The 3.5L EcoBoost responds to parts that improve real air mass and manage power with live data. Our Banks Ram-Air Intake System was built around a big inlet, a large filter area, a movable filter mount that works with engine rock, and a CFD-developed inlet tube so the engine gets strong airflow without giving up filtration. On the monitoring side, the iDash gives you more useful information than a simple boost gauge because air density tells you how much oxygen is actually packed into each cubic foot the engine pumps. That makes it a real tuning and evaluation tool, especially when you want to see manifold, boost, and ambient density along with compressor and intercooler efficiency. The Banks Derringer Tuner takes the same real-world approach to power. It communicates through OBD-II, adjusts to fuel quality and operating conditions, and uses ActiveSafety to bypass itself and return to stock behavior if a fault is detected. Put together, it is a complete EcoBoost package built around airflow, data, and safer inline tuning instead of guesswork.
At SEMA 2017, Gale Banks centered the discussion on Ford's 3.5L EcoBoost and explained why Banks had invested heavily in developing supporting hardware and controls for that engine family. He described the 3.5 EcoBoost as a platform he particularly likes, and used it to introduce a coordinated set of products: a cold-air intake system for pickup trucks, the Derringer inline tuner, the iDash 1.8 SuperGauge and controller, and the StraightShot water-methanol system. The broader point was that Banks was not treating the EcoBoost as a single-product opportunity, but as an engineering program built around airflow, charge density, tuning control, and data-driven validation.
The intake system for the 3.5 EcoBoost pickup trucks begins with a large inlet, which Banks referred to as a Big Mouth inlet. The system also uses what the company calls a slipper mount for the air filter. That mounting arrangement allows the filter to move with engine rock while remaining inside the cooler housing, addressing the relative motion between the engine and the intake assembly. Downstream of that, the inlet tube was developed using CFD, or computational fluid dynamics, rather than simple packaging or appearance-driven design.
Banks emphasized that the intake was engineered to improve both filtration and airflow. Filtration remains strong because the velocity through the filter media is kept low, while airflow improves because the filter area is large. He also noted that the inlet captures a small amount of Ram-Air pressure. Rather than presenting those as isolated claims, he tied them to the development process: the entire system was evaluated using Banks' air-density measuring capability, so the intake's effectiveness was judged by the density of the air delivered to the engine, not just by conventional boost readings.
A major part of the presentation was the Banks iDash 1.8, which Banks described as far more than a conventional gauge. Mounted in a standard gauge position, it functions as a SuperGauge, a controller, a development tool, and a data logger. By inserting a microSD card into the face of the gauge, the user can log up to 50 channels at 10 Hz. That makes it useful not only for enthusiasts monitoring the vehicle in real time, but also for engineering work and product evaluation.
Banks presented the iDash as the central display and control interface for the EcoBoost package. It can show the parameters that matter to enthusiasts and engine developers, and it also integrates with other Banks hardware. In this system, the gauge is not just a passive readout; it becomes part of the tuning and fluid-injection strategy, tying together measurement, control, and validation.
Also shown on the display was the Derringer inline tuner. Banks described it as intentionally discreet, without a large external box or prominent labeling. The electronics are built into the connector itself, which simplifies installation and removal. That compact packaging also supports one of the practical concerns many owners have: the unit can be removed easily when needed, including for warranty-related reasons.
The Derringer can be controlled either by a switch or through the iDash. When paired with the iDash, the two products form what Banks calls a Six-Gun tuning bundle. He said the inline tuner was approaching a 100-horsepower gain, while remaining competitively priced. More important than the raw gain, however, was the way the tuner manages power delivery. Banks described the Derringer as providing active tuning and ActiveSafety, meaning it continuously adjusts based on operating conditions rather than applying a fixed calibration regardless of fuel quality or environment.
Banks spent considerable time explaining why air density matters more than boost pressure alone. The iDash reads manifold air density, boost air density, and ambient air density. In his view, that makes the traditional boost gauge obsolete, and he argued that it should have disappeared decades ago. The reason is straightforward: boost pressure by itself does not tell you how much oxygen is actually entering the engine.
His explanation focused on engine airflow fundamentals. Engines pump a volume of air based on displacement, effectively moving their own displacement every two revolutions. What matters for combustion is not just the cubic feet per minute, but the density of each cubic foot being pumped. Air mass, measured as pounds of air, is what combines with pounds of fuel to establish the air-fuel ratio. By measuring density directly, the system reveals how much oxygen is actually being packed into the intake charge.
That density-based approach also allows the iDash to calculate compressor efficiency and intercooler efficiency. Banks said this gives users an immediate way to evaluate aftermarket changes such as a different compressor wheel, compressor cover, larger turbo, or another company's intercooler. Instead of relying on advertised claims or pressure readings alone, the user can judge whether those parts are actually improving efficiency and producing denser air.
The same measurement-and-control philosophy extends to the Banks StraightShot water-methanol system. Banks described it as a new, second-generation approach because it does not make injection decisions in isolation. Instead, it interrogates OBD information and bases injection strategy on that data. He stated that other systems on the market were not doing this, and presented that OBD-driven decision-making as the distinguishing feature of the Gen 2 design.
In practical terms, that means the water-methanol system is integrated into the vehicle's operating data rather than triggered by a simplistic standalone signal. Within the overall EcoBoost package, StraightShot is therefore not just an add-on for extra cooling or detonation margin; it is part of a coordinated control system that uses measured engine information to decide when and how to inject.
Banks framed the Derringer's control strategy around adaptability and fail-safe behavior. On the tuning side, the unit constantly watches for opportunity and adjusts to the fuel available. If the engine is running on lower-octane gasoline, it pulls back. If higher-octane gasoline is present, it pushes toward the safe limit for that day and those conditions. The emphasis was on extracting available performance without locking the engine into a single aggressive setting that may not suit changing fuel quality or ambient conditions.
He also highlighted the system's bypass capability as a key safety feature. If the Derringer loses power because of something like a blown fuse, or if any part of its circuitry fails, it automatically bypasses itself. In that condition, the vehicle returns to stock operation rather than suffering a severe drivability penalty. Banks contrasted this with competing products he said had been tested and found wanting: when a fuse blows on those systems, horsepower can go negative before recovering in limp mode. He said the Banks system avoids that behavior, does not produce negative horsepower, and does not trigger fault codes the way competing units do. Instead, it simply reverts to stock or bypass operation. He presented that as a major differentiator.
Taken together, the package for the 3.5 EcoBoost consists of the Banks Ram-Air intake, the Derringer inline tuner, the iDash 1.8 SuperGauge and controller, the StraightShot water-methanol system, and the ability to monitor air density instead of relying on boost alone. The engineering theme across all of those products is consistent: improve airflow, measure the actual quality of the charge air, and use that information to control tuning and auxiliary systems intelligently.
Banks also noted that the EcoBoost effort extended beyond the 3.5L truck engine. The company was already working on the 2.3L EcoBoost in the Mustang, including similar hardware and some optional turbocharger offerings for that platform, with additional turbo work planned for the 3.5L as development progressed. He closed by describing the intended coverage of the full EcoBoost range: 1.6L, 2.0L, 2.3L, 2.7L, and 3.5L. The message was that Banks was building a complete engineering ecosystem for Ford's turbocharged gasoline engines, with density-based measurement and integrated control at the center of the program.