The Banks Monster-Ram Intake and Killer Grid Heater Upgrade fixes two problems at once: the stock grid heater is a restriction, and its bolts are a known engine-killing failure point. Our high-flow intake plate eliminates that factory grid heater from the airflow path and uses a coil-heater strategy to keep cold-start function. The new dual-heat-capable version keeps the original 750-watt heater and lets you add a second one for a total of 1,500 watts of starting heat for cold-country trucks. We also reworked the intake plate with cast-in fuel rail spacers, a radiused manifold entry, and more flow area underneath, so the engine gets a cleaner shot of air without the stock choke point.
Gale Banks introduces a new dual-heat-capable Banks Monster-Ram for 2007 to 2024 Ram trucks. The product builds on the same basic design as the Monster-Ram units already in service, which Banks says reduce turbo lag, improve fuel economy, and address a major reliability problem in the factory intake system on Cummins-equipped trucks.
A central issue with the stock setup is the factory elbow and grid heater assembly. Banks describes the stock airflow path as highly restrictive because incoming air must pass through the factory grid heater before entering the engine. That restriction costs a few pounds of boost, forcing the turbocharger to work harder to make up the difference.
The factory grid heater also carries a well-known failure risk. According to the recap, two bolts in the stock assembly can arc, melt, loosen, and fall into the engine, causing catastrophic damage. Banks frames this as a failure that can destroy a Cummins engine and lead to repair costs of up to $30,000.
To eliminate that failure point, the Monster-Ram uses a Banks high-flow intake plate in place of the factory grid heater. Removing the stock heater assembly gets rid of the failure-prone hardware while also improving airflow compared with the original elbow-and-grid-heater combination.
Banks notes that Monster-Ram systems have been on the market since 2017 and says they have already prevented millions of dollars in engine damage by replacing the stock grid heater arrangement with a safer, higher-flow design.
Like the earlier Monster-Ram, the new dual-heat-capable version includes a 750 W coil heater. Banks uses a measured comparison to put that output in context: a stock block heater was tested and recorded at 670 W. In other words, even the single-heater Monster-Ram configuration already provides substantial starting heat for cold-weather operation.
The major change in this new version is support for a second heater. Banks says customers in colder climates wanted more cold-start heat, so the updated Monster-Ram was designed to accept an additional 750 W heater. With both heaters installed, total starting heat rises to 1500 watts.
The dual-heat upgrade kit includes the second heater, a copper washer, and the required cable. Installation is described as a short job that takes only a few minutes.
Banks also provides an upgrade path for owners of the classic Monster-Ram. Instead of replacing the full assembly, existing users can add a new 750 W billet heater kit to bring total heating output to 1500 watts.
That retrofit kit includes a 750 W coil heater, a billet aluminum body, and a black anodized Banks MAP sensor relocation block. Banks says the billet heater kit can be installed in minutes without removing the existing Monster-Ram from the truck.
Alongside the dual-heat capability, Banks has also developed a new high-flow intake plate. The revised plate incorporates cast-in fuel rail spacers and reshapes the airflow entry by adding a radius to the edge feeding the manifold. On the underside, the roof has been raised to increase intake manifold flow area.
These changes are presented as a fully engineered airflow revision rather than a simple heater update. The intent is to improve manifold entry flow while preserving the Monster-Ram's role as a replacement for the restrictive and failure-prone stock intake hardware.
The new dual-heat-capable Monster-Ram, the dual-heat upgrade components, and the revised high-flow intake plate are available to order now from Banks.
