Regen Status, DPF% and More! Banks iDash Emissions Info Duramax Diesel 

Here is the video I reference about regen: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2A6qTg1gcW8.html

Love you are geeking out on this and obtained the gauge to watch all these important parameters. Keep the regeneration on/off viewable, most important…watch your EGT’s during normal driving and while towing so you know what the range they should be (will differ depending on ambient temperature). When your truck goes into regeneration, note how high your EGT’s go…again under normal driving and while under load/towing. It’s important to understand in the event something is wrong, you’ll immediately know by watching your AGT’s. When you pull in for fuel, stop at the store, come home etc. again watch EGT’S and allow proper cool down before shutting off. If in regen mode, keep driving right past where you intended to stop and allow to finish. I can get so in-depth on this subject, however, those are the basics. I’m excited to see the continuance of this exciting topic. With today’s low sulfur diesel, and all the emission systems that further kill these engines, it is critical for the health of your engine to allow proper regeneration. As a sidenote, I’ve never owned one of these. This is all based on my experience with several Ford 6.7 L diesel’s of the heavy dude variety Cheers. Can’t wait to talk about additives 😊

Hey Tim. You found both settings you need if you want to monitor your regen. So regen trigger % will show the 100 % when it is about to go into regen, Regen status will go from off to ACT-active. This are both the setting I use for regen info. If you got the pedal monster along with the idash you can also change the pedal response to clear some of the throttle lag.

Now that you have the engine I want I am watching your channel very closely. I have also paid particular attention to Gale Banks and his I dash module along with the pedal monster. Mr. Banks knows more about engines and air flow than about anybody! He is one of our national treasures.

Ive had my idash for a few weeks, I know what many of the settings mean but I wish there was a definition of what its really monitoring/displaying and what it does or mean to me. Is there a resource that gives a definition of each parameter in layman's terms?

My 2021 3500 L5P also does not tell you on the stock dash if you in regen so my Idash I watched regen status, EGT, DPF soot percentage, and distance from last regen as far as emissions go. The Idash also allows you to force a mobile regen or a stationary regen which I love.

Hey Tim, On my IDash, I personally display all 3 EGT temps, DPF soot load percentage, and Regen status of ACTIVE or OFF. The biggest reason I have the IDash is that I personally like to know when the Regen is active, so I don’t turn the truck off in the middle of a DPF Regen cycle. I do a lot of highway miles and some in town driving. The Regen cycle normally takes approximately 5 minutes or so with steady driving. In town stop and go will prolong the cycle due to lower speeds. Higher driving speed equals higher heat temps.

There are two REGEN parameters to monitor. NUMBER 1: REGEN STATUS - There are 2 states for this indicator OFF and ACTIVE (ACT). NUMBER 2: DPF % - As you are driving this percentage will go from 0 - 100%. At 100% the REGEN status will change from OFF to ACT (active) until the REGEN finishes. It’s that simple. Obviously most of your viewers seem to think this is too much detail and just drive the truck. For me, this is my first diesel and I would like to understand how the emission system works while on the highway and in the city. It’s important to me because I live in the middle of nowhere and I drive 10 miles of gravel roads to get to the nearest highway. Max speed on the gravel roads is 25 mph. I don’t want to get stuck in a REGEN situation when I can’t drive highway speeds. Why doesn’t GM have a screen in the DIC that shows soot % and REGEN status? They have tire pressures. Does everyone look at tire pressures constantly, of course not but it’s there if you want to. Why not REGEN? Ask your contacts at GM. There are customers that would like to access this information which is resident in the ECU.

You have to give props to the gm diesel engineers the packaging of the emissions system on that engine is best I have seen, and the fact the duramax is a 1000 upgrade over 5.3 just speaks to how efficient that engine and emissions are packaged.

