air entering the engine. By using the iDash to measure air density at multiple points around the vehicle, the user can compare local conditions to ambient and see how density changes across different components. The video compares this to the way drag racers record ambient conditions from a weather tower at the track, except here that information is available directly on the vehicle in real time. The same type of pressure and temperature instrumentation is also used throughout Banks' own engine-dyno research and development work.
All of these external sensors can work alongside OBD2 data when the vehicle supports it. For OBD-equipped vehicles, the iDash can combine factory CAN bus information with external sensor inputs. Banks also states that connections are available for aftermarket ECUs.
The conclusion is that the iDash is not limited to reading stock vehicle parameters. It can read CAN bus data on modern vehicles, accept external analog, thermocouple, and frequency inputs, calculate complex parameters in real time, and log and display nearly anything the user wants to monitor. Lockjaw began as a truck with essentially none of that capability, and the video uses it to show that even a 1966 platform can be turned into a fully instrumented test vehicle with the right Banks modules and sensors.
