ericdwong

OK before I get flamed too badly for this, hear me out on my idea

Background on me and my situation

• My car has been off the road for 3 years now
• It is nearly totally disassembled -
  • engine and drive train are out
  • I didn't remove the body but everything is accessible
  • I have to do rust treatment to the frame from winter driving
  • The brake lines are rusty so I have to replace them too
• I've been on these boards for over 15 years, read and studied every ECBM/ABS and PCM swap thread there is in depth
  • Aside from engine machining work (already done) I'm doing all the work myself
  • I have a fairly good handle with electronics and mechanics though this is my first major extensive project like this
• My original plan was to just put everything back together with the 98's PCM and ECBM (no trouble yet)- non active handling car - then swap in the 01+ PCM only later on once I got it running on the 98s computer

My Evil Thought:

• Then today I had an evil thought- since my car is already disassembled as it is, needs new brake lines already, why can't I find the major power train electronics out of a wrecked 01+ and swap them in. The harness is easily accessible and the engine/drivetrain are already out.
• The 98s ECBM is likely a ticking time bomb already
• If I got indeed everything, I could theoretically put in second generation active handling
• Obviously there will be misc oddities I'll have to figure out but if I can find one that was rolled with someone who took the drivetrain out already, that might be just the ticket
  • I'll have to swap things down to the steering wheel position sensor etc, perhaps add the fuel pressure sensors in the tanks and get to know both 98 and 01+ wiring very well

Risks

• Obviously this is huge uncharted territory that something won't work
• couple that with me rebuilding the engine AND trans and the rear there's lots of things to stack up that could double the chances of going wrong

Other Considerations

• This would set me back timewise even longer and require even more $ to be sunk in
  • However- if this works I'll have the newer, more powerful and replaceable electronics to contend with and not the ticking time bomb 1998 stuff
  • This is really the ideal time to do this as disassembled as the car is
• Is it worth it time and money wise? At this point not at all, it would have been more practical to trade it in while it was still running and buy a new one
  • However- I love tinkering with cars
  • I've lived without the 'vette for this long already
  • I have other vehicles to drive, so this has become a toy
  • I drove the vette for 14 years year round, racked up 200k miles

So, am I crazy? I'll start searching for potential donor cars. Other thoughts?

BigGun

This post will help.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...m-success.html

Fastbird

Bingo.

Actually, before I bandwagon that above answer too bad, I ask this. WHY. Obviously for the EBCM, but why the rest? Adapting for a 01+ PCM isn't that big of a deal, certainly less headache than swapping an entire vehicles harness out. And unless you're really pushing the limits of the PCM, the 98 will be fine.

ericdwong

Thanks for the responses so far- that was the thread I was actually reading when I thought of the idea.
As for WHY:

1. well, if the car is already disassembled as it is- everything is already accessible. My car does not have Active Handling now (I know, no big deal to some) but if I need to put the sensors in place anyway (read about it on the thread) for the newer ECBM, then that's just icing on the cake. When I first got this car back in 2002, I wanted one with Active handling (yes I know, 1st gen). This car was a bit of a compromise, it had every option I wanted, EXCEPT for AH. At the time I had limited funds and could not afford a newer version, as the C5 was still being made then, so I settled for an earlier one
   
2. I'm trying to future proof this thing- as much time as I've had with it, and since I won't get much $ trying to sell it, With my luck, I'll get it running then the ECBM will die, then being a non-AH car, I'll have to try putting in the missing yaw/accelerator sensors anyway with the car fully assembled. I am not willing to drive around with the T/C and ABS lights continuously illuminated.
   
3. To my knowledge, nobody has put AH into a non-AH car yet. All the threads so far- have been, repin existing wiring harness to upgrade the PCM, or (like the thread referenced), retro fit newer ECBM into an older car that already had 1st gen AH. This project would take it one step further, actually adding in Active handling into a non AH car. From my research, there were many who asked about the non-AH cars and the swap but I do not believe anybody has actually tried. Without those added sensors that adds AH - the newer ECBM I do not believe would work anyway, thereby defeating the whole point of putting in the newer ECBM to begin with.

Still on the fence. Of course the easier way would be to chicken out, go back to plan A of running the 98's PCM and crossing fingers the ECBM doesn't die. I'll keep my eyes open for a wreck though..

93Polo

If I were future proofing the car I would stay non-AH. If you are driving that aggressive take the time and have fun learning to drive at HPDEs further it would introduce more parts that can fail.

If you have a complete harnesses I can see it being easier to lay the harnesses than doing the EBCM and repins. Then repin the PCM if it fails. Further if you do repin there is the chance that you bend, don't fully secure or put a pin out of place.

I would not change it if everything is working but if you did find a complete harnesses at a good price I would considering storing them until you did have a problem. I grew up with parents that were into C2s, Corvette parts don't get cheaper.

jackthelad

Somewhere in the C5 lifespan, was there not a change in the protocol used on the bus which connects all the components? Have no idea when that happened, tho'.

Does your '98 have the EBCM at the front or rear? The early cars have it back behind the diff, later ones are toward the front.
Personally, I think you are looking at an awful lot of complication, but good luck. If it was me though, as cheap as C5's are these days, I would re-assemble the '98 as is, sell it and buy a later one.

93Polo

While I agree, Eric has been on this forum a long time, and people don't want to sell their cars that they've had a long time just to get another especially if their car is something unique if only to them. I bought an '01 Z06 when I jumped back in the C5 game and would only consider an '01 to '03 and would not consider the '04 fuel system.

jackthelad

I've had mine since I bought it new in 1997. That's does not mean that if I wanted the features (or spare parts availability) of a newer model that I would not replace it in a heartbeat. In fact if some unavailable part goes "pop", it will be up for sale and I will move on. But that's me - I ceased to be emotional over my cars a long time ago.

ericdwong

Mine has the ECBM in the front.

There is some emotional attachment to this one, my dad helped me out buying this car when I was a college student and I lost him not too long ago.

I've definitely thought of just unloading this one but I've also done quite a few projects on this and know most of the history on it since I owned it the bulk of its existence. I like going out, finding used/junkyard parts to upgrade things. I'm also the type who will drive a car until the wheels fall off, as I prefer older, depreciated cars that I can tinker with than a newer stock car. My mom blew up her engine in her 200k+ mile mid 2000's Honda Civic, instead of junking it I sourced a 30k mile engine from a boneyard- drove 150 miles one way to get it and swapped it out on my own. I thoroughly enjoyed that project, from hunting and sourcing the parts to actually doing the swap, learning more about that model and wrenching on cars in general.

On this one, I purposely wanted to build an engine for the experience as I've never done that before, though it's taken me a little longer than I had originally planned haha. To me, it's too easy to simply sell the car and buy a new one- there's no challenge in that.

I'll still keep my eyes peeled for harnesses etc from a newer car, one forum member already PM'd me with a potential. Different strokes for different folks for sure. Can always go back to plan A

lionelhutz

For the non-AH cars, 2 extra wires are required for the 2 extra sensors. But, the older SWPS has 2 extra wires that the newer SWPS doesn't need, so there are wires from the EBTCM to the cabin that could be used for the new sensors. The SWPS has the required 5V and GND wires for the other sensors, so it would just mean mounting the sensors and extending 4 wires from the SWPS to the new sensors. The only difference in the end would likely be the wire colors for the 2 extra sensors would be different compared to stock. I can't recall the colors offhand, but I expect they are different.