I have the Banks iDash on my Duramax Colorado. I have it set to show 8 parameters. I have mine set to ready trans gear, ECT, EGT, Boost %, Trans Temp, Regen status, DEF % Level (because the DIC only shows OK until the level goes below 20% on my year of truck, a 2017), and a few other things that I don't remember at the moment. Seeing some of those numbers are important to me when towing, such as ECT, EGT and trans gear. A lot of my desire to "see more info" comes from 12 years of owning a 6.6L Duramax (2009 3500HD Dually) that I tow and haul a truck camper with, which I still have. On that truck, I have the Edge Insight CTS2. Before that I had the Edge Insight CTS. Before that I had the Edge Insight. Anyone that has a diesel in their truck, and/or tows/hauls with it, needs some sort of engine monitor such as the iDash or Edge Insight CTS unit.

Hey Tim. At the 7:11 mark that is the setting you want to see when you are regen. When the regen shows as ON you should be able to hear a difference in the exhaust. You can route the cable into the drivers side fuse area and then sneak it up between the dash and the A pillar.

I have the same unit I show the DPF % and Regen Off when active it will change to ACT. When it is at 100% while thregen process is active the 100 will not decrease until it is complete and the smell is minimum unless you have a trailer and the rear window open then you will smell a minimal smell. Banks unit is well worth it!

You can really get into the weeds with a unit like that. I had a scangage2 on my Duramax and it was a wealth of info on getting the most out of that engine.

I monitor my EGT's with my bluedriver & typically when it's running @ 1000 degrees or more & I am not pulling a heavy hill or trailer then my guess the truck is in an active regen. It normally runs between 720 & 800 degrees running down the freeway. I do this with multiple vehicles. This is what I like about the bluedriver is it's bluetooth to my phone so nothing to install in the vehicle you use it in.

Can you ask your contact at GM to add the percentage for the regen? I would like to know when it's close so I can plan to hit the highway or drive a little longer.

The regen trigger is what I was talking about on your first video. You can see it rise to 100%. Then try to g for a drive long enough for it to reset t zero. You will note your EGT’s May rise during this process. Best to be driving so exhaust temps are elevated.

The iDash is key if you have emissions. If you keep shutting truck off before regen completes you'll be in for a big bill when your dpf ect ect gives out. I have it on my 6.6 duramax, and I love it

Hey Tom. Got an idea for a video. I watched your video on the Banks idash. I just ordered one, the non logger one. As I’m going thru the banks tutorial video I noticed that there are many max values that would be good to set as flags in the gauge. Such as max engine oil, coolant, transmission etc to name a few. As I’m sure this would help you too, could you either talk to your LZO GM engineer or do a video with him discussing the most important values to monitor and the ones to set flags on this gauge if the engine goes over the set/engineered values. I can’t think of a better source than the head engineer to help us set parameters they designed to, to make sure we treat our trucks right. Also for those of us who will be trailering, this would be even more important to the ultimate health and longevity of our trucks. Many tks.

I purchased the idash for dpf soot level and def fluid level. I have a 21 and the def gauge in the cluster is not even close to accurate.

Tim you can also force a regen with the IDash either moving or stationary. You call also add what gear the transmission is in. It also reads and clears codes.

On the banks idash with an LZ0 where does it display the gear the vehicles in I believe I checked all categories and can’t find it.

Tim You need to look for soot load. When it shows 100% it will start regen You can turn off any diesel when it is in regen. As it will pick up the regen where it left off next start.

Can you do a force regen with the banks?

Why are owners all concerned about the regen? The truck does it when needed no matter what. I've got 60k on mine and rarely see, smell or hear the regen but I know it's happening because it's still running just fine.

the way they monitor the dpf is, it has a couple of pipes connected from it, one from the engine side the other from the exhaust side and there is a sensor that reads the difference in pressure before and after the dpf, this gives you a soot load and tells the system when to do a regen . that's what the dpf pressures are on that guage,

The HD duramax does not in fact show regeneration in the dash either.

Tim - way to geek out on the diesel system data!! Now you’ll have tons of stuff to look at / learn about while the 3L Duramax is working hard or hardly working … Enjoy!

I love the Banks products but I am not a fan of the micro sd card update system. I have all Apple products so when I download the file on my Mac and do the FAT 32 conversion sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.

Great video as usual. I just got my Banks 1.8 idash. I cant find any of the regen settings. It says my firmware is 1.23, does this need the update. thanks for any help

My 2011 Duramax my 2015 ecodiesel and my 2018 cummins never said when it's in regen. If i'm in regen i try not turn it off if possible. Never had an emission problem, probably just lucky.

