Banks Power

The Leader in Diesel Performance

Category: Diesel

What a Long, Strange Trip its Been

Throwing a bunch of guys together for a seven day, 1,700-mile tour is bound to have its ups and downs. This sign found in Joe’s Crab Shack in Kissimmee, Florida on the last day of Power Tour says it all. The merry bunch of Banks employees (and journalists) that traveled with us now share a common bond and many memories that will last a lifetime.

We did the ‘long haul’ with virtually no problems to speak of and the 2005 Hot rod Magazine Power Tour was a great success. It was an excellent way for Gale Banks Engineering to meet its customers and make new friends and champions for our current and future products.

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June 28, 2005

Bosch DCX Tech Fair or “Drive Sample Vehicles Like You Stole Them!”

I know… it’s been a while since I’ve written, but I’ve got a good excuse. No, really… I do. See, I went on the Hot Rod Power Tour and before that, Bosch’s DCX Tech Fair. Vehicles, meetings, logistics, details and way too many “what ifs” make Johnny a dull boy. It’s as if I’ve been a cross between the proverbial one-legged man in a butt-kicking contest spliced with a chicken with its head cut off. Sort of a one-legged chicken-man with no head trying to kick some butt if you will. See the problem?

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June 24, 2005
Banks Hot Rod Tour Crew

Hot Rod Magazine Power Tour: A Huge Success!

Perhaps you’ve noticed the lack of blogs from all of us during Power Tour? The days went by like lightning. There was, literally, no time to blog. Here’s how our tour went.

Day one:
Wake up (5:30 a.m.); shower; shave; meet in hotel lobby (7:00 a.m.); quick breakfast (7:15 a.m.); schlep bags to the truck-of-the-day (8:00 a.m.); drive to event city (usually around 300 miles); park truck at booth (2:00 p.m.); get swarmed by gawkers (2:01 p.m.); talk to people about Banks products (2:01-8:00 p.m.); pack up trailer (8:00 p.m.); eat dinner (9:00 p.m.); sleep (10:30 p.m.); zzz

Repeat six times.

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June 15, 2005

Air Travel Hell: Hot Rod Magazine Power Tour (Pre-Tour)

4:44 a.m.
Okay, the trip stared off badly when the shuttle van that was supposed to pick me up at 4:00 a.m. hadn’t arrived by 4:30. When I called, they told me, “oh, our driver just now told us he was experiencing vehicle trouble…” Great. What about my ride to the airport?

The shuttle company called a cab for me and my $45 trip to the airport wound up costing $68.30. The shuttle company is going to pay me the difference. Yea – there’s money I won’t be seeing again anytime soon. The only saving grace was Richard, my taxi driver, was also an Armenian philosopher. I got an Armenian history lesson on the drive to the airport. Interesting.

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June 4, 2005

Fuel Economy Methods: Part One

How do you calculate fuel economy? I read so many different claims about fuel economy, and I keep coming back to wondering how people arrive at their data. For instance, on the diesel forums it is not uncommon to see someone claim 24 MPG in a diesel pickup. And yet I have personally driven a Duramax LLY with a heavy load up a grade, and watching the digital mileage indicator, I have seen instantaneous readings as low as 3 MPG. That’s a huge swing.

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May 13, 2005

A Ragin’ Good Read

I just finished reading an article in the May 2005 issue of Four Wheeler magazine entitled “Rage Against the Machine.” Awesome! Robin Stover details the success of Kent Kroeker’s virtually stock Dodge truck in the 2004 Baja 1000 (http://www.koreperformance.com). Check out this preview article on Four Wheeler online: (http://www.fourwheeler.com/brandpages/129_0411_500/) This adventure impresses me for many reason’s, but I think I just love to absorb as much off-road racing as I can, and this article offers a healthy dose of it.

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May 2, 2005