I previously worked on the GM "displacement-on-demand" system, and also a stillborn prooject to do deactivation on Ford's Triton V-10. In the GM system, oil flow to the lifters was re-routed through modified transmission solenoid valves such that individual lifters could be collapsed by shutting off oil flow. Individual cylinders, or groups, or just one bank, could be shut off, depending on how elaborate a plumbing setup you wanted to add to the motor. It's a quite simple and elegant engineering solution. We saw different engine operating modes being utilized by GM during development.(cylinder skipping, shutting down one bank, etc . . .)
The Ford System was infinitely more complex, as the engine is OHC. Special rocker arms, containing rollers within an inner carrier frame, pivoting on a fulcrum within the main rocker frame, with latching pins, were utilized. Each valve had a solenoid to latch unlatch the pin, via an articulated rotating lever arm. If connected, the cam motion was translated through the roller, through the rocker arm to the valve. If you energized the solenoid, and pulled the pin, then the mechanical connection between the seperately framed roller, and the rocker outer frame was released, and the roller rocker would just ride harmessly over the cam profile, and no motion was translated to the valve.
This system was contained entirely on one bank, and added to a hellishly complex electro-mechanical abomination, hiding under that one cam cover, that would have made Rube Goldberg blush with envy. Needless to say, that project died, as least as far as my company's involvement. The solenoids we developed were really trick, modular, and actually cost effective. However, stuffing 15 of them, along with all the mechanical wackycontraptionthingiemabobsandwhatchamacallits that went along with it was a packaging nightmare. It all worked, as a one-off exercise (in futility, perhaps?) However, there was no way you were going to put it into production, and have it assembled in a typical automotive engine plant.
After all of that, the Ford system would have deactivated only one bank, odd firing order and all.
-Tony Staples