My feeling is that there will be an indicator but only while it's going, which of course will be a surprise and Murphy dictates that it will be at the most inconvenient time. The iDash looks like the ticket but it also looks like killing mosquitoes with an elephant gun. There needs to be a more emissions specific display for much cheaper.

What happens if I'm driving to/from work and it starts to regen? I could leave it running at home, but if it does it when I get to work am I supposed to let it finish and clock in late? How long would it take? I might just leave early for work in case it happens.

That screen is so tiny. Like a watch screen. For about 225 you can get a scan gauge 3. It has a much larger display (think garmin gps) and has all that stuff. I have a quick little video of mine near the top of my page. It’s not a review but just shows just some of the options. It can display 9 different things on each screen and 3 screens to scroll through. I have it hooked to a gas truck so I’m not using any of the diesel options of course.

Wish they’d make a delete kit for the LZ0 and lm2 adding def every oil change was just annoying.

Does anyone know if you can do a mobile regen under diagnostics? I saw a video of an LM2 doing a Regen below 100%.

Can you display what gear it is in? BTW, the 6.6 Duramax does not show on the dash when it does a regen.

Your video brings up the main point I have with this devise. It’s soooo informative, what do I really need to watch on my new 3.0 Duramax. I guess the Regen and the def stuff. But it seems so complicated and I hate to complicate what should be simple and straightforward. And this isn’t even including the software stuff you me turned early on. I’ll wait until they have simplified it or there is another brand that simpler. Any input about that would be appreciated.

I feel like this would be a great diagnostic tool in the right hands..

Talked to the fine people at Banks the other day to find confirm a few things that I had read at different sites. First the Banks I Dash for the Baby Duramax does not tell you when its in regen nor can you start a regen. These are two things that I would want to be able too see and do. So for that reason I can't see spending $400 for the information it does supply. Convince me otherwise.

Sucks…now I have to purchase one of theses. Too much cool info.

Definitely valuable

Is there a until available that allows you to force regen?

To be honest, I'd rather monitor EGT. If you're frequently having difficulty completing the drive cycle, I'd have to ask was a diesel the right vehicle for your requirements?

Great video. Thank you.

I have a link to all the parameters that are available for the latest update. But won’t link in comments The I dash is so valuable for many items. Coolant temps with the factory gauge are pointless. At 160° to 220° the factory gauge stays just below the half way mark Variable oil pump is all over the place. Banks puts a number to it, fuel pressure, DEF temp in tank DEF percentage analyzed (32 being best). What gear your in. If you’d like the link it’s mind boggling what the ECM keeps tabs on

I don’t care much about the regen i drive enough it doesn’t matter. I can hear the exhaust tone change when i am in regen not sure why this is such a hot topic. Personally i would like to know what GM engineers recommend for fuel additives year around cold climates or not. is there any benefit of additives or is it just a waste of time and money with this engine and fuel system design. i plan to run this vehicle past 300,000 miles minimum unless the emissions equipment turns into a nightmare. so i want to know how to help it survive.

I have a 2022 3 litte duramax, I smelt the regen 2 times really bad, the whole truck smelt like burning wires. My passenger said what's wrong with your truck, do you have a fire extinguisher. But all was fine

I drove a Hino med duty truck for work, 2014 model I think, and it had a display on the dash for how full the PDF was. 4 or 5 green bars that would fill up, and when near full, a regen would start… that truck had a limit of shut offs during regen, and would have issues if you exceeded that limit. You could get away with a few here and there, but if your route required you to shut down aka a mine site… you had no choice. I actually almost got kicked off site for idling… but I had no choice.

7:58 Regen Status is the one you need.... Yes, it will show something else when it's in regen. I don't remember what my Colorado shows when it's in REGEN - ACT (for active) maybe. I hardly drive my Colorado, hence the reason I don't remember what it will show when REGEN is active.

I have a 2017 high county dully with a new engine with only 5,000 miles on it. Last week I got the message "Cleaning Exhaust Filter - Continue To Drive" apparently it has been in regen and unknowingly I shut it down, I don't know if it was once or more times but I got on the interstate and kept driving for about 35/40 miles and then the notice went away. I want a Banks idash or a edge cts3 not sure which one yet. I want to know when the truck is in regen

Audio good now.

Man our u on the ball!

Small fuel tank and the ability to see when the truck will go into regen are my only complaints with mine. 8 gallon larger fuel tank would be perfect. When I'm towing in the mountains and camping it would be nice to not have to take a diesel tank with me.

That monitor PM filter should be the Particulate Matter filter aka DPF or in this case the DPF/SCR thing lol

hey tim technical engine data jargon aint easy lemme tell you that if it wasnt obvious enough already 😂. in my very personal opinion: a regular owner of one of these engines will never need an iDash at all, never.... this is purely technical data for all of us turbo nerds that wanna see the magic in process or those that want to nanny the engine all the way, its a neat gadget to see everything in real time all the way from pedal distance to rug to the dingle berry command actuator. personally im most curious about data regarding the regen cmd VS load (how much is able to clear on its own before requesting higher temps) EGR usage % from the Low pressure VS the High pressure one since the former has no soot and the later is unfiltered... and honestly i could spend an entire day blabbing and digging through the data available in the iDash or a scan tool live data from this this non stop, i find it just too fascinating.... someone send help 🤣

Don’t shut the truck down during regen is false. It will pick back up when exhaust gets back up to temps and try to complete the regen. Only problem will arise if you eventually don’t let it finish over time. Majority of time you’ll never know you are or had a regen.

I don’t think it’s needed on the 3.0 lt. on the big diesel I would have something for sure.

Not regen related but I was wondering what MPG everyone with a 3.0 duramax is getting. I having about 22k miles and doing a 30 min trip 5 days a week. I average between 20-22 mpg (don’t think that’s all that great) would love to know what you guys think.

I would use regen trigger, which when it gets to 100% it will go into regen and maybe the other to see when regen is ON. Think this is important because there are so many problems with diesel emission systems, being able to see when your truck is about to regen and in the middle of regen so you can rather keep driving to trigger it so it cleans out or to not turn off your truck while it's in regen just to keep the emission system happy.

I am not sure I saw all the readings available on yours even though I am running 1.24 also. In the Emissions section I have 4 DPF readings in a row, DPF Regen Trigger (this appears to be a type of peak hold for the soot load, it usually is about 1% higher than soot load %, when it reaches 100% a regen is imminent), DPF Soot Load Percentage (actual calculated percentage of DPF soot plugging based on DPF input and output pressures, when input pressure gets high enough compared to output pressure the soot load needs to be cleaned out), Distance Since Last DFP Regen (actual distance in miles traveled since last Regen), and I also show Average Distance Between DPF Regen (this is an average of all regens, so if you start going a longer distance between regens this value in miles will increase, if you build soot sooner and need to regen sooner than previously this value in miles will start to average down in value, for me this means short tripping or giving it the beans which will also build soot faster than usual), and last but not least, DPF Regen Status (Regen inactive = OFF, Regen ACTIVE = ACT). Me personally, on the first of the 5 separate "pages" I view I monitor DPF Soot Load%, DPF Regen Trigger, DPF Regen Status, Average Distance Between DPF Regen, Distance Since Last DFP Regen, Transmission Slip RPM (shows how many RPM's the Torque Converter is slipping once it locks), Engine Oil Temp, and Transmission Gear. I like to keep an eye on oil temp since it heats up a lot slower than coolant and I like to be a little gentler until the oil is warm enough, say 165+. I also like to keep an eye on the Trans Gear because it also shows when the torque converter is locked. On the other "pages" (once set up for multiple pages you press and hold the left arrow to scroll between them) I run Temps (EGR's and some others) and on another I look at turbo vane position and boost pressures etc. It really is a handy device, you can read DTC's if you get any and you can clear them also. I have had mine for about a year and I still make adjustments from time to time on what each page displays as I learn more about the gauge and what's important to watch.

Does it show what gear your in?

Once in a while i get a screeching noise on shutdown ,coming from under the truck near fuel tank . I thought i read somewhere that it was due to shutting the engine off during regen.and it was from the DEF being pulled back into the tank .? any one know ?

Will it tell you when the STUPID oil pump belt is about to fail/

According to Gm you don’t have to worry about regen. It can be partially completed.

I bought Idash when got my truck. Only time smell anything is when first got after that nothing. Have 2600 miles on LM2 show showing regen every 230 miles. Guage is not necessary if shutoff in middle of regen it just finish later. Otherwise it say it on DIC not shutoff.

Wow, that’s almost two much information on the Idash. You can turn the truck off just like normal it will pick up where it left off. You’ll notice a melting plastic smell especially the first time. Also the exhaust note will change. It will actually sound more like a “old school” diesel when in regen. Regen will happen basically once per a tank unless your towing or underload as that will change the aspect for when truck goes into regen. Basically you can drive the truck like a normal gas truck. Only change is adding DEF (usually every 10K, unless towing) and fuel filter. I always thought about getting the Idash but never did. Glad I didn’t, just seems like one could easily over complicate a simple system.

I have a 2022 AT4 LM2 that tells you it's in regen on the DIC. Is this LM2 only?

I have a Scangauge II on my 2021 LM2 and after getting it updated (you have to send it in), I set it to display Soot load % and regen status as well as oil temp and trans temp. It's good to know when it's going into regen so you can plan a little if you see it nearing 100% soot. What I did notice is that regen will turn off if you just idle it so if you want to complete it, you have to keep driving. I think it's better to let it finish regen so that it doesn't have to resume it if you stop it. And it also doesn't always resume it neither. I think if it's below a certain %, it won't resume it on the next engine restart. Another cool thing I noticed was when I was towing out 7000# RV trailer, it doesn't go into regen but the soot % would go down along with the DEF. I think it's working hard enough to have high enough exhaust temps to be in a continuous slow regen.

I can tell you that the Ecodiesel didn’t tell you when it was in regen & apparently, it was always in regen mode. That was by far the worst diesel on the planet. Thank God for lemon laws.

Any update coming soon?

My dealership told me that the idash will void your warranty ?

Just drive the damn thing like you said in other video! Who really needs to know all that info or gm would have made it avail on the display. Or not ha. Low to see a CAE or pedal monster upgrade instead.

And will this void warranty?

My 23' LZ0 is averaging 160miles between regen. WTH!! I can watch the soot level click up with every mile at highway speeds!

Thos is why gm doesn't tell u this stuff. Cause 99% of people have no clue

You need soot load %

A $150 diagnostic scanner at most any auto parts store will also give you all the same data/information.

It won’t regen at idle !!!!!

There's 11 1/2 minutes of my life I won't get back

Last GM diesel I owned ,or ever will own ,nox sensor 1&2 replaced 3 times Def fluid heater ,Cp4 pump $13,500 nothing but $$$$ pits ! I’m back to gas and couldn’t be happier ! GM never again 👎👎👎👎

Doesn’t matter plus I don’t care

I think it's worth it but it's so complicated. Yeesh!

The banks idash is more then telling if your truck is in regen, you can scan for codes and they will tell you what they are. You can check injector rates. The idash is for someone who wants to know what going on with their truck and to be intune with their truck. With all the parameters is can scan and log as data,that is what is important to me. It’s just another tool that helps you know how your truck is performing. Is used mine to advise GM about a severe overheating issue, and was able to capture it on the idash.

So I believe the 3.0 Duramax will have a similar strategy as the Ecodiesel concerning regen. The Ecodiesel does not display regen information on the instrument cluster screen with mfg stock tune unless you reach 80%> full on the DPF filter. On the banks reader, you should see the truck go into regen when it hits somewhere around 60% and it will turn off when it feels it’s sufficiently low (I believe with ram it’s 20% full). Rinse repeat. This is the normal process with no driver notification. Only when the truck is driven short trips repeatedly and the filter does not have a chance to be cleaned during the “background” regen will you get a notice on the screen to drive at highway speeds and there will be a “percentage full” countdown advising when the regen is complete. Owners manual will tell you in greater detail perhaps within diesel engine manual supplement which can come separately depending on how GM packages this for the light duty trucks.